I think, Ian Smillie, the leading architect of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) was right. The peculiar system has been letting all manner of crooks off the hook. According to Global Witness, one-hundred percent of Venezuela's diamonds are being smuggled; Guinea has reported an unfeasible 500 per cent increase in diamond production year on year; and Lebanon is exporting more rough diamonds than it imports despite having no local deposits. I know people who have bought/sold rough diamonds from the so-called dealers (South Africa via Zimbabwe, Iran, Venezuela via Lebanon/Iran), and it's an open secret. Diamonds travel quickly. What's the point of having a stick if the stick is never used? Sad, really.
Useful links:
www.globalwitness.org
www.pacweb.org
www.kimberleyprocess.com
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