What a person makes sifting for diamonds. It's called blood diamonds because of the civil war that ensued in Sierra Leone and the deaths or maiming of it's people. I’m watching Current TV where there’s a program about this.
The journalist is interviewing one of the miners who has been having a difficult time. He hasn’t found a diamond in two months. So he has been struggling to make ends meet on 30 cents a day.
If they find a diamond, they are lucky, they will get a small percentage, it wasn’t said how much exactly, but I have an idea not that much. They get a little more money and are able to go home. I wondered if they ever have to return to it though or is the money enough to live on for a long time. Possibly not.
I can’t imagine how difficult that is. I know how difficult it can be, but to have to live the way they do in Sierra Leone is horrible.
Now there’s a program established to teach the miners about the diamonds, how to weigh them, what to look for and how much it would cost. That way the ones who buy from them, wealthy business men or investors won’t cheat them anymore by paying them less than the diamond is worth.
The diamond industry is educating the miners, and also people around the world on what diamonds to buy and which ones not to buy, because of what's going on in the country. However it is not enough because Sierre Leone is so poor and the people there are still living in poverty while the investors and people who hold the 'purse strings' live in luxury and are actually the ones who can afford to have these diamond mines.
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Recently another blogger saw the movie, Blood Diamond starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly and Dijimon Honsou. I don't remember who or I would have linked it to this article. {Raven, Tova, Loca, Nicky or Kelly...I couldn't find their article}