Milton Financials: Human Rights Watch believes Zimbabwe continues selling conflict diamonds.

Robert Mugabe’s government has yet to honor promises to remove the armed forces from diamond fields.

Human Rights Watch has come out strongly at the Kimberly Process members meeting in Jerusalem, Israel, against Zimbabwe’s apparent disregard for an agreement reached in November 2009, where the Southern African nation agreed to a phased withdrawal of its armed forces from diamond fields and pledged to certify that shipments from the Marange diamond field were indeed conflict-free.

"The government made a lot of promises but soldiers still control most diamond fields and are involved in illicit mining and smuggling," Rona Peligal, Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement available to Milton Financials. "Zimbabwe should mine its diamonds without relying on an abusive military that preys on the local population."

Members of the Kimberley Process (KP), the certification scheme started to end the trade in “blood diamonds” are under increasing pressure to reach a final decision on Zimbabwe’s trade future.

According to Human Rights Watch parts of the diamond fields in Zimbabwe are still under control of national forces and are linked directly to diamond smuggling, Milton Financials was told.

In 2008 The Zimbabwean army seized the Marange diamond fields and there have since been numerous media reports suggesting that the Marange diamonds are funding the ruling Zanu-PF party and are keeping President Robert Mugabe, who also stands accused of numerous human rights violations, in power.

Earlier this year, Mugabe threatened to leave the Kimberly Process but officials in September said that Zimbabwe was “ready and willing” to work with the international community.

Zimbabwean Mines Minister Obert Mpofu maintains that the government has met all the minimum standards set by the KP, and that the Ministry is ready to resume full exports immediately. The Minister has already made plans to exchange US$1.2 billion worth of rough stones to an Indian diamond conglomerate, in return for training, Milton Financials has learned.

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This release was published on openPR.