Uk Wedding Planner Launches Conflict Free
Diamond Awareness Campaign
 Nafisa Mark of wedding
planners Nafisa Weddings & Events has launched a
campaign to draw attention to the poverty and suffering
fuelled by the global diamond trade and to alert brides
to questions they should be asking to ensure that their
diamonds are conflict-free.
Nafisa is working to draw the attention of both
brides-to-be, as well as the wider UK wedding industry
to the appalling conditions of those who suffer as a
result of sourcing so called ‘blood diamonds’.
The diamond trade has, and continues to fuel some of
Africa’s most savage civil wars in countries such as
Liberia and Sierra Leone. Some 200,000 people have been
killed in Liberia and a million forced from their homes
over recent years as a result of the fighting. The
diamonds which are mined and sold by warlords to buy
weapons have come to be known as “conflict
diamonds”.
Nafisa Mark comments: “Unfortunately to find out the
history of a diamond, is probably not top priority when
a couple is busy organising their special day, but I’d
urge them to ask about the diamond’s origin and ensure
that it is ‘conflict-free’. The wedding industry spends
millions of pounds on diamonds every year, so brides are
in a key position to actually do something about
it.”
‘Conflict-free’ diamonds are stones, the sourcing of
which has not supported civil war, terrorism, or
brutality against local populations. This designation
arose in response to the turmoil surrounding the diamond
trade in Angola, Sierra Leone, and The Democratic
Republic of the Congo, as well as other areas of South
Africa.
Nafisa Mark suggests that all brides about to
embark on a diamond purchase ask their jewellery dealer
a series of questions put together by Amnesty
International UK and Global Witness:
- Where the diamonds you sell come from?
- What is your company’s policy on conflict
diamonds?
- Can you show me a written guarantee from your
diamond suppliers that shows that your diamonds are
conflict free?
- How can I be sure that none of your jewellery
contains conflict diamonds?
Nick Dearden, Campaigns Manager (Business & Human
Rights) for Amnesty International UK comments:
"Customers have a vital role to play in ensuring that
diamonds do not fund deadly conflict in Africa. The
wedding market is a key area to raise awareness about
the role diamonds have played in fuelling some of the
most violent conflicts of the last 15 years.”
The spotlight will fall even more strongly on
this issue when Warner Bros release their Hollywood
blockbuster "Blood Diamond" in the UK on Friday
26th January. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the film is
set against the backdrop of civil war and chaos in
1990's Sierra Leone.
To ensure that all of her clients have access to
conflict free diamonds, Nafisa has formed an exclusive
partnership with DeJoria, an established UK based
diamond jewellery business, created by John Paul
DeJoria, co-founder of the world famous hair product
brand Paul Mitchell.
Nafisa Mark commented “The partnership with DeJoria
came about as a result of their stance on conflict-free
diamonds - an important issue to many of our clients as
brides don’t want a love token tarnished by war.
Also, their good reputation and extensive range of
certified diamond rings, complements our wedding
services well.”
As wedding planners, Nafisa often receive enquiries
for sourcing diamonds for clients, either for their
engagement rings or their wedding bands. However, more
recently they have had a number of queries about
“conflict-free” diamonds. They believe that recent
publicity has brought this issue to the forefront of the
public domain. Therefore, couples want – and should
rightly expect -reassurance that the diamonds they buy
are genuinely “conflict-free”.
John Paul DeJoria commented “It makes perfect sense
for us to partner with Nafisa, as the natural
progression for a couple buying a DeJoria diamond
engagement ring is to move into planning their big day
together. This exclusive partnership will ensure
that our clients are offered the services of a
professional on the most important day of their
lives“.
ENDS
For more
information on Nafisa Weddings and Events campaign
please contact:
Bill Hunt on 020 7681 0051
or 07956 531515
Email: bill@billhunt.co.uk
For more information on Amnesty
International’s conflict free diamond campaign please
contact:
Nick Dearden at Amnesty
International UK on 020 7033 1586
Email: nicholas.dearden@amnesty.org.uk
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