By early morning this past Saturday, the scores of Kimberley Process delegates still holed up at the Gaborone International Convention Centre (GICC) would have been in disbelief at how impossible it can become to agree on a few lines of text.
Russia’s invasion in February of fellow Kimberley Process member, Ukraine, has divided the global anti-conflict diamonds organisation. The United States and its allies have repeatedly pushed for censure against Russia at the Kimberley Process, which would effectively place a global blacklist on Moscow. In response, Russia and those in its corner have accused their opponents of bringing non-Kimberley Process issues into the Kimberley Process and using every available platform to “politic”.
As chair of the Kimberley Process or KP, for 2022, Botswana has found itself at the centre of an increasingly acrimonious split, one which threatens long-lasting reputational damage to rough diamonds, as increasingly ethical consumers either boycott the natural stones or drift towards the artificial types whose provenance is easier to establish.
The KP meets twice a year, once in an intersessional in June and again at the year-end plenary where hard and fast decisions are taken. At the Kasane intersessional, Botswana representative as KP chair, Jacob Thamage, was forced to hold unplanned, separate bilateral meetings with the rival camps in searching for middle ground. Eventually, the Russian question was kept off the agenda.
In Gaborone last week, the Russian issue was bumped off early as a proposal for the agenda, but it was the question of how to express the KP’s position or opinion on the conflict that kept the lights on all night at the GICC.
The KP’s discussions are strictly a closed door affair, but prior to the Friday deadlock, authoritative sources had told Mmegi to expect a “line by line” showdown over the communique.
“Usually that will be scrutinised line by line,” the insiders said.
The final communique reveals the exasperation the KP felt after the all-nighter.
“The plenary noted letters to the KP Chair from some KP participants in advance of the plenary. “There were divergent opinions with regards to the relevance of the contents of the letters to the mandate of the KP.
“As such, the issue was not brought forth for discussion within the plenary.
“Differences of opinion persisted in relation to how to reflect the letters in the final communique, including whether or not to refer to the specific issues communicated therein.”
The agreement reached at the end of the night was that the letters sent to Thamage be included as annexures to the communique and it is within the text of this correspondence that actual battle boiling in the KP becomes clear.
According to the letters, the two sides were evenly squared off: the European Union, Ukraine, Canada, US, United Kingdom and Australia on one side, versus Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Venezuela and the Central African Republic on the other.
“Significant questions persist regarding how Russia is using the revenue from its trade in rough diamonds in relation to its unprovoked aggression,” reads the letter from Canada.
“Several major international retailers of diamonds have already refused to purchase diamonds mined in Russia.
“If the Kimberley Process is to remain a credible guarantor that diamonds exported with a Kimberley Process certificate are actually conflict-free, it cannot refuse to consider the valid questions that have been raised about whether rough diamonds exported by Russia are financing its invasion of Ukraine.”
Similar protests came from Canada’s allies, who added that at the very least, Russia should be removed from the chairmanship of committees within the KP.
“Even if the KP does not reach consensus on the question of whether there are conflict diamonds in Russia, we believe that neither Russia nor its supporters should hold positions of responsibility within the KP due to the ongoing aggression towards Ukraine,” the US’ representative wrote.
In response, Russia and her allies were united in the language of their retorts.
“It is deeply regrettable that the EU continues its stubborn attempts to imposed biased western political agenda on the current KP work – a crucial and unique mechanism of safeguarding the functioning of the diamond industry in the best interest of the countries and communities concerned,” Russia wrote.
“We consider it to be yet another display of imperious and disrespectful attitude towards the majority of KP participants, who clearly prioritise substantive work over blatant wire-pulling.
“The deceitful demagoguery we are now facing has nothing to do with KP activities.”
According to documents seen by Mmegi, even though they pulled a lexical all-nighter, the KP was able to make some ground in the debates, by at least establishing an Ad-hoc Committee for Review and Reforms (AHCRR) to oversee the KP’s review and reform Cycle, scheduled to start next year.
Under its founding rules, the KP operates on a three-year review cycle, which has been in place since 2006. The hope amongst those pushing for reform is that the definition of “conflict diamonds” can be expanded to include diamonds sold from any area of active conflict, which would include Russia’s hostilities in Ukraine.
The current definition of conflict diamonds at the KP is limited to diamonds that finance the activities of rebels against legitimate governments, a description that has not changed in the organisation’s 20 years and is also backed by a United Nations resolution.
“The plenary entrusted the AHCRR with tasks covering proposals on the definition of ‘Conflict Diamond’, strengthening the KP through technical assistance, country compliance and KP governance related matters,” the Gem and Jewellery Council of India revealed in a statement emailed on Saturday, the first official communication after the all-nighter.
While the formation of the AHCRR has been welcomed, many doubt it will actually result in any meaningful change at the KP.
No meaningful reform has taken place over the years at the KP due to the consensus rule, which essentially means every plenary decision requires total approval, with a veto being possible from just one vote against. Critics say the consensus rule means the KP’s twice-yearly meetings could fail to agree on matters as trivial as whether to use blue or black ink pens.
World Diamond Council president, Edward Asscher, who has warned of the reputational damage facing rough diamonds and frequently lobbied for reforms, said the latest efforts to be led by the AHCRR could not “afford to fail”.
“I have spoken at length about the shortcomings of the existing definition, and the degree to which it threatens to render the KP as irrelevant among diamond consumers,” he said during the plenary’s closing ceremony.
“I do not expect the coming debate to be easy, but it is an area in which failure is not an option. “I felt here that all countries present accept the need for change.”
The Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition, the KP’s main NGO, was less than impressed with the outcomes in Gaborone.
“The coalition is disappointed that decision-making is not listed as an item for discussion in the reform agenda,” the society’s coordinator, Michel Yoboué said.
“Participants have hijacked the KP, making it difficult for the certification scheme to move forward as they use the consensus decision making to block any progress.
“The KPCS’ failure to reform is rooted in the consensus decision making model which is abused by anti-progressive participants who are keen to entrench the status quo.”
Yoboué also called out what he said was the “silent majority” or KP members who have remained silent as the organisation splits over Russia, the consensus question and other emerging issues in the diamond industry.
“An irrelevant KP that does not guarantee peace and security in producing and trading countries will harm consumer confidence and impact communities negatively with loss of livelihood,” he said.
With no end in sight to Russia’s war in Ukraine, diamond producers and retailers are keenly watching the upcoming holiday period to see trends in the uptake of the shiny stones. If, as is possible, natural diamonds lose ground to either synthetics or other types of jewellery, the urgency of reforming the KP will be redoubled.
