e; even when laws exist, the small-scale nature of the mining makes them challenging to apply. For this reason, alluvial mining is the most likely form of mining to use forced or child labor. Human rights infractions in the diamond supply chain overall include low or no pay, dangerous working conditions, child labor, forced labor, violence, and the fueling of conflict.
Diamond miners in the informal (small-scale) sector produce 15 percent of the world’s diamonds, yet they make only about one dollar per day. That means about a million workers in Africa live off one dollar each day, no matter how much they dig [Brilliant Earth]. Additionally, independent miners lack access to global markets, so they have no choice but to sell to middle-men at below market prices. Living in poverty, mining communities often lack access to running water and sanitation, and they suffer from hunger, illiteracy, and a high rate of infant mortality. Further, these long-term problems exist alongside the daily hazards of diamond mining. Diamond miners work with the dangers of mudslides, collapsing walls, and the risk of drowning. Unfortunately, many diamond miners lack the safety equipment and proper tools they need. Making matters worse, small-scale mining is too often conducted without training or expertise.
Think about it…
Consider these unsafe working conditions, and add children to the equation. Child labor is a huge problem in the informal diamond mining sector, especially during wartime. One survey revealed that 46% of miners in the Lunda Norte province of Angola were between 5 and 16 years old [Brilliant Earth]. Health and safety risks aside, a child’s time working in the mines is also time not working in school. Miners use children to reach small, narrow spaces, putting them in life-threatening positions. Child labor has been evident in Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone as well as Angola.
Children are exploited not only in the excavation part of the supply chain, but also in the cutting and polishing stage. Child labor is believed to be widespread in India, where 90 percent of the world’s diamonds are cut and polished [Facts and Details]. Children working in the cutting and polishing phase can be forced to work as long as 16 hours per day.
Forced labor is no stranger to the diamond supply chain, particularly during times of war. For example, in 2008 Zimbabwean soldiers forced communities to mine for diamonds on the army’s behalf [BBC]. Those who resisted suffered beatings, rape, and torture. The following year, the army used forced and child labor to mine in the Marange fields of eastern Zimbabwe.
In many cases, debt bondage renders workers unable to quit diamond mining. In these situations a “creditor” rigs conditions so that the debtor can never pay off the debt, therefore remaining in bondage indefinitely. Bonded labor is especially prevalent in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Many women and girls are trafficked from the DRC into diamond mining camps in Sierra Leone, where they work as bonded laborers [Verite].
You know that movie wasn’t fiction, right?
And you’ve no doubt heard about “blood diamonds,” or you may remember the 2006 film Blood Diamond starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Blood diamonds, or conflict diamonds, are stolen or mined illegally. They are sold to fund rebel armed forces or terrorist groups, and some sources say they have raised billions of dollars to fund civil wars and conflicts in African countries. Conflict diamonds come predominantly from Angola, the DRC, the Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Sierra Leone [photius.com]. When people don’t follow orders to excavate diamonds in poor conditions, they can be threatened, killed, or dismembered.
Ready for some good news, yet?
So what should Americans, as the world’s largest consumers of diamonds, know about the companies that want to sell to us shiny baubles? De Beers and ALROSA (Russian diamond giant) are the biggest players here, together producing almost half the world’s diamonds [resourceinvestor.com]. BHP and Rio Tinto are two other big players. These four companies together p