Although neighboring countries have signed, two internal rebel groups have refused. If these agreements are implemented and hold, they would bring to an end two of the tragic wars that have laid waste portions of the continent and its people. The UN and outside mediators have so far been unable to stop the fighting. Many issues feed these wars - tribal rivalries, ethnic hatreds, and ruthless ambition. The control of diamond sources provides to those in a conflict the resources to buy weapons, influence people, and continue the battle.
Accurate data are difficult to establish because of instability in the region.
Angola, with 11 percent of world diamond reserves, is probably the largest exporter - through both legal and illegal channels. Sierra Leone and Liberia report roughly equal exports, but most of the exports of the latter are smuggled out of neighboring Sierra Leone. DeBeers Consolidated Mines Inc., headquartered in South Africa, maintains virtual monopoly over all diamond sales and, by various means, encourages governments to see that all diamonds are sold through DeBeers' outlet in London. But smuggling is, and has long been, a part of the picture. Not only are diamonds valuable but, unlike precious metals, they are, in many places, easy to pick up, transport, and hide.