The new president of the World Diamond Council (WDC), Ronnie VanderLinden, called on the jewelry industry to champion the interests of natural diamonds.
Speaking at the Kimberley Process (KP) Intersessional Meeting in Mumbai, he stated the need to "speak with one voice on the value, origin, and transparency" of stones. He noted the WDC's concerns about lab-grown diamonds and called on the jewelry industry to promote the positive impact of the natural diamond industry on mining communities and countries.
He also advocated for the importance of pursuing the issue of conflict diamonds. Expanding the definition of conflict diamonds within the KP is expected to be a central topic at the Mumbai meeting. Until now, conflict diamonds have been defined as "rough diamonds used by rebel movements to finance wars against legitimate governments."
The proposed new definition includes "armed conflict and systematic or widespread violence" "perpetrated by... militias, mercenaries, organized crime networks, private military and security companies, and other non-state actors."
At the KP plenary meeting in Dubai last fall, several members - Canada, Australia, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Ukraine - requested expanding the definition to also include violence by "state actors." The plenary concluded without reaching agreement on a new definition.
"We must pick up where we left off in November and get back to work on changing the definition of a conflict diamond now," VanderLinden emphasized. "The world has changed. The industry has changed. Our definition needs to reflect that. We all know it. We came so close. Now we need to finish the job."
According to him, it is necessary to continue working to change the definition of conflict diamonds in line with today's reality, agree on a new definition, and enshrine it in the core document.
VanderLinden was elected President of the World Diamond Council at the organization's Annual General Meeting on May 7 this year in Antwerp.
The Kimberley Process was established in 2003 as an international certification body whose goal is to prevent the trade in conflict diamonds and ensure responsible diamond mining practices worldwide.
In the coming days, the intersessional meeting will include discussions and meetings of various working groups and committees. Discussions will focus on the implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, monitoring and verification mechanisms, artisanal and alluvial diamond mining, statistics, and measures to strengthen trust in the natural diamond value chain. The intersessional meeting will run until May 14, 2026. India assumed the Chairmanship of the Kimberley Process on 1 January 2026.
Hélène Tarin, Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough&Polished
