Zimbabwe Promises to Remove Soldiers from Diamond Fields

Zimbabwe will consider pulling its soldiers out of a diamond mining area after a visit by a Kimberley Process (KP) review team at the mining fields. The team yesterday submitted an interim report that recommended the demilitarization of the Marange fields, where military forces attacked local diamond miners and killed many of them, according to local reports.

Following the report submission, Cde Obert Mpofu, Zimbabwe's minister of mines and mining development, said the government would meet the KP’s minimum standards on mining and trading prior to the publication of the final KP review report, the state-owned Sunday Mail reported.

The KP review team was sent to Zimbabwe following a public outcry that the rough diamond controls system failed to address government sanctioned human rights abuses. According to a report published by Human Rights Watch on June 26, "Zimbabwe's armed forces are engaging in the forced labor of children and adults, and are torturing and beating local villagers on the diamond fields of Marange district."

"The military, which remains under the control of the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), the former ruling party, killed more than 200 people in a violent takeover of the diamond fields in late 2008."

Zimbabwe denied the killings, stating that it drove off illegal diamond 'diggers.' The government said the KP review team had complete access to all areas of interest, including the Chiadzwa diamond fields, River Ranch and Murowa mines but failed to "prove allegations of gross human rights abuses in the area."

"We are going to work towards getting in line with the standards proposed [by the review team]," said Cde Mpofu. According to his deputy, Murisi Zwizwai, "There is a lot to be done on the side of this country. We agreed to remove soldiers but it will be done in phases while proper security settings would be put in place."

Cde Mpofu said the government will soon relocate the people in Chiadzwa to a farm and improve security in the area to prevent illegal mining and subsequent smuggling of rough diamonds out of the country. "The Ministry has identified potential investors who will help to provide adequate security to the diamond fields."

"I appeal to your (KP) team to assist in drumming up international support in our efforts to set up a modern and well secured diamond operation in Chiadzwa," he added.

The KP did not publish the interim report or any information about the review mission.