The diamond trade is extremely profitable. Annual sales of diamond jewellery exceed US $50 billion, according to De Beers, the world’s largest supplier of diamonds. Their annual sales of rough diamonds bring in revenue of over US $7 billion. The success of the industry is largely due to culture and tradition. Gifts of diamonds have come to signify rites of passage, the best known being the diamond engagement ring.

The tradition of a ring to symbolise a formal agreement of intended marriage has existed for centuries, but the diamond engagement ring has not. Archduke Maximilian of Hamburg is credited with giving the first diamond betrothal ring to Mary of Burgendy in 1477, beginning the custom of diamond engagement rings among the wealthy. This was limited to royalty and aristocrats, both to maintain the distinction between social classes and because of the scarcity and high price of the stones.

The use of diamonds in jewelry became more popular following their discovery in Brazil and South Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries, increasing the supply. But it was not until the mid-20th century that the diamond engagement ring became a tradition of the masses. A highly successful 1947 marketing campaign by De Beers stated that “a diamond is forever”, converting the diamond engagement ring from a luxury to a necessity for the modern bride. Today it is estimated that 78 percent of engagement rings sold each year are set with diamonds.

But while in many societies, diamonds represent everlasting commitment, rarity, purity and beauty, in others they represent corruption and conflict. Legal exports from Sierra Leone in 1999 accounted for only US $1.5 million of the estimated US $300 million value of diamond exports, meaning 99.5 percent of the country’s diamond wealth was stolen.

Where did the money go?

Illicit trade in diamonds – involving the looting of state funds, altering of official records, smuggling and black market sales – has directly funded brutal wars in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Civil society organisations such as Global Witness, Partnership Africa Canada and Amnesty International have closely monitored the issue of “conflict diamonds”, or “blood diamonds”.

Several initiatives are underway to address corruption in extractive industries such as diamond mining, including the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and the Revenue Transparency Project. The best known, and specific to diamonds, is the Kimberly Process, a joint government, international diamond industry and civil society initiative that certifies shipments of rough diamonds as free of conflict diamonds. The international diamond industry has agreed to implement a system of warranties, helping to track diamonds up to the point of sale.

As a consumer, how can you help? How can you ensure that your desire for diamonds does not help take a life or rob a nation of its resource wealth? How can you be certain that the diamond engagement ring you saved and sacrificed for did not arrive at the jewelleryshop through the black market? The international civil society organisation Global Witness has produced a guide for consumers on How to Buy the Perfect Diamond. The guide advises taking a common sense step: ask. Ask the jeweller if they know where their diamonds originated, if they have a company policy on conflict diamonds, and if they have received a written guarantee from their supplier that the diamond in question is legitimate. You can help the industry keep their promises by holding them to account.

To read more, go to: www.globalwitness.org/buyconflictfree/