Diamond retailers have been urged to introduce more third-party audits
of their systems for eliminating ‘blood diamonds’ from their supply
chains.
Two pressure groups, Global Witness and Amnesty
International, say that although progress has been made by jewellery
sector companies on limiting the sale of diamonds that come from
conflict zones, consumers are still not being given ‘adequate
assurance’ that the diamonds they buy are from bona fide sources.
A
survey of 42 British retailers carried out by the two organizations
found that while most adhered to the diamond industry’s systems of
self-regulation, only a few, including Signet and Tiffany & Co,
went beyond standard industry practice and carried out third-party
audits.
Amnesty and Global Witness also said that jewellery
retailers should make their policies on conflict diamonds prominent on
their websites. Diamond retailers say it has been important to get
supply chain checks in place before reviewing the systems or subjecting
themselves to audits.
