The sensitive subject of Zimbabwe and its diamonds was addressed in an afternoon session on Monday, the opening day of the Kimberley Process plenary meeting in Jerusalem, which concluded with Zimbabwe's Mines Minister demanding "immediate and unconditional exports."



Mr. Stephane Chardon, Chairman of the Working Group on Monitoring, introduced the conference's special session on Zimbabwe by explaining the background to the situation, and the various activities concerning the issue to the present day.



Chardon explained the series of steps required to bring diamond mining in the country's Marange diamond fields into full compliance with the Kimberley Process. He detailed the St Petersburg agreement, which had four major points:



• Certification of compliant shipment in August and September 2010

• A review mission in August 2010

• A stockpile audit of Zimbabwe's diamonds

• Appointment of a civil society local focal point (KP monitor)



Chardon showed conference participants detailed satellite images in which it was possible to see unprecedented large-scale development of the country's diamond industry, including airfield and helipad construction and new diamond mining areas, such as Hot Springs.



Kimberley Process Monitor for Zimbabwe Abbey Chikane then spoke, explaining his report from his visit to Zimbabwe, noting that his mandate was strictly defined and did not address some of the issues that various parties thought should be discussed.



Chikane explained the four reports that had been prepared – namely the first and second fact finding mission reports of the KP monitor, as well as the first and second Kimberley Process export examination reports of the monitor. He subsequently provided answers to issues on which he had been asked to explain, including providing a list of issues to be brought to the attention of the KP monitor.



Following Chikane on the podium of the special session was Minister A. Kpandel Fayia of Liberia, who detailed the review visit, adding humorously that the presence of women on the review mission team had been invaluable.



Fayia explained that while 21st-century mining exists in Zimbabwe, there were some challenges that needed to be addressed by the country's diamond industry. The minister added that the African Diamond Producers Association, with a representative at the Kimberley Process plenary, had also conducted its own fact-finding mission to the region. A forensic audit was not available before the review mission.



According to Fayia, progress had been made on security. He also touched on the topic of relocation of local families. Overall, the minister said, he and his team believed that Zimbabwe was compliant "in many ways" with the Kimberley Process.

Zimbabwe's Minister of Mines Obert Mpofu then addressed the audience, calling Jerusalem a "city of hope, a city of promise and a city of peace."



"I stand here to make comments of great significance for Zimbabwe, Africa, the region, and the wider diamond audience," Mpofu declared.

The minister said that Zimbabwe, "for whatever reason," had become topical since the Kimberley Process was established.



But Zimbabwe had made great strides in addressing the challenges, Mpofu said, noting that in the past two weeks there has been a lot of interesting activity, with visitors coming to Zimbabwe from various countries including India, Russia, China, even the United States, to engage with Zimbabwe on issues relating to the particular challenge of diamonds.



Mpofu said that on October 31 he had been alerted to a document which he said had been modified from its original form. He explained that it had not been possible for the review team members to reach a consensus on the issues addressed in the report.



Mpofu then proceeded to discuss a number of other issues pertaining to the question of Zimbabwe's diamonds, including the precise definition of the Kimberley Process mandate, and complaining about the appointment of the local focal point.



"It is clear that the Joint Work Plan is in the best interest of Zimbabwe. It is a tool being used improperly," the minister said, demanding immediate and "unconditional" diamond exports.



However, Mpofu expressed no objection to the presence of a peer review mission visit.