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04/12/2006
CANZ Statement by Ambassador McNee to the General Assembly on the role of diamonds in fuelling conflict
Statement by Ambassador John McNee
Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations
on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand
to the 61st Session of the General Assembly
on the role of diamonds in fuelling conflict New York, December 4, 2006 Thank you Madam President. It is my honour to address the General Assembly today on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Allow me to begin by congratulating Botswana on a successful term as Chair of the Kimberley Process in 2006. The report and the resolution that we are adopting today are testament to the strong leadership provided by Botswana in the face of a number of serious and challenging issues that have confronted the Kimberley Process over the past year. Let me also take this opportunity to welcome the European Commission as the incoming Kimberley Process Chair for 2007, as well as India as the Vice Chair. We look forward to working with your delegations as we continue to advance the implementation and the strengthening of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. Madam President, CANZ remains fully supportive of the Kimberley Process, which advances human security and the prevention of conflict by preventing conflict diamonds from penetrating the legitimate diamond market. Recognising these objectives, New Zealand recently joined Canada and Australia as participant members of the Kimberley Process. The certification scheme is working, and has already had a major impact on the global diamond trade, thanks in large measure to the comprehensive scope of the Scheme. The Scheme not only deprives criminals and non-state armed groups from easy access to capital, but has also improved the revenue generating capacity of governments formerly affected by conflict-diamonds such as Angola, Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The impact of this shift in resource flows on the international community’s conflict prevention and conflict resolution efforts has been significant. Madam President, We are pleased to note the constructive spirit in which Kimberley Process governments, industry and civil society partners continue to effectively implement and enforce key Kimberley commitments. CANZ is particularly pleased by the mobilization of the Kimberley Process community in response to allegations by the UN Group of Experts on Côte d’Ivoire that Ivorian conflict diamonds have been passing through third countries, including Kimberley Process members. To address the situation of one Kimberly Process member country, a Special Envoy of the Chair of the Kimberley Process visited senior officials in Ghana between 30 October and 1 November, and at the November Plenary the Kimberley Process subsequently endorsed an action plan intended to remedy the weaknesses identified in Ghana’s system of internal controls. We note with satisfaction that numerous offers of technical assistance for the implementation of these measures have been made by Kimberley Process Participants and Observers, and we are pleased by the proactive role the Kimberley Process has played in addressing this situation. The Kimberley Process will continue to work with Ghana toward prompt implementation of this action plan. CANZ is also pleased that the Kimberley Process has adopted the Report of the Third Year Review, which provides an overview of the progress made by the Kimberley Process since its implementation in 2003 and outlines a blueprint for the ongoing improvement of the Process, articulating a number of concrete measures that may be taken to this effect. We encourage all member states and relevant United Nations institutions and bodies to cooperate with the Kimberley Process in the implementation of these measures. CANZ welcomes the elevation of the group on Alluvial Production—formerly a sub-group under the aegis of the Working Group on Monitoring—to the status of a full Working Group. As a sub-group this group has already proved its usefulness, and CANZ is confident that Angola, as the 2007 Chair of the Group, will provide the leadership required to ensure that the group continues to enhance the Kimberly Process’ ability to respond to the challenges facing artisanal-alluvial producers. Madam President, The Kimberley Process is making a major contribution in breaking the link between natural resources and armed conflict, and stands as a living testament to what can be achieved through the honest partnership of governments, the United Nations, the private sector and civil society. It is—and will remain—an essential tool for our ongoing efforts to prevent conflict, and we look forward to strengthening and deepening its implementation and enforcement in the months ahead. Thank you.
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