Final Positive Progression

Through my experience of researching the diamond trade in Sierra Leone has really opened my eyes to numerous amounts of issues. What I would like to discuss is the positives that are coming from these issues and what people are doing in an attempt to change the situation at hand. First off I would like to discuss the film Blood Diamond; it is a major motion picture and has some incredible actors in it. The film brings to life the trials and tribulations that African Families have went through and the ones that are still facing problems. Not really knowing in depth about the diamond trade before seeing this film sparked my interest in the topic and helped me dig deep into African societies where this trade is prominent. Many documentaries I have looked over puts into perspective the psychological make-up of these African Individuals that took part in the war. Through media we are able to get glimpses of positive progression in uplifting these oppressed people. Magazines and news papers that promote the Kimbereley Process and active movie stars that plays a positive role as well. For example donations, trips to visit the aftermath, group organizations put together and adopting methods that have assisted so many African people. The one thing that really stood out to me was when I viewed a documentary, called BLING, of a few major rap artists going down to Sierra Leone and just interacting and listening to the people that have been affected by blood diamonds. The artists involved were Kanye West, Jada Kiss, Paul Wall, Tego Calderon, Raekwon, and TV Jonny who actually owns a diamond store and produces grills. Being that they rap about diamonds and wear some of the most expensive jewelry it was a good aspect shown and made me reflect on what is legitimate about rap. Because rap is so embedded in my culture it is a reflection of me, and seeing how rap played a huge role in the war (rebels portrayed themselves in the image of Tupac Shakur), in retrospect helped me realize some things about myself and how it coexist with the African people. Years of publicity and negativity cannot be wiped away overnight but it is up to us to make a stand on these issues in an attempt to change them. There is still a long way to go, because African industries are thriving off of the blood diamond trade and show no signs of slowing down. So by promoting fair trade groups and films that bring these issues to light you can do your part in assisting the progression of the African people through these processes.

During this semester I have covered many topics about the blood diamonds in Sierra Leone and the trade that has affected its people in horrific ways one cannot fathom. Many of my entries discuss the history of the trade in this particular area and how the globalization of the trade is makes this market very prominent today. What I would like to focus on in this blog is change and how we as individuals can promote the well being of the people victimized by the greed of these diamonds. They are many different ways one can assist the mission of helping these oppressed people; for example, instead of buying diamonds from random stores one can look into the companies that don’t promote conflict diamonds. In addition, lending a hand or donating to supporting groups that deal specifically with conflict diamonds and the injustice that takes place among the African people. Being that the globalization of the trade extends all over the world it makes it harder for things the change in a broader spectrum, this just means we have a ways to go and success take time. By fighting for what we believe in and promoting such things like the Kimberley Process, which provides “an international governmental certification scheme that was set up to prevent the trade in diamonds that fund conflict; Launched in January 2003, the scheme requires governments to certify that shipments of rough diamonds are free from blood diamonds,” we embed change within the system. We know that these diamonds have progressed violence, weapons, destruction, and injustices of all types throughout this nation and even though on a holistic scale we cannot change the big picture, we can do all that is in our power to help the issues at hand. Buying that diamond is just like torturing the people enslaved behind them, I am not saying do not purchase diamond but lend a hand where it is needed. Do not just sit around and do nothing or issues like these will never cease to exist. I am doing my part are you doing yours?

Online Resources

1- http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/pdabt690.pdf
What I like about this document is how it touches on the smuggling aspect and the background of the mining.
2- http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html
Talks about slot of the issues faced in Africa, goes into detail about what fuels the war.
3- http://www.worldpress.org/africa/2193.cfm
I like how this discusses the teens that are involved and the partnership between other counties.
4- http://www.diamondsforafricafund.org/realdiamondfacts/home.htm
I chose this site because of the good facts that are produced and the how they show view points from Africa as a whole compared to Sierra Leone.
5- http://www.conflictfreediamonds.org/
This site gives a well broken down cycle of the region, people killed, the civil war, and the nations involved. This one I would call one of my favorites.
6- http://www.professionaljeweler.com/archives/articles/2004/nov04/1104dn1.html
This site caught my interest because it talks about the companies, retailers, and the other aspects of the mining business factor.
7- http://www.amnestyusa.org/business-and-human-rights/conflict-diamonds/page.do?id=1051176
I enjoyed this site as well, it touches a range of topics that deal with Sierra Leone, different aspects of the military, individual issues and rights, violence, some parts of immigration, basically has a wide range of information.
8- http://www.allaboutgemstones.com/conflict-diamonds_sierra-leone.html
Has a tremendous amount of factual information, has good examples of the diamond trade.
9- http://www.sierra-leone.org/
I like this site because it deals with the people of this nation and the laws surrounding them, also the history and culture of the people and why the living style is the way it is.
10- http://www.khulsey.com/jewelry/kh_jewelry_conflict_diamonds.html
This website examines some mining parts of Africa and what the diamonds are used for and how they are being distributed from the mines.
11- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/sierraleone/4863771/Sierra-Leone-targeted-by-Latin-American-drug-cartels.html
This site I chose because of its articles and the news that gets reported, it gives some personal stories of what is becoming of the rebels of the war also actions that are being taken in Africa. Also it discusses a bit about the drugs that are getting fueled in the war.
12- http://www.pacweb.org/programs-resources-e.php
I chose this site because it talks mostly about the death and destruction of the people in the areas where mining is most prominent, as well as the partnerships involved. Speaks about the security and the violence against women too.
13- http://www.giftofeducation.org/vision/
I like this site because it talks about the restructure of the African nation and inputs about many programs constructed to helping these Africans get back to normal. A lot to do with the Kimberley Process and helping the victims out.
14- http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/kenya/090623/many-african-diamonds-are-still-bloody
This site gives multiple articles and perspectives on the blood diamond trade in Africa, also it not only touches on Sierra Leone but many other African nations as well.
15- http://www.globalissues.org/article/88/sierra-leone
This site has a great deal to do with the issues that the blood diamond trade presents around the world. It talks about all nations that are affected and how we are all intertwined in this globalized market.

class material

Today I would like to discuss a few topics that come to mind also that are intertwined with the class material, which include slavery and genocide. Genocide is the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group. While slavery is similar in a capitalist perspective is a form of forced labor in where one person at the least is owned by another individual. For example, “We can see a parallel in post apartheid South Africa; faced with the, large-scale, horrific murders and torture of the past, many people in that country argued that collective amnesia would best serve the reconstruction of a truly democratic state” (Bales 7). How can one forget the trials and tribulations these people have endured for hundreds of years and what does that say about the victims? The institution of slavery is as old as civilization, made off the backs of others. Despite the efforts to end slavery it is still very prominent today, worldwide we have the highest number documented of slaves today which is estimated around 27 million. In addition, “we have to observe that the socioeconomically oppressed (the poor) do not simply exist alongside other oppressed groups, such as blacks, indigenous people, women-to take the three major categories in the Third World; No, the ‘class-oppressed’-the socioeconomically poor-are the infrastructural expression of the oppressed” (Farmer 49). This can also refer to the sexism and the racism that has been a factor in poor countries as well as the rich countries. With poor status as a reflection of these two prejudices we live in a world were worth is measured, we must first understand and stop racism and this will assist in steps to stop sexism. These workers are put in stereotypical roles that they are conditioned to learn and carry out, without knowledge of the inequalities that take place they will forever be lost. Furthermore, “The dehumanizing process behind forming variable capital ‘converts the worker into a crippled monstrosity’” (Wright 73). All slavery is dehumanizing and degrades the individuals who are in that positions, for most of the Africans involved in the diamond trade they have know stability so they enter this conflicted situation to secure living measures not realizing the drugs and abuse that will be placed on them. This all is a form of genocide and further perpetuates the cycle of slavery. Lastly, “The latter is the strategy for the defeated or for those who have accepted inevitability of defeat; some things, though, are bound to emerge victorious, whatever strategy is chosen: the new fragmentation of the city space, the shrinkage and disappearance of public space, the falling apart of urban community, separation and segregation-and above all the exterritoriality of the new elite and the forced territoriality of the rest” (Bauman 23). It is all about strains that keep the poor poorer and anyone who is of low class stay in low class. By keeping the power in the hands of the elite they control markets and the people who work around them. It’s a power struggle and by keeping the power they hold the lives of these slaves. We need to stop slavery, genocide, racism, and sexism, but slavery and these ideals are so embedded in the globalization of marketing that if we did then the economy gets messed up. So it keeps the market open for slaves.

VICTIMS

The war was devastating to its victims; many of the Africans lives were changed for the worst. The victims of the war played a huge role being that they were caught in the middle forced to choose sides and battle against their free will. The African women received just as much suffering as the men did if not more for being female. All rebels took part in violating human rights throughout the country against women. These included killing, rape, and other sexual violence, sexual slavery, slave labor, abduction, assault, amputation, forced pregnancy, disembowelment of pregnant women, torture, trafficking, mutilation, theft and the destruction of property. Rebels mainly used forced conscription but this was not solely against African males, rape and sexual slavery were committed almost exclusively against women.

The horrific atrocities that were produced by the civil war in Sierra Leone were known worldwide. The widespread focus was directed to amputations of villagers’ limbs, and less on violence against women which was a conflict and regularly used as a tool of war. These women were raped in extraordinary brutal ways using the sexual violence as systematic weapon. While some women joined the forces of rebels, most were abducted and obligated to carry out whatever orders were delivered to them. Both male and female combatants along with the abductees were forced to take drugs to keep them on edge during the war; this has a long lasting effect causing many to still be addicted to drugs today.

Many women were seen as suffering from a term called double victimization, because they were taken against their will to join armed forces and now today victimized by their society for having played a significant role in the conflict. Among suspicion these women were treated with hostility for not staying in line with gen

der and sex roles. These women were largely excluded from the Sierra Leone peace process programs to integrate them back into society because the process focused more on young boys and men. The rape victims were constricted to marginalization, because of the social stigmas that these African people felt about rape. Many have been shunned by their own communities, families, and husbands obligated to be silent to s tray away from being disliked or hated

Because sexual violence and rape were so prominent during the civil war, this adds to the rise in cases of HIV, AIDS, and other sexual transmitted diseases. “According to the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), of the 170,000 people between the ages of 15 and 49 estimated to be living with the virus in Sierra Leone in 2001, some 90,000 were females”. The trauma and turmoil this country has experienced affects these people every day of their lives. Still till this day a tremendous amount of pain and suffering is bestowed upon this people being that they are still left in devastating situations also having institutions that reoccur memories of the war. With the diamond trade still high-flying in the African country these images are embedded in the roots of the African people’s culture.