The Conflict over Conflict-Free Diamonds

So…I had an exciting weekend – I got engaged last night! Besides marking the beginning of a fabulous new period in my life, it also provides me with a great opportunity to talk about conflict-free diamonds and alternatives.

Can you tell the difference??

What is a conflict diamond?
According to Wikipedia: In relation to diamond trading, blood diamond (also called a converted diamond, conflict diamond, hot diamond or a war diamond) refers to a diamond mined in a war zone and sold to finance an insurgency, invading army’s war efforts, or a warlord’s activity, usually in Africa. Specifically, blood diamonds have funded brutal conflicts in Africa that have resulted in the death and displacement of millions of people. Diamonds have also been used by terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda to finance their activities and for money-laundering purposes.

If you believe De Beers, there is no conflict – 99.8% of the world’s diamonds are certified conflict-free by the Kimberly Process.

First, please forgive me if I don’t take De Beer’s “word” for it. And you don’t have to, according to a publication by Global Witness dated nearly a year ago, from 2004 to 2006, illegal trade in rough diamonds worth $10.2 million took place between Kimberly Process participants and NON-participants. This allows illicit diamonds to evade the KP regulatory controls whose SOLE purpose it is to keep OUT conflict diamonds. Loopholes anyone? To be fair, the $10.2 million represents a smaller percentage of conflict diamonds than in years past, but it’s still not enough in my opinion.

And because the Kimberly Process is largely self-policing and based on trust, there is still a lot of room for questionable activities on the part of participating countries. This is undergoing reform with the oversight of Global Witness (whose report helped to substantiate the movie Blood Diamond) among other organizations.

What’s the bottom line?
There may not be the outcry over conflict diamonds that there was several years ago, and yes, the industry may have reformed, but it is still an important issue. Certification is available for conflict-free diamonds, but it doesn’t hurt to be extra careful…and cynical. Most of the information available comes from the diamond industry and De Beers itself…again, like I said before, please forgive me for not 100% trusting the very industry that supported the trade of conflict diamonds in the first place…

So. What’s a girl to do?
I admit, I’m not your typical girl. I never dreamed of a fairy tale wedding, and really couldn’t care less about diamonds. Sure, they’re pretty, but seriously, I’d rather have that “two months salary” that’s “supposed” to go to the diamond engagement ring to do more IMPORTANT things with. Like buy a house, save for the future…you know. I understand that’s not the most popular point of view and that diamonds trigger an emotional response in many women (De Beers has done their job well, no?), but that’s how I feel. Luckily, my fiance feels the same way. So I got a Moissanite engagement ring!

What is Moissanite?
Moissanite is a lab-created gemstone made from a single silicon carbide crystal, and is is in fact, more brilliant than a diamond.

I love my ring – it’s perfect for me, within our budget, and I know without a doubt that a terrorist group or civil warload did not profit from the purchase. But, if you still want a diamond, there are other options…

Lab created Diamonds
Gem quality Diamonds are also being created in a lab (they’ve actually been doing this for industrial diamonds for years) and have become much more readily available in recent years. They’re not cheap, and De Beers has put out quite a smear campaign against them, but they are a great alternative to mined diamonds if you want to be ABSOLUTELY sure your diamond is conflict-free. Hey, you can even get a diamond made from your grandmother’s remains if you want to! Ew.

Canadian Diamonds
There are also a couple of Canadian diamond mines that are conflict free (Diavik and Ekati mines); you can buy diamonds from them through Brilliant Earth – who also sells fair trade diamonds and donates 5% of their profits to African communities. Other countries like Russia and Australia also produce conflict-free diamonds, you just have to be certain of the certification from the mine to the jeweler.

If you’re concerned about where your diamond comes from (and I really think you should be), know the facts, go to the jeweler armed with information, scrutinize the certifications, and you should be okay. But if you don’t need a diamond, take a look at some of the lab-created alternatives like Moissanite and man made diamonds – they’re not any less special than a “real” diamond from De Beers, in fact, I think they’re MORE meaningful AND sustainable. It’s all about what’s important to you

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