Clean Diamond Trade Act

Seattle Post-Intelligencer ^ | April 16 2003 | Central_Floridian

[Central_Floridian]

I just found out about this law a few days ago. It has already passed the House and Senate. According to www.geocities.com/larson_walker/body_conflictdiamonds.html President Bush also supports this law. I oppose this law because if I understand correctly it would place diamonds under the control of whatever government currently in power. I have read that in Angola, a diamond-rich country, the Marxist MPLA government seized control by killing elected UNITA officials, election negotiators, activists, and supporters in 1992. The MPLA government, I believe, has not allowed any fair elections since. The UNITA freedom fighters have been accused frequently of committing atrocities but when I have been able to find the sources of the allegations I have read, they came from MPLA officials or MPLA controlled sources. I do not understand why President Bush is aiding the MPLA forces, who have also been aided by billions of Soviet rubles, 60,000 Cuban soldiers, and massive numbers of Soviet aircraft, tanks, rocket launchers, and other weapons. I believe that if we desert and destroy another one of our pro-freedom allies, we will lose the trust and confidence of people around the world and our legitimate foreign policy goals will be imperiled, in addition to harming the cause of freedom in Angola. Please contact your Congressional Representatives and Senators and the President and ask them to support freedom throught the world. Websites with information about Angola www.visionforumministries.org/sections/hotcon/news/o11_holloween_massacre.asp www.foreigncorrespondent.com/archive/jonas.html www.aim.org/publications/guest_columns/weyrich/2002/12mar2002.html www.persecutionproject.org/resources/news/articlespublished/crosswalk www.worldnetdaily.com/news/articlse.asp?ARTICLE_ID=19070 The Kimberley Process mentioned in the bill www.kimberleyprocess.com The text of the "Clean Diamond Trade Act" http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c108:H.R.1584:

[Southack]

Wow, you just learned about this law but you've already got it all figured out and know why Bush is bad for allegedly liking it. Convenient.

[FierceDraka]

Committing atrocities against Marxists is not a crime - it is a public service! GRRRR!

[quietolong]

>>>>> it would place diamonds under the control of whatever government currently in power <<<<

This is how it works now. How can Bush sign things into law in other countries?

[Central_Floridian]

I do not "have it all figured out" but what I have read on sites that I believe are reliable, such as visionforum.org, aim.org, worldnetdaily.com, and others, seems to indicate that this law will promote communism in Africa.
What do you think about the Clean Diamond Trade Act?
Thank you for your input.

[Central_Floridian]

If I understand correctly, the Clean Diamond Trade Act would ban the import of diamonds that were shipped without the permission of the government of the country they came from (Kimberley Process). So it's not a "law in another country", but it sure would affect what happens in another country.