Zim escapes diamond ban despite rampant rights abuses

By Alex Bell
05 November 2009

The government’s campaign to lobby for support of the country’s continued participation in the global diamond trade has paid off, with the country escaping a ban by international diamond regulatory body, the Kimberley Process.

A decision on Zimbabwe’s future was taken on Thursday after two days of intense debate by Kimberley Process members in Namibia, over how to deal with a country that has openly flouted international diamond trade standards. A review mission sent by the regulatory body more than four months ago, to investigate Zimbabwe’s compliance with such standards, reported on mass violations, including smuggling and rampant human rights abuse. But despite the delegation itself recommending a ban from international diamond trade, as well as evidence of atrocities committed by soldiers at the diamond fields, tough action on Zimbabwe will not be taken.

The agreement that was eventually reached has been described as a ‘watered down’ compromise, which essentially will do nothing to immediately stop the ongoing human rights abuses still taking place in the Chiadzwa diamond fields. Instead the Kimberley Process has resolved to adopt a Joint Work Plan, proposed by the Zimbabwe government itself, which will give the country more time to meet basic trade standards. The plan also calls for an independent monitor to be in place to inspect diamonds leaving the Chiadzwa fields, and will also see the Kimberley Process provide ‘technical assistance’ to the country to help it become fully compliant.

The plan at no point takes into account that human rights abuses are still ongoing in Chiadzwa, where the military has tightened its brutal control of diamond panners and civilians alike. Months ago the Kimberley Process review mission had urged the government to demilitarise the diamond fields, but this recommendation has been completely ignored. The new plan adopted by the Kimberley Process does not even call for the military’s control to be stopped. Instead, the plan will work towards the ‘gradual’ phasing out of the same people responsible for mass atrocities in Chiadzwa.

The government’s lobbying campaign in Namibia has included intimidation of NGOs and rights activists for reporting on the rights abuses, as well as open denials that the atrocities are taking place. But evidence of the abuse is staggering, leading to widespread calls by human rights groups and NGOs for Zimbabwe to be banned. The decision taken Thursday by the Kimberley Process is now set to anger those groups, who have previously also called for the regulatory body itself to be drastically overhauled and reformed.

Such calls have been echoed by a key architect of the Kimberley Process when it was formed in 2002. Ian Smillie, a leading expert on conflict diamonds who has since publicly denounced the Kimberley Process as ineffective, told SW Radio Africa the decision on Zimbabwe is ‘very disappointing’.

“The Kimberley Process should have realised that its whole future was at stake by how they handled the Zimbabwe diamond crisis,” Smillie said. “They have failed the country with this decision.”

Smillie explained that the regulatory body works on an ineffective ‘consensus’ basis. That means if one government objects to a proposed course of action, it cannot move forward, “no matter how many others are in favour.” In Zimbabwe’s case, South Africa, Namibia, the DRC and Russia all refused to sanction the suspension that had been recommended. Smillie said that “once that was clear, they then turned their attention to what else might be done.” He explained the “costly system of inspections and assistance to Zimbabwe,” in the form of the new plan, ‘obscures’ the real problem and demonstrates that the Kimberley Process is a toothless and ineffectual body.

“Until they end this one-man-one-veto arrangement and develop an independent, arms length monitoring system, the KP will be as worthless as its decisions in Namibia,” Smillie said.