[Bosnjak]

Text of flyer
In 2005 Israel gemstone exports were valued at $16 billion

The Israeli Ministry of Defence budget in 2007 is $12 billion

In 2007 the value of gemstone exports from Israel is estimated to reach $18–20 billion

The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC), in co-operation with solidarity groups worldwide has initiated a campaign to raise awareness about the extent of Israeli involvement in the diamond business.

The IPSC believe that as a result of Israel's domination of the diamond business, diamonds crafted in Israel are on sale in all Irish jewellery shops and Irish consumers are unwittingly supporting the Israeli economy and Israel's illegal occupation and subjugation of the Palestinian people.

The release of the film Blood Diamond in the past month has drawn a lot of attention to the issue of conflict or blood diamonds. Jewellers’ representatives have bombarded the media in an effort to assure the public that the enforcement of the UN based Kimberly Process controls have eliminated the trade in blood diamonds. What they fail to mention however is the fact that the Kimberly process only applies to unpolished or “rough” diamonds and completely ignores the trade in the much more lucrative polished diamonds from conflict zones. This has proven very convenient for Israel in particular and for jewellers as they now use their compliance with the Kimberly process as a smoke screen to sell diamonds crafted in Israel, the world's longest running and apparently most intractable conflict zone, to unsuspecting consumers.

The IPSC calls on the Irish public to reject diamonds crafted in Israel and to insist on the right to know where each diamond was crafted and the right to choose Israel-free diamonds, such as laser inscribed diamonds from countries that respect human rights.

Israeli diamonds fund war crimes - No Tanks

Text of petition

Petition to the Retail Jewellers of Ireland

We the undersigned call on the Retail Jewellers of Ireland to support the call for :
a. the definition of “conflict diamonds” to be amended so it no longer excludes polished diamonds from conflict zones,
b. the introduction of an international marking system to identify where each diamond was crafted,
c. the provision of certifiably Israel-free diamonds

If you care to join us, Galway IPSC will be at it again outside Lynch's castle, next Saturday from 12 noon.



Related Link: http://www.ipsc.ie/

[Sephardi]

Israel is so evil.

[JohnnyL]

Actually, I was curious about the subject and asked a representative of Amnesty here about it. He said that as far as he knows the companies that do it have adopted the Kimberley standard.


Nevertheless, anyone who trades blood diamonds is a criminal no matter what is his nation. If we're going for global evil doings there are more then a few victims of Muslim crimes around the world. A few women who lost their clitoris in the process would like to have a word with you...

No wait, they can't, they have also lost their right for free speech.

[Captain Sam]

This is just so fucking stupid. Perhaps US beef should be boycotted too because of American "war crimes" in Afghanistan and Iraq.

I doubt anyone takes this anarchist organization seriously.

[sploop!]

I don't have much cause to buy diamonds, so my boycott would be worthless. I'd have boycotted anyway, though, as part of my general boycott. To contribute as usefully as I am able, I will ensure that I mention this issue to anyone I know who is thinking of buying a stone for any reason.

[Doomhammer]

Well, Israel doesn't really have much going for it in terms of natural resources or manpower. Importing, processing and selling diamonds is a sensible way of making a few bucks (or several billion). Blood diamonds or not, it's business. It's not like the West doesn't fuel conflicts in Africa with their business practices.

[Oxymoron]

They have sand, and if Iran gets its Nuc then Israel will be filled with diamonds.

[sploop!]

You know that's not true Oxy. Iran's Nukes are a way of ensuring they don't get all the diamonds, courtesy of Israel.

[Doomhammer]

Sort of a win-lose situation. Such scenario would change our definition of war profiteering. lol

Would you necessarily obtain diamonds that way? Heat+sand/carbon whatever seems plausible... nah. Best to obtain diamonds is the good old fashion way. Exploit workers in South African mines and all.

[sploop!]

I think you need carbon plus heat and pressure too. Don't Nukes make glass out of deserts, rather than diamonds? It's still a stunning image, though...

[Tailz]

Obviously no one should trade in blood diamonds. Assuming Israeli business is trading in legitimate diamonds, I have really not seen any business practices to worry about – appears to be legitimate business. The only criticism I have for the Diamond trade (apart from the trade in Blood Diamonds), is Jewish owned businesses in Amsterdam only hiring Jewish workers – which is racial and religious discrimination.

They have sand, and if Iran gets its Nuc then Israel will be filled with diamonds.

Actually the sand would be super heated into a kind of glass, not diamonds. A nuclear blast does not produce the pressure required to make diamonds.

All you’re doing is fear mongering Oxymoron.

[Sephardi]

This whole thread is fear mongering. It's not about blood diamonds, it's about the evils of Israel, and this is just propaganda in the Zionist and anti-Zionists war.

[sword_or_quill]

In the current state of affairs, I really dont care if its blood diamonds or not in relation to the ongoing conflict.
If you want to send a message to Israel - then you'll probably be boycotting everything from Israel anyway...

And sephardi: I actually agree with you. Too bad your signature text does not.

[dudekebm]

They have sand, and if Iran gets its Nuc then Israel will be filled with diamonds.

Doubtful. I think Israel is primarily sandstone and limestone. Not a lot of high carbon rocks that would make diamonds under intense heat and pressure. Basically they'd end up with forms of glass.

Actually the sand would be super heated into a kind of glass, not diamonds. A nuclear blast does not produce the pressure required to make diamonds.

If Israel had a similar geological makeup as say parts of Hawaii or Iceland, it might work. It would have to be a very high yield nuclear blast however occurring very close to the surface or at ground level and then you'd only have the diamonds at the very center of the blast. This has occurred (read it somewhere) due to shock pressures from very large meteor impacts. However, I'm guessing the yield needed for such would probably not be even used by Iran as the sort of blast needed would be in the gigatons. Iran wouldn't even go this far as a blast of that sort would have effects reaching back to Iran itself (not to mention the global climate implications).

I agree however. Iran nuking Israel or anyone nuking anyone in the middle east would have repercussions no one other than the most fanatical apocalyptic nutcase would want, especially with high yield nukes (I'm assuming Israel's alleged ones and the ones Iran is allegedly developing are all relatively low yield)

[Tailz]

If Israel had a similar geological makeup as say parts of Hawaii or Iceland, it might work. It would have to be a very high yield nuclear blast however occurring very close to the surface or at ground level and then you'd only have the diamonds at the very centre of the blast. This has occurred (read it somewhere) due to shock pressures from very large meteor impacts. However, I'm guessing the yield needed for such would probably not be even used by Iran as the sort of blast needed would be in the gigatons. Iran wouldn't even go this far as a blast of that sort would have effects reaching back to Iran itself (not to mention the global climate implications).

I could understand getting Diamonds from a meteor impact, because you have sufficient pressure being created with sufficient heat as the meteor mass impacts solid earth. A nuke might create diamonds if it could generate enough heat and pressure combined at the epicentre blast point. The Trinity blast site ended up being covered in glass as the desert floor was mostly sand. This information also helped corroborate the theory why there are large deposits of green glass in the Egyptian desert. Theory is that a million years ago a meteor airburst over the desert (which at that time included rivers and swamps), and the heat fused the sand and earth into glass and the water from the swamps and rivers cooled it into green glass – but it is a theory.

I agree however. Iran nuking Israel or anyone nuking anyone in the middle east would have repercussions no one other than the most fanatical apocalyptic nutcase would want, especially with high yield nukes (I'm assuming Israel's alleged ones and the ones Iran is allegedly developing are all relatively low yield)

Yield does not really come into the equation. Iran can strike at Israel via proxy groups, so why endanger Iran by Iran acting directly.

[Ter]

Yield does not really come into the equation. Iran can strike at Israel via proxy groups, so why endanger Iran by Iran acting directly.

Every nuclear event has a signature.
I don't even think the Israelis will try to find out about that. Iran and probably also Syria will be history within hours.

Ter

[dudekebm]

I could understand getting Diamonds from a meteor impact, because you have sufficient pressure being created with sufficient heat as the meteor mass impacts solid earth. A nuke might create diamonds if it could generate enough heat and pressure combined at the epicentre blast point. The Trinity blast site ended up being covered in glass as the desert floor was mostly sand. This information also helped corroborate the theory why there are large deposits of green glass in the Egyptian desert. Theory is that a million years ago a meteor airburst over the desert (which at that time included rivers and swamps), and the heat fused the sand and earth into glass and the water from the swamps and rivers cooled it into green glass – but it is a theory.

True but as I was trying to say that you'd need a sufficiently powerful yield in order for diamonds to actually be created. Frankly I think you'd need something that makes the Tsar Bomba look like a little firecracker in order to generate that much heat and pressure. I guess part of the point was it is doubtful Iran would get close to developing such and even they would not deploy such on Israel given it's proximity and the effects of such a massive explosion (i.e. blast effects, seismic effects, fallout, etc...), even if such could be deployed by a proxy like Hizbollah. Also given their goal of establishing their influence through Islamic Revolution all the way from Tehran to the mediterranean, it would be counterproductive to that (i.e. why make what you wish to conquer unliveable?)

I apologize however for going off-topic here with this tangent.

[Bosnjak]

South African-Israeli connection cannot go unnoticed or escape our attention. In both Sierra Leone and Liberia, there seem to be an increasing presence and involvement of former military personnel from both South Africa and Israel. Fred Rundle, a retired South African Army General, is said to have had numerous business dealings with Mr. Taylor and owns and operates mining and rubber businesses in Liberia. Sigmund Rosenblum, an Israeli arms dealer and owner of GE TRAC, a mercenary outfit which provides bodyguards and vehicular security for Charles Taylor's security detail, is said to be wanted for questioning by the Sierra Leonean authorities.

The new proliferation of arms and the role of mercenary groups in Africa's conflicts, especially in Sierra Leone and Liberia, raises some real concerns about the prospects for peace and stability. Mercenary groups driven by their new found lucrative market on the one hand and rebels or rogue nations like Liberia, willing to utilize their services on the other , have found common ground in fomenting some of the most unspeakable violence the world has witnessed in these countries. Using arms to settle differences only adds to the vicious cycle of violence.




http://www.theperspective.org/mercenaries.html

A state with nice record of close Allies, Former Apartheid South, Africa, and War Lords like Charles Taylor...

[Bosnjak]

Kimberly is only a Alibi for the Israel controlled Industry

Kimberley Process and industry self-regulation

A major milestone occurred in January 2003, when a joint government, international diamond industry and civil society initiative known as the Kimberley Process was introduced to stem the flow of conflict diamonds. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) is a voluntary system that imposes requirements on participants to certify that shipments of rough diamonds are conflict-free. In response to pressure from NGOs, the diamond industry also implemented a system of self-regulation to support the Kimberley Process, to provide consumers with additional assurances. This voluntary self-regulation covers the entire diamond supply chain, from mine to point of sale (not just rough diamonds), and requires the industry to implement a code of conduct to prevent the buying and selling of conflict diamonds. It also provides for a system of warranties, underpinned through verification by independent auditors of individual companies and supported by internal penalties set by industry, which is designed to help to facilitate the full traceability of rough diamond transactions by government authorities. However, it can only be considered effective in assuring that conflict diamonds have not entered the legitimate trade if all sectors of the diamond industry effectively implement the system of warranties. More importantly, the system must be audited or verified independently, and monitored by appropriate government agencies. In the United States, the KPCS is enforced by the Clean Diamond Trade Act, also introduced in 2003, which requires annual reviews of the standards, practices and procedures of any entity in the US that issues KP certificates for the export of rough diamonds. Though some progress has been made, we are concerned that weaknesses may still exist in both implementation and oversight, creating loopholes which could allow conflict diamonds to enter the United States.

On September 18, 2004, Amnesty carried out a nationwide Day of Action where activists like you helped survey retailers in local communities around the country to find out what they were doing to keep conflict diamonds out of their stores. These results were combined with data that Amnesty and Global Witness compiled through a survey of top-level industry management, diamond suppliers and trade associations. The results were reported in the report Déjà vu – diamond industry still failing to deliver on promises, which was presented to the World Diamond Council in October.

Though several companies have introduced conflict diamond policies at the headquarters level describing their intention to support the Kimberley Process and the self-regulation, we remain concerned that the promises being made in such policies are not being kept, and that the retail sector is not providing sufficient assurances to consumers that the diamonds they are selling are conflict-free.

In particular, there are two issues raised by our survey which continue to concern us:
LACK OF CONSUMER AWARENESS ABOUT CONFLICT DIAMONDS.
When asked whether consumers inquired about conflict diamonds, 83% of responding jewelers answered rarely or never – and this was often given as an excuse for not having a conflict diamonds policy in place.
LACK OF INDUSTRY TRANSPARENCY WITH THE PUBLIC.
Most salespeople we encountered while carrying out our survey were unable to provide sufficient assurances to the public that their diamonds were conflict free, in the form of written policies and warranties.
Further to that, Global Witness, in their report, The Key to Kimberley describes troubling weaknesses in US Government oversight of the Kimberley Process, and problems with statistics reporting which have the potential to undermine the system’s credibility if they are not rectified. Effectivegovernment oversight is necessary to monitor compliance with the Clean Diamond Trade Act, and to ensure that the diamond industry self-regulation is working to keep conflict diamonds out of circulation.

Take action on Valentine's Day, February 14
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and if past years are any indication, lots of money will be spent buying diamonds as a symbol of love and devotion. But buyer beware - some diamonds could be tied to armed conflict and other human rights abuses!

How can people shopping for diamonds be sure the diamond they want to purchase is conflict-free? They can use the new buyer's guide, prepared by Amnesty International and Global Witness. The guide explains what conflict diamonds are and provides consumers with all the right questions to ask the next time they are out buying a diamond.

We need your help getting this guide into the hands of potential diamond buyers across the country! Valentine’s Day is a great time to plan a public awareness raising event in your community or at your school. Use the guide to educate people about this important issue and what they can do to prevent the trade in conflict diamonds. Of course, Valentine’s Day is just the start – we hope you will continue to use this new guide throughout the year.

The guide will be available starting February 9. Contact the Corporate Action Network (CAN) now at corpaction@aiusa.org to place your advance order and learn more about how you can raise awareness about conflict diamonds this Valentine's Day.

http://www.amnestyusa.org/diamonds/update.html

[Tailz]

Bosnjak, the information you provided does not really act sufficiently to level blame upon the whole of Israel (given that the article you listed only makes the link between Israel and conflict diamonds via the Israeli arms dealer Sigmund Rosenblum, or the number of ex-Israel military personal who take on a second life as mercenaries. Which is itself a common practice for many estranged soldiers from across the globe). Certainly some Israeli individuals and businesses should be investigated, but your information does not point towards this issue being some sort of Official State Policy of dealing in conflict Diamonds to generate income for the Israeli State. I’d estimate the high level of Jewish involvement because of the strength of Jewish owned businesses in the main Diamond processing centres such as Antwerp – and the Jewish tradition of keeping business in the Jewish family - which would lead to opportunities for those associated with the industry (thus the suppliers of diamonds) who are less than scrupulous about their diamond source.