Blood Diamonds

Blood Diamonds

Industry Response - The Kimberley Process

Blood Diamonds. Sounds nasty, doesn’t it?

What Are Blood Diamonds?

“Blood Diamonds” is the term used for diamonds that were sold as a way to finance tribal wars in Africa. In conflict areas, the sale of diamonds would be used to finance the purchase of weapons that would then be used to wantonly kill innocent people,
along with funding all sorts of other illegal, and usually immoral, activities.

Blood Diamonds

The industry realized this is a problem. First of all, it is illegal and immoral to buy such diamond, and nobody wants to support, no matter how indirectly, such activities. As well, the cries and complaints from the consumer end, i.e. you, started to increase, and people did not want to buy diamonds from conflict areas. Because it is difficult to know whether a diamond is a “blood diamond” or not, people started protesting and avoiding buying diamonds completely.

Industry Response – The Kimberley Process

In an effort to guarantee that the diamond you buy is not a “Blood Diamond”, and therefore bring back the sale of legitimate diamonds, the industry brought about what became known as “The Kimberley Process Certification”.

The Kimberley Process, otherwise known by just the name “Kimberley”, is a certification system that guarantees that this stone, is not a blood diamond. Your country must be part of the agreement, and so far, since 2003, something like 69 countries have joined the Kimberley agreement.

Are You Buying A blood Diamond?

While blood diamonds are still around in some countries, and no certification process is perfect, Kimberley has improved the situation. You can be fairly confident buying our diamond that it is not a Blood Diamond. Especially if you are buying from a
reputable broker.

Questions? Don’t understand something someone told you about diamonds? Not sure if you should really buy that diamond?

Email me at diamonds@clarityofdiamonds.com and ask!

Be sure to check out the Clarity of Diamonds home page for daily recommendations of
great value diamond purchases.