Topic: Conflict Commodities
Country: Ghana
Delegate Name: Matthew Easton
School: Forest Hills Central High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Ghana position papers GLIMUN 2007 committees
Conflict commodities are a major issue in today’s economic, militaristic, and political landscape. Even though the wars in Angola, Sierra Leone, and Liberia have ended, conflict diamonds still remain a powerful force in rebel-held areas in northern Cote d’Ivoire. The reason that the trade of conflict diamonds continues to be a matter of serious international concern is because these diamonds can be directly linked to the fueling of armed conflict, specifically those of rebel movements aiming at undermining or overthrowing legitimate governments. That is not the worst of the situation, however; this trade has a devastating impact on the peace, safety, and security of the people in the affected countries. Also, the trade of conflict diamonds negatively affects the countries in the surrounding regions, making this a topic that specifically draws the eye of the UN, because the United Nations Charter is very serious about the maintenance of international peace and security.
Ghana is currently a very important country largely involved in stopping this crisis. In an October 2006 UN report it was stated that over $23 million dollars worth of conflict diamonds have been entering a legitimate diamond pipeline from Cote d’Ivoire, a large majority coming through Ghana. In 2006 the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) agreed to take several courses of action in Ghana: for a three month period, all Ghanaian diamond exports will be inspected by an independent diamond expert provided by the World Diamond Council, to ascertain origin; Ghana will revise all of its internal control procedures, including the licensing of diggers, dealers, and exporters; a data base of Ghana’s known diamond resources will be drawn up for comparison against exports from Ghana; finally, a Kimberley Process Review Team visited Ghana in February 2007 to review the findings and the new control systems, with a view to endorsing them or taking further action. Because Ghana is a member of the KPCS we agreed to the terms, and in a March 2007 report on the condition of the rough diamonds in Ghana, the only things said were positive; Ghana hopes that other countries will follow its example in the stopping of the illegal trade of conflict diamonds through the procedures set up by the KPCS.
