from dealing in stones from Zimbabwe's Marange fields, saying their
certification by global regulators did not guarantee they were free from
human rights abuses.
The Kimberley Process (KP) certification scheme, set up to keep "blood
diamonds" -- stones from conflict zones -- out of global gem trade, last
week endorsed the sale of 900,000 carats fron Zimbabwe's controversial
Marange fields.
Human rights activists have called for a ban on diamonds from Marange, where
Zimbabwe's army is accused of widespread atrocities when it moved in to
guard the poorly secured fields after a diamond rush drew up to 30,000
illegal diggers.
The United States-based Rapaport Diamond Trading Network said although the
Marange diamonds had received KP endorsement, it will not allow its members
to trade in them.
"Members found to have knowingly offered Marange diamonds for sale on RapNet
will be expelled and their names will be publicly communicated," it said in
a statement.
Zimbabwe, which denies rights abuses at the Marange fields, says it has
stockpiled nearly 4 million carats of diamonds since the start of the year,
estimated by state media to be worth $1.7 billion.
A power-sharing government formed by President Robert Mugabe and Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai last year in a bid to end a decade-long political
and economic crisis has said it hopes diamond revenues can help fix the
struggling economy.
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