Regarding the ongoing Kimberley Process/Zimbabwe deadlock,
current KP chairman Yamba Matheiu sent out the following notice Feb. 4…
I would like to commend the efforts
that are being carried out by several in order to solve the question of the
diamonds from the Marange Region (Zimbabwe), through the draft Administrative
Decision, which has been submitted [for] your approval through written
procedure.However, one cannot consider at
this stage that consensus has been reached according to the rules of the
Kimberley Process, as some countries had expressed their reservations on this
draft within the prescribed deadline.I have therefore launched
discussions, in consultations with the Working Group on Monitoring, around this
draft Administrative Decision, knowing that it is the interest of all to see
Zimbabwe resume its exports in the full respect to the Kimberley Process
minimum requirements.
Readers may recall two weeks ago, former KP chair Boaz
Hirsch put
out a notice saying an agreement had been “approved.” But apparently one country (Namibia) said it submitted
objections to the agreement with an e-mail, although everyone says they didn’t receive it. And another
country (Russia) protested that proper procedure hadn’t been followed.
But most likely, the agreement would go through if Zimbabwe approved it. Which it looks like they haven’t.
Basically, the decision is the chair’s, and the current chairman apparently feels more “discussions” are in order. And, as Chaim
Even-Zohar said
yesterday, some of this production may be leaving the area illegally
regardless…
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