Posts Tagged ‘blood diamonds’

 

How to Avoid Purchasing a Conflict Diamond

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

Diamonds are a beautiful representation of love, commitment and faithfulness, and are especially popular for use in a sparkling engagement ring. However, before you can purchase the perfect diamond for the ring, you need to make sure you are not buying a conflict diamond.

 

Conflict diamonds, rather than being a positive symbol of your love, instead fuel hatred, bloodshed and terrorist acts. When you are shopping for diamonds, it is important to avoid buying these hate-fueled stones, thereby ensuring no one is profiting from them on your part.

 

Conflict Diamonds – The Basics

 

Also referred to as blood diamonds, conflict diamonds are stones sold by rebel groups to fund their horrible activities. Human rights issues, such as child or slave labor, state violence, the exploitation of workers and other abuses are common practices that are funded by the sale of these stones.

 

Conflict diamonds are characterized by their typical unpolished finish, and are frequently traded for weapons and other things. If you buy a conflict diamond, knowingly or otherwise, you are helping to fund these rebel groups and their illegal activities. What’s more, each blood diamond that is purchased lowers the country’s economic stability, which in itself creates a host of additional problems.

 

Where are Conflict Diamonds Found?

 

Typically, conflict diamonds are smuggled throughout the Central and Western portions of Africa – in fact, these places are the top diamond smuggling areas in the entire world.

 

The trouble with identifying conflict diamonds and non-conflict diamonds lies in their appearance. Once a conflict diamond has been cut and polished, they do not look any different than their legitimate counterparts.

 

Finding a Non-Conflict Diamond for your Engagement Ring

 

Thankfully, there are things you can do to reduce the chances that you are buying a conflict diamond. Visit a reputable jeweler, and don’t be afraid to ask where the diamond came from (i.e., where it was mined and imported from.) A reputable jeweler will have no problem answering your questions, and you should avoid any diamonds that come from the chief smuggling areas of the world, as well as neighboring countries that may help fuel oppression and bloodshed with the sale of illegitimate stones.

 

Keep an eye out for any warning signs, as well. For example, if you find a particularly high quality stone for an insanely low price, this could be an indication that the stone was obtained very cheaply. In this instance, you may be unknowingly purchasing a conflict diamond while thinking you are getting a great bargain.

 

While your diamond engagement ring will be a symbol of love and commitment, a ring with a conflict diamond only symbolizes hate, oppression and bloodshed. Shop for your diamonds very carefully so your engagement ring will be a symbol of unity, not a symbol of hate.

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Gemstone Alternatives Instead of the Traditional Center Diamond

Thursday, May 7th, 2009

Purchasing a white diamond for the center of your engagement ring is no longer the only choice there is. You now have other choices based upon what you like as well as your moral and ethical positions.

 

If you are determined to purchase a diamond for the center of your engagement ring, and seek an alternative to a white diamond, yellow diamonds have become incredibly popular. They are more expensive than white diamonds, of similar quality, but really make an impact when seen on a woman’s finger.

 

Another popular choice is pink diamonds. These diamonds are rarer than yellow diamonds and also cost more than the traditional white diamond.

 

Still, many women have learned about an issue that has taken place for some years. This issue was dramatically brought to the world’s attention via a movie called “Blood Diamond” staring Leonardo DiCaprio. The issue, also known as “non-conflict” diamonds or “conflict-free” diamonds has forced some women, and men, to look at the ethical issue of purchasing diamonds that may have been the cause of torture, rape and murder.

 

When this issue became better known, some women, who still wanted a center diamond for their engagement ring, insisted upon learning where the diamond was mined and how it was delivered to the jeweler. If the jeweler is reputable, he can produce documentation showing the origins of the diamond and proof that the diamond is a “conflict-free” diamond.

 

However, some women do not accept this documentation as proof positive and have decided to go in a different direction. Some have opted for other precious gemstones including Sapphires, Rubies, Emeralds, and the rare, and very expensive, Paraiba Tourmaline.

 

If you are searching for a gemstone to replace a white diamond, there are two substitutes that I can recommend that most people will think are real white diamonds. There are cubic zirconia and white sapphires. Cubic zirconia is well known as an extremely low cost replacement for real diamonds. Then there are white sapphires. White sapphires cost a fraction of diamonds the same size, but good quality white sapphires are not that easy to come by.

 

Sapphires, rubies, emeralds and Paraiba tourmalines are all very good replacement gemstones for diamonds. They all come in either different colors or different shades. For example, sapphires come in white, green, pink, purple, blue, yellow and variations of all these colors.

 

Paraiba Tourmaline also comes in a few different colors with variations of blue and green being the most widely available.

 
There are quite a large number of precious and semi-precious gemstones that can substitute for the traditional center white diamond in your engagement ring. Here are just a few of the gemstones that you could substitute: Alexandrite, Amethyst, Andesine Labradorite, Apatite, Aquamarine, Blue Topaz, Citrine, Fire Opal, Green Beryl, Green Tourmaline, Kunzite, Mandarin Garnet, Morganite, Peridot, Pink Tourmaline, Precious Topaz, Red Spinel, Rubellite, Tanzanite, Tsavorite and Yellow Beryl (just to name a few).

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