KP appoints monitor to Zimbabwe

The Kimberley Process (KP) has appointed a monitor to liaise with the Zimbabwe government to ensure compliance with the certification scheme on exported diamonds.

Abbey Chikane, a founding member and chair of the KP and head of the South African Diamond Board (SADB), visited the southern African country earlier this month on a fact-finding mission. His appointment comes several months after the KP’s plenary in Namibia that resulted in the formation of a joint work plan to bring Zimbabwe into full compliance by June.

The KP’s current chair, Boaz Hirsch, has stated implementation of the scheme at Zimbabwe’s Marange fields is at the top of Israel’s priorities.

In 2008, Zimbabwe’s military took over the Marange fields, killing 200 diamond diggers and committing other human rights abuses.