Conflict-free diamonds are a girl's best friend

I highly recommend watching this ABC 4-part fictionalized documentary that looks at the diamond industry politically and culturally...from the war zone to the show room.

I loved the movie Blood Diamond for shedding light on this issue, thus I really enjoyed Diamonds for taking on a whole new (and more complicated) storyline and cast of characters that all revolve around the business, deception and cruelty of 'conflict' diamonds.




It's well-thought out, with plotline not limited to Sierra Leone or even Africa, but more realistically connected to many other parts of the world.

Plus, you can watch the 4 episodes for free...
Go to Abc.com and click on "Free Episodes" at the top
(Click HERE for the first episode.)


Denmont, the main diamond company depicted in 'Diamonds,' presumably refers to the real company De Beers: the overarching antagonist in Blood Diamond as well.

After looking on the World Diamond Council and UN Websites, as well as Wikipedia (here and here), my burning, perhaps trite (and probably unanswerable) question remains of why advertising (as it appears) has created such a high demand for diamonds in Western culture.

Forget governments, forget rebel groups...are we really just buying into a grand marketing scheme with ugly, unseen colonialist implications?

Or perhaps Hollywood is blowing this issue out of proportion: In 2003, George W. Bush passed the Clean Diamonds Trade Act (click on "US Legislation) and the WDC alleges that conflict diamond trade has been reduced from 4% to 1% of the total diamond trade.

Hmm.

Maybe you have an answer or an explanation?
Or perhaps you have read a well-researched book that further brings this issue to light?
Please share your thoughts!