BLOOD DIAMONDS

Diamonds symbolise wealth, love, and grace In several African nations it simbolisedpower They were used toTerrorise millions of innocent civiliansAnd may have even helped finance some of the world's most brutal terrorists

The History

In 1991 a few hundred men crossed the Liberian border attacked towns in eastern and southern Sierra Leone

Once the war began:money became scarce people took things into their own hands They needed other ways to fund the warThe diamond in Africa is the most valued item

The War

Liberia is the main area of conflict.

It is the key meeting place forrebels, terrorists and othercriminal groups to exchangeblood diamonds for weapons. Criminals are rarely caught and usethe money to purchase illegalweapons

Thousands of Sierra Leoneans have been killed and mutilated mainly due tono large scale, international intervention.

And still it continues

The Government

The Kimberley Process (KPCS) started in 2002 and is a process started to stop criminals who profit from the illicit trade in rough diamonds

A diamond certification evaluation sheet must be completed, that displays the diamonds origin

Otherwise the shipment of that diamond must be confiscated

The major difficulty is distinguishing between a genuine diamond and a conflict diamond.

Once any diamond is sent off and polished, discovering its origin is impossible!

Blood diamonds still contribute to 30% of global trade

The Victims

Innocent children are turned into soldiers and forced to mine for small bits of carbon

50,000 have been killedHalf the population displacedMore than two-thirds of its already severely limited infrastructure destroyed130,000 people have been killedTens of thousands raped, abused, and mutilated Children make around twenty cents a dayGlobal diamond trade makes around 60 billion a year

The Soldiers

Sometimes I wonder... will God ever forgive us for what we've done to each other? Then I look around and I realize... God left this place a long time ago.

HOTEL RWANDA

The First Genocide:

195961 around 100,000 Tutsis were massacred in Rwanda in what is known as the 'Hutu revolution', (1/3 of the population)

Rwandan Genocide

The most horrible and systematic human massacre we have had occasion to witness since the extermination of the Jews by the Nazis.- British Philosopher, Bertrand Russell

The Second Genocide:

In 1994 approximately 800,000 Tutsis andHutu moderates were hacked to death in acarefully organised program of genocide.

If the pictures of tens of thousands of human bodies being gnawed on by dogs do not wake us out of our apathy, I do not know what will.- Secretary General of UN

The whole world failed Rwanda- UN member

The Aftermat

Blood Diamond The true Story

Hotel Rwanda Hope rises

An African Journey