UN praises S.Leone for system to bar illicit gems

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -- Security Council members commended the Sierra Leone government on Friday for developing a system for certifying that diamonds are not being trafficked illegally and said they looked forward to further details on how the programme would be implemented.

Council members made the remarks in a statement following the first periodic closed-door review of a resolution adopted July 5 calling on all states to prohibit the import of all rough diamonds from Sierra Leone until the government comes up with a U.N.-approved certificate-of-origin regime.

The aim is to prevent Sierra Leone rebels, who still control large areas of the west African nation, from exploiting diamond mines under their control to fund their operations.

The United Nations has taken an increasing interest in preventing rebel groups in a number of African countries, including Angola and the Central African Republic as well as Sierra Leone, from exploiting so-called "conflict diamonds."

Council President Moctar Ouane of Mali, who read out the statement, said members "commended the government of Sierra Leone for developing, with international assistance, the certification regime that has been submitted" to the U.N. sanctions committee on Sierra Leone.

The council members hoped that, with further information from the government on how the regime would be implemented, "diamonds would soon start to be exported under this regime," he said.

The council statement also welcomed a U.N. hearing held in July to assess the link between illicit Sierra Leone diamonds and the trade in arms.

Council members commended Secretary-General Kofi Annan for having appointed a panel of experts to travel to the region and study the problem. It is due to report back to the sanctions committee by the end of October.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For more Africa news, myCNN.com will bring you news from the areas and subjects you select.

See related sites about Africa

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.