“Diamonds are forever” it is often said. “But lives are not”, says Martin Chungong Ayafor, Chairman of the Sierra Leone Panel of Experts, “We must spare people the ordeal of war, mutilations and death for the sake of conflict diamonds.” (United Nations 2). This is a very powerful quote from someone who has and is experiencing (Gerund) firsthand the gruesome terror of the conflict over diamonds in Africa. This war has started because of the greed for money and power in the abundant diamond industry in the different parts of Africa by the R.U.F. In Sierra Leone alone, about 20,000 innocent people have suffered bodily mutilation, 75,000 people have been killed, and around 2,000,000 people have fled Sierra Leone because of the genocide, or mass murdering (Gerund) done by the rebel factions. However, with the help of the United Nations and many other organizations around the world, they have been able to galvanize (Infinitive and a Vocab Word) this problem. The United Nations has also been able to reach agreements with some of the rebel groups to make sure they stop terrorizing parts of Africa, and also by creating a charter “to ban governments from obtaining funds from illicit diamonds.” (United Nations 3). Conflict diamonds by definition are, “diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces or factions opposed (Participle) to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments.” (United Nations 1). Conflict diamonds are one of the main reasons why wars in Africa are being prolonged, and for the stifling of economies and development in other countries around Africa. In Sierra Leone and Angola, conflict diamonds are used to fund many milit... ... middle of paper ... ...s indicted some key people involved in the slaughter of millions of condemned African people. Even though there have been efforts in an attempt to stop this from happening, it is still currently going on and having a herculean impact on the way diamonds are bought and sold around the world. Luckily, people have spent many years coming up with ways to make the diamond mining industry more honest. If we as a world can find equal alternatives to the illegal diamond mining in Africa, then this would just be one step closer to achieving a more peaceful world. Works Cited Brown, Pervenia P. “Blood Diamonds.” World Press. N.p., 13 Dec. 2005. Web. 16 Nov. 2011. Hoyt, Alia. “How the African Diamond Trade Works.” How Stuff Works. N.p., 2011. Web. 16 Nov. 2011. United Nations. “Conflict Diamonds Sanctions and War.” United Nations. N.p., 21 Mar. 2001. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.
To conclude, the video “Caravans of Gold” by Basil Davidson, the aim of the video was to give the viewers a better understanding of how Africa and its empires used their supply of gold as an advantage to their success. It embodied critical points to vindicate why Africa was such an intricate nation because how they use gold and the various empires that used gold to their benefit. By discovering the complexity of Africa, people are able to have a better clarification of this continent and how it flourished because of its
Being located in the west coast of Africa and between Guinea and Liberia, “Sierra Leone has an abundance of easily extractable diamonds”(BBC News). The diamonds had brought “encouragement” for violence in the country in 1991. Attacks of the Revolutionary “United Front (RUF) ,led by former army corporal Foday Sankoh”(Encyclopedia Britannica), were on government military and civilians. In response to a corrupt government, the RUF performed violent and terrorist acts that scarred many. “The RUF captured civilians and forced them to work”(Analyzing the Causes) in their army to gain control over Sierra Leone. The savages went a...
"Peacekeeping and Peacemaking." Reading and Remembrance . N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2014. . (tags: none | edit tags)
Whilst the Civil War in Sierra Leone now seems archaic, the RUF still competes in a battle for control over the diamond-producing regions of Sierra Leone.
Thompson, William R and Rasler, Karen A., ‘War and Systemic Capability Reconcentration’ The Journal of Conflict Resolution, 32, 2, 1988, p. 337
The United Nations General Assembly 36-103 focused on topics of hostile relations between states and justification for international interventions. Specifically mentioned at the UNGA was the right of a state to perform an intervention on the basis of “solving outstanding international issues” and contributing to the removal of global “conflicts and interference". (Resolution 36/103, e). My paper will examine the merits of these rights, what the GA was arguing for and against, and explore relevant global events that can suggest the importance of this discussion and what it has achieved or materialized.
A beautiful precious diamond can last forever, but what most people do not know is that a majority of our diamonds come from Africa. The civil wars in Africa over diamonds began around 1961 and ended in 2003. Conflict diamonds were rampant and it would be difficult to say if any jewelry sold prior to 2003 was conflict free. Conflict diamonds are diamonds that have been mined and were controlled by African rebels. The rebels would use the profits from selling conflict diamonds to fund illegal activity and to purchase more weapons for their armies. While rebels had control of the diamond mines they killed approximately 4 million people and countless families were displaced.
Said to be a girl's best friend, diamonds are often seen as a symbol of poverty, war, and death for many Africans. Due to the cruel and inhuman manner by which these diamonds are mined and process, the trade of these illicit gems must be stopped. Conflict diamonds or blood diamonds are often associated with war, forced labor, child labor, and smuggling. Paul Orogun wrote an article for in the journal, World Affairs, where he describes some of the brutal conflicts in recent African history. “Blood Diamonds and Africa's Armed Conflicts in the Post—Cold War Era”, in which he talks about the conflicts associated with the illegal diamond trade. Orogun de...
Deep within African mines, elusive diamonds lay enveloped in the Earth’s crust. Possessing much influence, beauty, and tension, nature’s hardest known substance causes parallel occurrences of unity and destruction on opposite sides of the globe. Diamonds, derived from the Greek word "adamas", meaning invincible, are formed deep within the mantle, and are composed entirely from carbon. Moreover, only under tremendous amounts of heat and pressure can diamonds form into their preliminary crystal state. In fact, diamonds are formed approximately 150km- 200km below the surface and at radical temperatures ranging from 900-1300 C°. When these extremes meet, carbon atoms are forced together creating diamond crystals. Yet how do these gems, ranking a ten on Moh’s hardness scale, impact the individual lives of millions of people besides coaxing a squeal out of brides-to-be? These colorless, yellow, brown, green, blue, reddish, pink, grey and black minerals are gorgeous in their cut state, but how are these otherwise dull gems recognized and harvested? Furthermore, how and why is bloodshed and violence caused over diamonds in Africa, the supplier of approximately 65% of the world’s diamonds? (Bertoni) The environmental, social, and economic impact of harvesting, transporting, and processing diamonds is crucial because contrary to popular belief, much blood has been spilled over first-world “bling”.
The movie "Blood Diamond" was released in 2006 and featured Leonardo Di Caprio as an arms smuggler whose main goal is to obtain a seemingly priceless diamond from a villager during the civil war in Sierra Leone. The film marker is trying to raise awareness of the illicit conflict diamond trade and reinforcing the Kimberley process and showing how it will stem the flow of conflict diamonds. Blood Diamonds explores the underground world of the diamond trade in Sierra Leone, where rare diamonds are used to fund military rebels at war. The film is based on Archer, a man with a survival instinct and a passion for collecting conflict diamonds. The film opens in Sierra Leone, 1999 when Civil war rages for control of the diamond fields. According to
[5] Diamond Industry Annual Review, De Beers Signs New Angolan Agreement, [internet] Accessed on: 13th November 2005, http://www.pacweb.org/e/images/stories/documents/addendum%20angola%202005-english.pdf
Be it diamonds, gold or any valuable resource, conflicts will continue to rear its face on this Earth due to the insatiable greed of humans. We must be contented or we are preparing for an Armageddon.
... rebel fighters and insurgencies. The practice is most often associated with conflicts in Africa. The argument surrounding blood diamonds was brought to light in the early 1990s with civil wars in Sierra Leone, Angola, the Republic of Congo, and Liberia. During this time, blood diamonds comprised about 5 percent of the world diamond market, according to the World Diamond Council’s DiamondFacts.org website.
UN. Department of Public Information (1995). United Nations peace-keeping: Information notes. Update, December 1994. Retrieved from UN website: http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/unikom/background.html
The third determinant of the diamond – related and supporting industries looks at the industry suppliers and...