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According to the document, "An updated definition could apply to diamond-related conflicts that meet generally agreed-upon standards of armed conflicts, such as a resort to armed force between States or protracted armed violence between governmental authorities and organized armed groups or between such groups within a State."

"Such a definition would not apply to individual or isolated cases. Neither would this apply to violence that is unrelated to diamonds."

Annie Dunnebacke, a campaigner for Global Witness, a UK-based NGO that was among the prime movers in the creation of the KPCS, told IRIN that civil society had been calling for reforms of the certification system, including an overhaul of the decision-making process. What we have now is block voting, and block voting leads to the lowest common denominator prevailing She said the dangers of an outright majority vote could leave civil society "without a voice", and that the organization would favour a "more flexible solution", with the possible use of majority voting on specific issues such as non-compliance by members. "What we have now is block voting, and block voting leads to the lowest common denominator prevailing." Just before the Tel Aviv meeting, Global Witness released The Return of the Blood Diamond, a report on Zimbabwe's diamond trade that called for the country's suspension from the KPCS for at least six months "or until such time as the diamond sector is brought into line with KP minimum requirements." The report on human rights violations contradicted the portrait painted by Abbey Chikane, Zimbabwe's KPCS monitor. His 25-page document, Second Fact Finding Mission Report, stated: "Zimbabwe has satisfied minimum requirements of the KPCS for the trade in rough diamonds" and should be permitted to export diamonds from Marange.

The three countries, among the world’s richest, point to claims made by two ostensibly independent nongovernmental organizations, Global Witness and Partnership Africa Canada, to justify their decision. They say the Zimbabwe military is committing human rights abuses at the Marange fields and running a smuggling operation. [4] So why did the Kimberly Process auditor recommend certification, despite allegations of human rights abuses and smuggling? First, the Kimberly Process seeks to prevent the sale of rough diamonds to finance rebel wars, not to prevent human rights abuses and smuggling. Second, Kimberly Process chairman Bernard Esau says there is “no proof of alleged human rights violations at the Marange diamond fields.” [5]

The MDC would end, and possibly reverse, Zanu-PF’s policies of land redistribution and economic indigenization [6] — policies which are giving substantive meaning to the country’s hard fought for independence.

Many NGOs active in Africa create the illusion of being independent of the Western governments that have historically despoiled the continent, while relying on the same governments to provide their funding. It’s highly unlikely that organizations whose existences depend on the support they can get from Western governments stray far from their funders’ interests and foreign policy imperatives. The implication that NGOs are independent of governments is deliberately deceptive.