It’s a perfect night on a beach in Florida. Trembling with nervousness, Aaron takes his girlfriend’s hand in his own. It is Gabby’s birthday, and Aaron hands her a cupcake. “Close your eyes and make a wish,” he tells her. Aaron drops to one knee and starts speaking again. “I loved you yesterday, I love you today and I’ll love you forever. Will you marry me?” After he asks for her hand in marriage, he places the 3-Carat princess cut diamond ring on her finger. She’s awestruck at the beauty of the ring now on her left hand and wonders how much her fiance had to pay for such a gorgeous stone.
Little does she know that the rock she is wearing cost not only $6,000, but also the price of blood. Due to the horrible effects that conflict, or “blood” diamonds have on the lives of thousands of people, and the harmful events that surround their trade, no one should purchase these stones.
In African countries rebel forces have been raiding villages and homes, killing old or weak people and infants, forcing young boys and men to become rebel soldiers, and requiring women and children to spend their days searching for diamonds in mining camps run by rebel leaders. People who try to escape these camps or try to hide a stone they have found are either shot instantly or have a hand cut off.
After receiving diamonds from the prisoners, the rebel leaders take the stones found and sell them at extremely high prices or trade them for guns, knives and other weapons to be used in armed conflict. The diamonds are illegally certified and later sent to sorting tables in peaceful countries such as France and England. By the time the stones reach those tables they are polished and indistinguishable, and no one takes the time to question where the diamond came from or how many people were hurt due to its existence.
After being sorted, the gems are distributed to factories where they are cut, set and sold to major jewelry companies all over the world. These stones end up on your fingers, around your neck, and on your ears. So much money is generated by the sale of conflict diamonds that, as stated in the 2006 movie “Blood Diamond,” the purchase of these stones does not necessarily cause war in these countries, but it certainly pays to keep it going. These wars have cost an estimated 3.7 million lives as a result of this heartbreaking means of trade.
While some may argue that a free market is more beneficial to the world and the diamond industry has no need for regulation, what type of person with a heart has the desire to wear an object that cost a life? Who would desire to own an object that caused a small child to lose her hand, and that even though it is so small, has had such an impact on the lives of so many people?
Martin Chungong Ayafor, chairman of the Sierra Leone Panel of Experts, said, “Diamonds are forever. However, lives are not. We must spare people the ordeal of war, mutilations and death for the sake of conflict diamonds.” I urge you not to purchase such an object.
If you’re going to buy a diamond, whether it be part of a necklace or the beautiful fixture in a ring, make sure that the stone you are buying is certified and that its origin can be traced back to the very piece of ground it came from. Make sure that you’re paying for a stone and not for a life.
