Social and Environmental Impact of Diamond Mining in Africa Case Study

Social and Environmental Impact of Diamond Mining in Africa - Case Study Example The paper tells that there were some De Beers who had done some research in this region and had identified it as a potential mining ground for diamond, although they did not reveal the discovery to the locals The process that begun as a simple business soon attracted the attention of international investors and by the time the government tried to intervene, the process had gone far; many people had already gotten established the business. The government had to exert excessive force to disrupt the illegal activity and many people were killed in the process â€Å"hospital officials at Mutare General Hospital reported on one occasion, the arrival of 75 bodies believed to have been killed in the ‘Chiadzwa conflict’ †. Since the discovery of diamond, the community has experienced some social transformation, which is quite different from other regions that also carry out diamond mining. The major difference being that most of the other diamond mining areas in Africa hav e been affected by rebel groups, though this was during the initial stages. The illegal mining by the locals later transformed into the participation of local police also as illegal miners. It called for the intervention of African Consolidated Resources to initiate a programme to oversee the fencing of the mining region, but the program was ignored once the practice was declared free to all. The government had to again use the military operation to stop all the mining activities that had been regarded as illegal. During this process, locals suffered much oppression from the military, especially when an operation that was called Wakazvionepi which meant â€Å"where did you get your riches from† was launched. It also took the intervention of civil rights activists to condemn the allegation regarding the human rights abuse. The new panners dominated their daily functions in Chiadzwa and the neighboring regions; as a result, the local communities were gradually getting displaced .