A top United States jeweller, Blue Nile, has blacklisted Zimbabwean diamonds over reports of human rights abuses in Manicaland’s Marange district.
Blue Nile said that it was committed to ensuring that the highest ethical standards were observed. It also said that this was in line with guidelines by the global diamond watcher, the Kimberley Process. In a statement, the jewel trader said:
Because of the reported human rights abuses in Zimbabwe’s Marange diamond district, Blue Nile will not purchase or offer diamonds from that area (Marange).
As a responsible member of the diamond and jewellery industry, we are working with our suppliers to ensure our consumers receive only the finest goods procured from ethical sources.
If one of our suppliers was ever found to be in violation of that process, we would immediately sever that relationship.
The executive director of the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) executive director, Farai Maguwu, supported the decision saying that since the discovery of diamonds in Marange, there have been reports of serious human rights violations particularly by the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) owned by the State. Maguwu said:
We endorse the decision by Blue Nile. It is the right thing to do. The use of torture and murder as punishment to artisanal miners in Marange has been widely reported resulting in consumers raising a red flag.
Reports suggest that security guards at ZCDC have been shooting and killing illegal artisanal miners since 2008.
More: News Day
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