Fair Trade Diamonds

I don't mean to sound dismayed in this report but the fair trade issue is a really tricky one.  Would it be wrong of me to say that sometimes Africa is it's own worst enemy?  I am thinking of issues such as the blatant spread of HIV by informed carriers.  I would enjoy some dialogue on this and would welcome your comments to fraser@diamond.ie

In 2005/2006 the Rapaport Diamond Corporation invested $50,000 dollars in a project to produce diamonds from a fair trade initiative.  Through Martin Rapaport's passion for Africa, the funding for this came from his own company.  The return was something like $1000 of rough diamonds.  When the parcel was opened in Las Vegas in June it was met by dismay from those present.

This is not the first attempt to set up fair trade mining in Sierra Leone.  In the first attempt Rapaport and the other sponsors collaborated with the regional government and gave them about $15,000 to coordinate a project.  No one knows to this day where the money went.

In the most recent venture, their effort was a little more hands on but still at some point along the way the diamonds that were mined got into the wrong hands and were replaced with a handful of worthless crud to the chagrin and humiliation of the international diamond industry.

What can I say?  The brave faces in the images provided here show a determination to continue until we find a solution but until African government and business finds some of it's own integrity the progress is going to be very, very slow.  Having said that, these images capture a significant point in history towards helping Africa create a fair trade diamonds industry.

At this point, what can we do ... declare that DeBeer's state of the art mines in Canada are "fair trade" and tell consumers to only buy Canadian produce?  At the same time do we say that workers in Africa toil in third world conditions to find diamonds and therefore we should not buy from there?  Even Nelson Mandela implores people to keep buying diamonds from Africa - the industry holds the key to a better future.  The fact is, if you stop buying diamonds from Africa children will starve.

Children should be in school you say (to broach an even thornier topic).  My friend Stephen Brimble (standing to my right in the group photo) is the Chief Commissioner of Diamond Resources in the Congo.  The Congo is one of the poorest African countries.  Stephen has set up a non-De Beers diamond exchange in partnership with the "President de la republique service national" (the government / controlling authority) with the goal of creating better trade terms for rough diamonds mined in the Congo.  It is an amazingly dangerous posts and at all time he is guarded by four army members with automatic weapons!

He told me of a boy that he rescued from the side of the road.  The boy was almost dead.  Stephen saved his life and gave him a job in his facility.

He showed me pictures of him with big white teeth, a nice orange uniform and looking very happy with himself.  This boy could not go to school if he wanted to.  Why?  Well, there is no school for starters, secondly, without a form of income he would die back on the street.

Folks ... you choose - you can join the popularity vote seekers with their simplistic outcries against the diamond industry and its issues or you can listen to what is really happening and support Africa through your awareness and ultimately buying their wonderful natural resources - diamonds.

Fair trade diamonds news: Back to main page