Blood diamonds are diamonds mined in a war zone and sold to finance an insurgency, an invading army's war efforts, or a warlord's activity. The term is used to highlight the negative consequences of the diamond trade in certain areas, or to label an individual diamond as having come from such an area. Diamonds mined during the 20th-21st century civil wars in Angola, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Guinea Bissau have been given the label. The term conflict resource refers to analogous situations involving other natural resources.
The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) is the process established in 2003 to prevent "conflict diamonds" from entering the mainstream rough diamond market by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 55/56 following recommendations in the Fowler Report. The process was set up "to ensure that diamond purchases were not financing violence by rebel movements and their allies seeking to undermine legitimate governments."
The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone from 1999 to 2006. It was created by the United Nations Security Council in October 1999 to help with the implementation of the Lomé Peace Accord, an agreement intended to end the Sierra Leonean civil war. UNAMSIL expanded in size several times in 2000 and 2001. It concluded its mandate at the end of 2005, the Security Council having declared that its mission was complete.
The Clean Diamond Trade Act (CDTA), signed by United States President George W. Bush on 25 April 2003, implemented the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) to regulate the commercial sale of diamonds. On July 29, 2003, Bush signed Executive Order 13312, which described the implementation of the Clean Diamond Trade act. The act requires that all diamonds imported to the United States or exported from the United States have a Kimberley Process Certificate. The act aims to prohibit the importation of diamonds whose mining fuels conflict in the country of origin.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1245, adopted unanimously on 11 June 1999, after recalling resolutions 1181 (1998), 1220 (1999) and 1231 (1999) on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL) for a further six months until 13 December 1999.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1306, adopted on 5 July 2000, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, particularly resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998) and 1299 (2000), the Council decided to prohibit the direct or indirect import of rough diamonds from the country. The rebel Revolutionary United Front controlled 90% of the diamond-producing areas in Sierra Leone and was using diamonds to finance its operations.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1343, adopted unanimously on 7 March 2001, after recalling resolutions on Sierra Leone and the region, including resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998) and 1306 (2000), the Council demanded that Liberia end its support for rebels in Sierra Leone and threatened the imposition of wide-ranging sanctions unless the country complied with the Security Council.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1370, adopted unanimously on 18 September 2001, after recalling resolutions 1270 (1999), 1289 (2000), 1313 (2000), 1317 (2000), 1321 (2000) and 1346 (2001) on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for a period of six months until 31 March 2002, beginning from 30 September 2001.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1400, adopted unanimously on 28 March 2002, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for a further six months until 30 September 2002 in the run up to the May 2002 general elections.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1408, adopted unanimously on 6 May 2002, after recalling resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998), 1306 (2000), 1343 (2001), 1385 (2001), 1395 (2002) and 1400 (2002) on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended sanctions against Liberia for its support of rebels in the civil war in Sierra Leone.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1436, adopted unanimously on 24 September 2002, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for a further six months beginning on 30 September 2002.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1446, adopted unanimously on 4 December 2002, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, particularly resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998), 1299 (2000), 1306 (2000) and 1385 (2001), the Council extended prohibitions relating to the import of rough diamonds not under the control of the Sierra Leonean government until 5 June 2003.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1459, adopted unanimously on 28 January 2003, after recalling resolutions 1173 (1998), 1295 (2000), 1306 (2000), 1343 (2001), 1385 (2001) and 1408 (2002) concerning the illicit trade in diamonds, the Council expressed support for the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS).
United Nations Security Council resolution 1478, adopted unanimously on 6 May 2003, after recalling resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998), 1306 (2000), 1343 (2001), 1385 (2001), 1395 (2002), 1400 (2002), 1408 (2002), 1458 (2003), 1467 (2003) and others on the situation in Liberia, the Council extended sanctions against the Liberian government for an additional period of twelve months until 7 May 2004 and imposed a ban on imports of its timber for ten months.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1508, adopted unanimously on 19 September 2003, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for six months until 31 March 2004.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1521, adopted unanimously on 22 December 2003, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Liberia and West Africa, the Council established a monitoring body to oversee international sanctions against Liberia. It was the final Security Council resolution adopted in 2003.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1537, adopted unanimously on 30 March 2004, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for six months until 30 September 2004 with a residual force remaining in the country until June 2005.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1689, adopted unanimously on June 20, 2006, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Liberia and West Africa, the Council decided to continue sanctions against the import of diamonds from the country for six months, though similar restrictions relating to timber imports were lifted.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1753 was unanimously adopted on 27 April 2007.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1819 was unanimously adopted on 18 June 2008.
