UN Program Investigated Over Diamond Smuggling in Zimbabwe

The United Nations is investigating if one of its teams is involved in diamond smuggling from Zimbabwe. According to reports, the Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, Larry Johnson, has written a letter confirming that an investigation is underway to discover if the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP) Zimbabwe office is involved in diamond smuggling.

The investigation began after a lawyer representing a mining company in Zimbabwe claimed to have signed affidavits and other documents proving that commercial rivals had smuggled diamonds out of Zimbabwe with the assistance of the UNDP.

Although the local UNDP representative, Augustino Zacharias, denied the charges, a leaked letter from Johnson confirms that the agency is investigating the matter. “We have brought your letters to the attention of the UNDP and we understand that the UNDP, together with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group and the African Management Company (AMSCO) are currently examining the questions that you have raised,” Johnson wrote.

During a daily UN press briefing, a spokesperson for the secretary-general was asked if she could confirm the investigation. She said, “If there is an investigation, the Secretariat won’t be directly involved,” adding that she would look further into the matter.

The UNDP has not supplied any public statements on the issue.

At its annual meeting in Jerusalem last week, the World Diamond Council (WDC) singled out Zimbabwe and Venezuela for not meeting Kimberley Process standards on rough diamond trade. Failure to control their local rough diamond trade makes the two countries likely candidates for expulsion from the process.