 |
Diamonds are symbols of wealth, elegance and
love around the world. But in several African
nations, they have been a means to power, a
reason to terrorize millions of innocent
civilians, and may have even helped finance
some of the world's most brutal terrorists.
The human cost of the illicit global diamond
trade is examined in the provocative
documentary.
Because they are portable, easily concealed,
and untraceable, diamonds lend themselves to
smuggling and corruption. In several
underdeveloped African nations, warlords have
used diamonds to help finance wars, while the
rest of the world has turned a blind eye.
Rebel armies have forced tens of thousands of
people to mine diamonds in brutal, dangerous
conditions under the threat of death, their
pay as paltry as a cup of rice per day. In
Sierra Leone, rebels chopped off people's
hands, arms, feet, lips, and ears
indiscriminately for years during a civil war
financed in part by the trade of illicit
diamonds.
BLOOD DIAMONDS looks to some of the world's
foremost experts for the facts of the history
of the diamond trade, and goes to the heart
of the matter, interviewing both the victims
and perpetrators of diamond-fueled atrocities
in countries like Sierra Leone. One such
victim is Usman Conteh. Captured by rebels in
Sierra Leone's Kono district, Usman was
forced to mine diamonds for rebels - diamonds
the rebels then sold or traded for arms.
After months in captivity, Usman escaped only
to find rebels had murdered his family.
The documentary explores the factors that led
to the violence, tells the vivid details of
the suffering, and speaks with the
organizations that eventually exposed the
link between diamonds and several brutal
African conflicts. BLOOD DIAMONDS also looks
at the steps eventually taken by advocacy
organizations and the diamond industry to
combat the problem.
Executive Producer for The History Channel is
Margaret G. Kim. BLOOD DIAMONDS is produced
by Bill Brummel Productions.
Tags : blood diamond diamonds documentary history channel 記錄片 flim 血鑽 鑽石 獅子山共和國 Republic of Sierra Leone 歷史頻道 |
