A U.N. panel of experts estimates that 140,000 carats of diamonds—with a retail value of $24 million—have been smuggled out of the country since it was suspended in May 2013.
What percentage of diamonds are blood diamonds? According to the diamond business, conflict diamonds account for 4% of all rough diamond traffic. However, according to some estimates, the percentage of conflict diamonds in the whole trade could reach 15%.
The World Diamond Council reported that by 2004 this percentage had fallen to approximately 1% and up to today the World Diamond Council refers to this illegal trade to be virtually eliminated, meaning that more than 99% of diamonds being sold have a legal background.
Before purchasing a diamond, it's imperative that you ensure it's conflict-free. Diamonds that are not conflict-free are known as blood diamonds, which means they are illegally sold in order to finance devastating wars and terrorism.
blood diamond, also called conflict diamond, as defined by the United Nations (UN), any diamond that is mined in areas controlled by forces opposed to the legitimate, internationally recognized government of a country and that is sold to fund military action against that government.
These diamonds are mined by men, women, and children, and were historically used to fund war-stricken areas, particularly in western and central Africa. These days, blood diamonds are causing bloodshed by inciting wars for their diamond-rich territories.
Carbonados, sometimes called "black diamonds," are a distinct and unusual polycrystalline diamond material.
Tiffany & Co. only offers conflict-free diamonds. We have taken rigorous steps to assure that conflict diamonds do not enter our inventory. As global leaders in sustainable luxury, Tiffany & Co. is committed to sourcing natural and precious materials in an ethical and sustainable manner.
In the last decade, blood diamonds have been virtually eliminated from the global marketplace. Stricter regulation, as well as a renewed commitment from diamond manufacturers and retailers to work only with ethical suppliers, has transformed the global diamond industry for the better.
Diamonds that are not conflict-free are known as blood diamonds, which means they are illegally sold in order to finance devastating wars and terrorism.
Child workers are used as slaves since business owners exploit them as cheap employment to raise more profit and diamond industry is "an infamous venue of exploitation towards youth workers" like mines and sweatshops in South Africa or India while the diamond is overpriced and funded for wars.
Diamonds have funded brutal wars in countries such as Angola, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, resulting in the death and displacement of millions of people. There is a reason they are dubbed 'Blood Diamonds'.
Though Blood Diamond revolves around fictional characters, the events are based on real experiences of individuals in Sierra Leone during the civil war. The film depicts village attacks by rebel groups, the enslavement of Sierra Leoneans, the use of child soldiers, and illicit markets that are often ignored.
Blood diamonds are rare, and thankfully rebel groups often struggle to mine the precious stones.
The Costs of Conflict Diamonds:
The war between 1991 and 1999 claimed over 75,000 lives, caused 500,000 Sierra Leoneans to become refugees, and displaced half of the countries 4.5 million people[6].
Conflict diamonds are diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces or factions opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments, or in contravention of the decisions of the Security Council.
The problem is the backstory of the yellow Tiffany diamond. Found in the Kimberley diamond mines in South Africa (under British rule) in 1877 as a 287.42 carat rough stone, it was later purchased by Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1878 for $18,000. Its estimated worth today is $30 million.
We recommend two online vendors, Blue Nile and James Allen, because they're highly committed to choosing ethically sourced diamonds—and offer high-quality diamonds at competitive prices. Blue Nile maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward conflict diamonds.
Diamonds with violent histories are still being mined and allowed to enter the diamond supply, where they become indistinguishable from other gems.
Because of the Kimberley Process, 99.8% of diamonds are now certified conflict-free and there is much greater accountability and transparency in the diamond industry.
Red diamonds are the rarest of the colored diamonds, with only 20-30 existing in the entire world. They get their beautiful red color from a rare process during their formation, which changes the crystal structure of the diamond and causes light to pass through it differently than colorless diamonds.
What are Chocolate Diamonds®? Chocolate Diamonds are Le Vian's brand of brown or golden-hued natural diamonds, carefully selected for their rich deep colors. Only natural diamonds that meet Le Vian's exacting standards of clarity, quality, cut, and color will be worthy of the name Chocolate Diamond®.
Among all those fancy color diamonds, red is the rarest color. They are so rare that less than thirty true red natural diamonds are known to exist. A radiant cut red diamond mounted in a diamond ring from Leibish.