New rules to stop diamond sales from conflicts - De Beers

South African diamond giant De Beers plans to announce new rules for selling its diamonds that will help prevent diamonds mined in war zones from reaching world markets, news reports said on Wednesday. News reports said that the new rules would include having the company’s 120 customers sign contracts with De Beers to replace the oral agreements under which they currently operated. The contracts would contain clauses stipulating that the buyers are not dealing in diamonds mined by rebel groups in conflict regions. “We’ve made efforts on our side to ensure that the diamonds we offer to our clients come from conflict free areas,” Tracey Peterson, a company spokeswoman, was quoted as saying. “We’re hoping that we will be able to encourage people downstream in the industry to make the same commitments.”