Civil Society Challenges Conflict Diamond "Breakthrough"
May 22, 25
(IDEX Online) - The Kimberley Process (KP) remains a long way from reaching a consensus on redefining "conflict diamonds", according to the watchdog group Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition (KP CSC).
Last week Feriel Zerouki, president of the World Diamond Council said there had been a significant breakthrough following a five-day intersessional meeting in the UAE.
"From the KP CSC's perspective, it is unclear where such a breakthrough occurred," the group said in a statement issued today (22 May).
"Unless the mere fact that some participants are still trying to keep the conversation going, after two and a half years of difficult discussions and entrenched positions, is being considered a turning point."
There have been widespread calls, especially after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, to include state actors and others.
Zerouki praised African producers for kickstarting the debate last week and said that the KP was almost at the finishing line in its quest to broaden a 2003 definition that applies only to rough diamonds used to finance civil wars.
But the KP CSC was markedly less optimistic.
"The African Diamond Producers Association (ADPA) made a commendable effort to keep the debate alive," it said.
"Yet the divisions remain deep, and we are still far from reaching consensus on a meaningful update to the definition."