Global attention to these blood diamonds can be a critically important means of curtailing Mugabe's human rights violations and securing a genuinely inclusive government.Įight years ago, in the aftermath of horrific abuses committed by West African rebel groups enriched by diamond wealth, an international body backed by the United Nations was founded to ensure that traders and consumers could identify blood diamonds and prevent their trade. Mugabe is now part of a government based on a power-sharing deal with the former opposition party, with which he refuses to share either actual power or diamond revenue. They have unfettered access to the fields and seek to use diamond revenue to maintain their grip on power, despite the targeted international sanctions against them. The beneficiaries of this diamond wealth are largely members of the military, government-appointed corporate entities, and officials in President Robert Mugabe's inner circle. People near the military-controlled fields live in constant fear and in abject poverty, benefiting little from the diamond riches that surround them. We documented the killings of hundreds of people by the Zimbabwean military, torture, and the use of forced labour - including children - in the diamond fields. But, Human Rights Watch travelled regularly to the area in 2009 and interviewed more than hundred victims and witnesses of horrific human rights abuses. But, this jewellery, if it contains diamonds from the Marange diamond fields in eastern Zimbabwe, could have a bloody past signifying mistreatment and abuse.įew outsiders have penetrated the closely guarded diamond fields in Marange. When people buy diamond jewellery, they often want to convey love or commitment to someone dear and special.
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