The Responsible Jewellery Council wants  to clear up some of the issues talked about in this article. So here is RJC CEO Michael Rae, who also talks about how his group is approaching the situation in Marange:

It is not the intention of the RJC to develop its own system of product tracking, but to investigate the possibility of certifying the effectiveness, validity and claims made by proprietary tracking systems.

In essence, the RJC is intent on assisting our Members make credible claims about the traceability or chain-of custody of their products, should Members individually choose to do so.  The RJC will not require Members to evidence chain-of-custody.  Any activity by Members on this issue will be of their own volition and will be an adjunct to, not a requirement of, the RJC System.

In investigating the credibility of chain-of-custody claims, the RJC will be especially mindful that the development of tracking systems (or other similar standards) for the Industry is not intended to limit any company’s freedom or discretion to make its own business decisions, to prevent the manufacture or sale of any product not conforming to such a specified standard, or to have the effect of restraining competition.

Of relevance to this issue is the RJC Statement to Members: Marange diamonds and The RJC Certification System, which was circulated to the RJC’s Members on Tuesday.  In the statement, the RJC reminds its members that no one should be dealing in recently exported Marange diamonds and Members are therefore expected to demonstrate due diligence as they continue to fully comply with the KPCS and World Diamond Council System of Warranties. Members are advised to exercise extreme caution when buying rough diamonds on the market to ensure that they do not originate from Marange, despite the current KPCS suspension. Once the KP Monitor is in place in Zimbabwe, all exports from Marange must bear the signature of the Monitor on the KP Certificate.

This statement on Marange diamonds is completely in accordance with the RJC’s anti-trust statement in its warning to Members to exercise extreme caution when buying rough diamonds.

Rob Bates

JCK News Director