U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

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89–011 2001

107th Congress, 1st Session – – – – – – – – – – – – – House Document 107–24

PROHIBITION OF THE IMPORTATION OF

ROUGH DIAMONDS FROM SIERRA LEONE

COMMUNICATION

FROM

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

TRANSMITTING

HIS REPORT ISSUING A NEW EXECUTIVE ORDER THAT PROHIBITS

THE IMPORTATION OF ROUGH DIAMONDS FROM SIERRA LEONE

JANUARY 20, 2001.—Referred to the Committee on International Relations

and ordered to be printed

(1)

THE WHITE HOUSE,

Washington, January 19, 2001.

Hon. J. DENNIS HASTERT,

Speaker of the House of Representatives,

Washington, DC.

DEAR MR. SPEAKER:Pursuant to section 204(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b)

(IEEPA), and section 301 of the National Emergencies Act, 50

U.S.C. 1631, I hereby report that I have exercised my statutory authority to declare a national emergency in response to the unusual

and extraordinary threat posed to the foreign policy of the United

States by Sierra Leone’s insurgent Revolutionary United Front’s

(RUF’s) illicit trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone to fund its operations and procurement of weapons and by the RUF’s flagrant

violation of the Lome Peace Agreement of July 7, 1999, between

the Government of Sierra Leone and the RUF. I also have exercised by statutory authority to issue an Executive Order that prohibits the importation into the United States of all rough diamonds

from Sierra Leone except for those importations of rough diamonds

that are accompanied by a Certificate of Origin or other satisfactory documentation demonstrating that the rough diamonds were

legally exported from Sierra Leone with the approval of the Government of Sierra Leone. These actions are mandated in part by

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1306 of July 5, 2000.

The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary

of State, is authorized to issue regulations in exercise of my authorities under IEEPA and the United Nations Participation Act,

22 U.S.C. 287c, to implement this prohibition. All Federal agencies

are also directed to take actions within their authority to carry out

the provisions of the Executive Order.

I am enclosing a copy of the Executive Order I have issued. The

order was effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on January

19, 2001.

I have authorized these measures in response to the RUF’s illicit

trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone to fund its operations and

procurement of weapons and in response to the actions and policies

of the RUF in failing to fully abide by the terms of the Lome Peace

Agreement of July 7, 1999. The people of Sierra Leone have suffered the ravages of the brutal civil war for nearly a decade. The

world’s conscience has been shocked by the horrific actions of the

RUF in Sierra Leone during this conflict. The widespread crimes

against humanity perpetrated by RUF forces include mass amputations, rape, summary execution, and forced labor.

In late May 2000, United Nations Secretary General Annan encouraged the U.N. Security Council to consider taking measures to

prevent the RUF from reaping the benefits of its illicit trade in diamonds that had been plundered from Sierra Leone. On July 5,

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2000, the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 1306. The resolution determines that the situation in Sierra Leone continues to

constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region, expresses concern at the role played by the illicit trade in diamonds in fueling the conflict in Sierra Leone, and decides that all

states shall take the necessary measures to prohibit the direct or

indirect importation of all rough diamonds from Sierra Leone to

their territory. The resolution, in recognition of the economic importance of the legitimate diamond trade to Sierra Leone, further

decides that rough diamonds controlled by the Government of Sierra Leone through a Certificate of Origin regime shall be exempt

from the trade embargo.

Military forces of the Government of Sierra Leone and Military

Observer Group forces provided by the Economic Community of

West African States were engaged in military operations in Sierra

Leone against the RUF until mid-1999. At that time, the Government of Sierra Leone and the RUF signed the Lome Peace Agreement, which provides for an end to hostilities and the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of the insurgent RUF

forces. The United Nations Security Council in U.N. Security Council Resolutions 1270 and 1289 established the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) to facilitate implementation of the

Lome Peace Agreement and to provide security at key locations and

government buildings and at all sites of the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration programs, among other tasks. The Lome

Peace Agreement brought an end, sadly only temporarily, to the

killings and the atrocities perpetrated by the RUF.

RUF forces have repeatedly violated the terms of the Lome Peace

Agreement throughout this spring, when they engaged in deliberate and unprovoked armed attacks on U.N. peacekeepers and

committed serious abuses against civilians and international and

national aid workers. In May 2000, as UNAMSIL expanded its efforts to establish monitoring and disarmament sites in or near

RUF-controlled territory, RUF forces initiated military activity in

those areas, killing U.N. peacekeepers and capturing or isolating

hundreds of UNAMSIL personnel. These actions brought the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration processes agreed to in

the Lome Peace Agreement to a virtual standstill and represent a

direct hostile challenge to U.S. foreign policy objectives in the region, which include restoration of peace in Sierra Leone and promotion of democracy and the rule of law throughout the region.

Failure to respond to this challenge would encourage other potential rogue organizations to transgress the rule-based international

order, which is crucial to the peace and prosperity of the United

States.

For the reasons discussed above, the RUF’s illicit trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone and its flagrant violation of the Lome

Peace Agreement constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat

to the foreign policy of the United States. The measures we are

taking will serve to bring an end to the illicit arms-for-diamonds

trade through which the RUF perpetuates the tragic conflict in Sierra Leone. They also reflect our outrage at the RUF’s repeated,

widespread, and serious violations of the Lome Peace Agreement

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and the RUF’s continuing hostilities against the people of Sierra

Leone and UNAMSIL personnel.

Sincerely,

WILLIAM J. CLINTON.

(5)

EXECUTIVE ORDER

PROHIBITING THE IMPORTATION OF ROUGH DIAMONDS FROM SIERRA

LEONE

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution

and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.)

(IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.),

section 5 of the United Nations Participation Act of 1945, as

amended (22 U.S.C. 287c) (UNPA), and section 301 of title 3,

United States Code, and in view of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1306 of July 5, 2000,

I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United States of

America, take note that the people of Sierra Leone have suffered

the ravages of a brutal civil war for nearly 10 years, and that the

United Nations Security Council has determined that the situation

in Sierra Leone constitutes a threat to international peace and security in the region and also has expressed concerns regarding the

role played by the illicit trade in diamonds in fueling the conflict

in Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone’s insurgent Revolutionary United

Front’s (RUF’s) illicit trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone to fund

its operations and procurement of weapons, the RUF’s flagrant violation of the Lome Peace Agreement of July 7, 1999, and its attacks

on personnel of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone are direct challenges to the United States foreign policy objectives in the

region as well as a direct challenge to the rule-based international

order which is crucial to the peace and prosperity of the United

States. Therefore, I find these actions constitute an unusual and

extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States and

hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat. In

order to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution

1306 and to ensure that the direct or indirect importation into the

United States of rough diamonds from Sierra Leone will not contribute financial support to aggressive actions by the RUF or to the

RUF’s procurement of weapons, while at the same time seeking to

avoid undermining the legitimate diamond trade or diminishing

confidence in the integrity of the legitimate diamond industry, I

hereby order:

Section 1. Except to the extent provided in section 2 of this order

and to the extent provided in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding the existence of any rights or obligations conferred or imposed by any

international agreement or any contract entered into or any license

or permit granted prior to the effective date of this order, the direct

or indirect importation into the United States of all rough diaVerDate 11-MAY-2000 10:33 Jan 24, 2001 Jkt 089011 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HD024.XXX pfrm07 PsN: HD024
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monds from Sierra Leone on or after the effective date of this order

is prohibited.

Sec. 2. The prohibition in section 1 of this order shall not apply

to the importation of rough diamonds controlled through the Certificate of Origin regime of the Government of Sierra Leone.

Sec. 3. Any transaction by a United States person or within the

United States that evades or avoids, or has the purpose of evading

or avoiding, or attempts to violate, any of the prohibitions set forth

in this order is prohibited.

Sec. 4. For the purposes of this order:

(a) the term ‘‘person’’ means an individual or entity;

(b) the term ‘‘entity’’ means a partnership, association, trust,

joint venture, corporation, or other organization;

(c) the term ‘‘United States person’’ means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, entity organized under the laws of

the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States;

(d) the term ‘‘rough diamond’’ means all unworked diamonds

classifiable in heading 7102 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of

the United States; and

(e) the term ‘‘controlled through the Certificate of Origin regime

of the Government of Sierra Leone’’ means accompanied by a Certificate of Origin or other documentation that demonstrates to the

satisfaction of the United States Customs Service (or analogous officials of a United States territory or possession with its own customs administration) that the rough diamonds were legally exported from Sierra Leone with the approval of the Government of

Sierra Leone.

Sec. 5. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the

Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ

all powers granted to the President by IEEPA and UNPA, as may

be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary

of the Treasury may redelegate any of these functions to other officers and agencies of the United States Government. All agencies of

the United States Government are hereby directed to take all appropriate measures within their authority to carry out the provisions of this order.

Sec. 6. This order is not intended to create, nor does it create,

any right, benefit, or privilege, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party against the United States, its agencies, officers, or any other person.

Sec. 7. This order is effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time

on January 19, 2001.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON.

THE WHITE HOUSE, January 18, 2001.

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