MOSAIC: Bloody diamond trade
THE link between illegal trade of rough diamonds and the use of diamond trade proceeds to fuel armed conflict was weakened when the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution in support of a global diamond certification process.
The ongoing international process, the Kimberley Process, is aimed at detecting and preventing the trade in conflict diamonds, often called blood diamonds because of the numerous deaths resulting from the illegal trade. The Kimberley Process includes a negotiating procedure to establish minimum acceptable international standards for national certification covering the import and export of rough diamonds, the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme.
Illicit trade in the valuable stones has financed armed conflict aimed at overthrowing legitimate governments, and led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in the past 10 years. Conflict diamonds represent up to 20 per cent of the annual world total diamond trade, and the diamond industry is taking part in the scheme in an effort to quell fears that diamonds for sale at the world’s best jewellers may be blood diamonds.
The Kimberley Process was established by southern African diamond producing countries in 2000. It was adopted at a ministerial meeting in Interlaken, Switzerland on November 5, 2002 and took effect on January 1. Nearly 50 countries that produce and trade in the stones are now involved in the process, as well as the European Community, the diamond industry, and civil society.
The Kimberley Process recommends that the United Nations take action to support implementation of the scheme as an instrument to advance UN resolutions that attempt to limit trade in conflict diamonds.
Rebel groups and warlords have tarnished the image of the diamond industry in Africa, mostly as a result of the illicit diamond trade. Botswana is the world’s largest producer of diamonds by value, and the economy most dependent on trade in rough diamonds.
Horrific scenes of men, women and children hacked to death or with their limbs amputated by drug crazed rebels were regularly aired on television. That had rightly prompted human rights groups and other activists to campaign against the diamond trade.
The campaign against rough diamonds also targeted innocent, legitimate producers like Namibia and South Africa which account for more than 70 per cent of world production.
Among its other objectives, the Kimberley Process aims to protect the legitimate diamond industry, upon which many countries depend. That process led to the emergence of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, an international certification scheme for rough diamonds, based primarily on national certification schemes and on internationally agreed minimum standards.
National legislation is needed in many countries to bring their practices into line with the Kimberley Process. On April 8, the US Senate and the House of Representatives, each passed the Clean Diamond Trade Act.
In a statement of findings, the horrors of the conflict diamond trade are detailed. “During the past decade, more than 6,500,000 people from Sierra Leone, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been driven from their homes by wars waged in large part for control of diamond mining areas. A million of these are refugees eking out a miserable existence in neighbouring countries, and tens of thousands have fled to the United States. Approximately 3,700,000 people have died during these wars.” — Samina Iqbal
Pakistan’s unhealthy children
THE impact of cardiovascular disease on the lives of people is devastating, states a recent issue of the Journal of Pakistan Medical Association.
Atherosclerosis, the underlying cause of cardiovascular disease, begins in early childhood and manifests clinically in adulthood. The risk factors for cardiovascular disease can thus be modified in at an early age. It has been observed that Pakistani children are adopting an unhealthy life style with a decreasing trend for physical activity. Sedentary entertainment as television viewing and computer games is preferred along with consumption of high calorie junk food. These habits have increased the incidence of childhood obesity, a potent modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
A cross sectional survey performed on 206 school children between the ages of 14 to 18 years, in a private school in Hyderabad, revealed, 64 per cent to have unhealthy dietary habits. These were defined as eating fast foods as french fries, snack foods, cakes, cookies and soft drinks once daily. Physical inactivity was reported by 60 per cent, smoking by six per cent and obesity was seen in 21 per cent children. Fathers of 36 per cent children smoked.
The study indicated that 58 per cent children had at least one modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Intervention to correct these by encouraging physical exercise and sports, weight control by a healthy diet and avoidance of smoking should be adopted in early life to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease in adulthood. Educating the parents is important so that they become role models for their children. — Fatema Jawad
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