Blood Diamond

"Short-sleeved or long-sleeved?"

this question will most probaly be heard in a boutique concerning a dress or garment of somesort. However, this is the most feared question in Africa where conflict diamonds are produced by the tons. 'Short-sleeved' refers to chopping off your hand at the elbow while 'long sleeve' is chopping ur hand somewhere above the wrist but below the elbow. its just insanely cruel to see people being mutilated like that. The monsters behind all these is the RUF(Revolutionary United Front). Amputation was their signature, a signature of greed that caused many lives.

Their reason for doing so is the grotesque respon to Sierra Leone Prime Minister, Ahmand Tejan Kabbah's plea for citizens to 'join hands for peace'.

In the movie Blood Diamonds, one of the RUF soldiers said this, " The future is in your hands. We[RUF] are your future. So, we take your hands!"

There's also child soldiers. Most were snatched away from their homes during raids and was trained to kill. Some were taught to kill their parents as well. These childern were given alcohols and drugs to keep them agressive. Boys were mostly the targets but girls were kidnapped as well. The girls cooked and was sexually abused. Some were even given guns. These child soldiers were given abusrb names such as, 'The Killer'. They're children for goodness sake!

Dying for a diamond? Children are too. Children are forced to work in diamond mines under harsh conditions. Some places reach very high temperatures and are disease ridden. The diamonds mined are used to fund the various wars. Children should be of innocence, not of poverty and abuse and death.

Africa is a land rich with natural resources. The amount of diamonds found there is mind boogling! At one point of time, Africa's diamonds makes up 90% of the diamond trade in the world. However, the diamonds have now become a curse rather than a source to build up their country. And the source of all these? Human greed. All we want is a pretty diamond on our finger. no?