RAPAPORT… The World Diamond Council (WDC) has renewed its call to Kimberley Process (KP) participants to act swiftly and effectively to resolve the situation and take appropriate measures to protect the future integrity of the Kimberley Process.
In a statement issued on October 30, the WDC expressed its support for the call by Partnership Africa Canada (PAC) to KP participants to “move quickly when there are credible indications of non-compliance with its standards, and to take decisive action that demonstrates to all participants, the industry and diamond consumers that it is protecting their interests and – more importantly- that is working to ensure that the scourge of conflict diamonds ends, forever.”
The WDC statement noted that a well governed and effectively implemented Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is of paramount importance and benefit to the diamond industry. “Millions of people around the world, many of them in developing countries, depend on diamonds for their livelihoods and each of us recognizes the need for a well managed system that delivers transparency and confidence to the consumer. The WDC has always worked hard to ensure this objective is met, in full,” the statement read.
On October 27, PAC released its report, ‘Killing Kimberley? Conflict Diamonds and Paper Tigers,’ just ahead of the Kimberley Process annual meeting – due to be held November 6-9, 2006, in Gaborone, Botswana. The report points out that while the Kimberley Process “has been very successful,” recent events have highlighted the need for participating governments to urgently address some important issues.