Conflict Diamonds

"The brutal wars in these African nations may be thousands of miles away, but the source of the funds that buy the weapons may be as close as your ring finger." Durbin, Diamonds: A war's best friend)

According to the American Press Dictionary, diamonds are "a form of carbon, a colorless, white, or occasionally tinted cubic mineral commonly occurring in octahedral crystals with a brilliant to greasy luster and a highly perfect cleavage…, the hardest known natural substance...(www.academicpress.com.)"

This definition describes the technical aspects of what constitutes a diamond, yet falls tragically short of the connotations that diamonds bring to the human mind. To many, diamonds are the symbol of wealth, romance, and love. In western society, media and advertisers bombard the consumers with images of lovers exchanging diamond jewelry as the ultimate gift of affection. Yet, to the informed consumer, this should not be the only image associated with diamonds. To many of those who understand the diamond market best, diamonds carry other underlying images: images of warfare, political strife, and human suffering. While most diamonds are bought and sold legitimately, the illegitimate diamond markets that exist in areas of Africa play a large part in the financing of wars and terrorism. Currently, there is much debate over how to best control these "conflict diamonds."