(Rapaport…November 29, 2001) Participants at the plenary meeting of the Kimberley Process — which took place this week in Garborone, Botswana — reached consensus on a tentative agreement to help stem the trade of conflict diamonds. Alex Yearsley of Global Witness said a final plan will be ready for presentation to the Untied Nations General Assembly next month. Yearsley said issues related to the monitoring and evaluation of a certification scheme still needed to be worked on.
Global Witness released a statement saying, “The vitally important issues of compliance, verification and monitoring measures for new and current participants have been considerably weakened from previous meetings and the stated objectives of concerned stakeholders. The meeting has also failed to adequately address the crucial issue of a start date for the implementation of the scheme.”
Participants at the Botswana Kimberley Process meeting include representatives from African nations, the European Union, nongovernmental organizations and the World Diamond Council.
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