Blood diamonds kept Unita fighting
2002-02-23 18:00
Luanda - Angola's Unita rebels, whose leader Jonas Savimbi has reportedly been killed in combat, have lost most of their territory since 1998 but managed to keep fighting because of their illegal trade in
diamonds.
The United Nations has tried to curb the National Union for the
Total Independence of Angola's (Unita) traffic in "blood" diamonds,
thus cutting off the rebels' financial lifeline.
Despite the UN embargo on Unita diamonds in 1993 - and other
measures including an arms embargo, a travel ban on the group's
leaders, the closure of its overseas offices and financial
sanctions - the rebels have continued selling the precious stones.
Unita lost most of its territory after a 1998 offensive by the
Angolan army, but Savimbi's rebel group has tenaciously clung to
diamond-rich regions in the north.
Experts in Luanda estimate that Unita earns some $500 million
every year from the illegal diamond trade, a war treasury
that allows the rebels to mount deadly guerrilla operations
throughout the country.
Savimbi's rebels have found arms dealers prepared to trade
weapons for the gems, mainly in the former eastern bloc.
'Certificate of origin'
Angola's government has tried to stem the diamond trafficking by
creating a "certificate of origin", which guarantees that a diamond
was mined in government-held territory.
Luanda also gave exclusive diamond export rights to the Angola
Selling Corporation (Ascorp), which includes Angola's Sodiam
company, Israel's Wellox, and the Belgian-Swiss firm Tais.
"It's clear that international traders are always ready to
bypass the sanctions and buy diamonds coming from Unita," UN
official Juan Larrain said two years ago, when he was assigned to
shed light on the trade.
"It is very difficult, even in countries that have the will, to
prevent diamond smuggling," and Unita benefits from the complicity
of neighbouring African nations and European arms exporters, he
said.
The government also relies on Angola's mineral wealth to finance
its side of the war, mainly through oil and diamond sales.
About 10% of Angola's budget goes to defence, according
to official figures, and oil accounts for 95% of government
income.
Since 1999, the government also has control over the production
of one million carats in diamonds, and has boosted that production
by seizing Unita territory.
- Sapa-AFP
- SAPA