The Diamonds of War

According to Al Jazeera, many dictators and warlords have taken advantage of the numerous diamonds to fuel their own avarice and greed. Their actions have caused civil wars and the abuse of human rights. Many of the mining expeditions to find such "blood diamonds" are located in Africa, as that is the locations of many unmined diamonds. The mining of diamonds in Africa has been used by corrupt governments to cover up the very corruption that had created the diamond trade in the first place. Conflict had and continues to erupt due to these very diamonds, no matter how minuscule they may be. This conflict is most known around the world in the West African country of Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone is a country that is abundant in natural resources, such as diamonds. From 1992 to 2002, Sierra had lain in the middle of a civil war. However, the war had been ended by Britain and the United Nations. Although, before actions were taken by such characters, approximately 17,000 foreign contractors, or soldiers for hire (for lack of a better term), went to the country to take part in the conflict and to play a role in the illegal diamond trade. Most did not care about laws when they received massive amounts of cash for their jobs of protecting the mining operations or other contracts they were given. The civil war in Sierra Leone was mainly funded by the trade and sale of "blood diamonds." To be honest, most African civil conflicts are funded by such objects. Sadly, no matter what laws and regulations are placed on the trade and passing of "blood diamonds," such beautifully devastating pieces of jewelry will continue to circulate. This truth was unfortunately demonstrated when Sierra Leone had placed laws on their diamonds, yet they still made their way out of the country and into numerous other countries, including the United States.



How "blood diamonds" are found in Sierra Leone.