Natural diamonds forever and forevermore – De Beers
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Among the ‘Top 30 Enviable Celebrity Engagement Rings’ revealed by the biggest jewelry publication Jeweller, there is a Botswana cushion-cut 5 carat natural diamond worth P3 million, which was put by Prince Harry of Wales on his then actress girlfriend Meghan Markle, around this time two years ago.
This is one of the latest much hyped Botswana linked diamond story intertwining with the showbiz world of Hollywood, as this country becomes part of the glitz and glamour pages. In this royal ring, the Botswana story alone is not enough, there is another vintage description of it; the 5 carat diamond is also rounded with two 0.75-carat round diamonds from Prince Harry’s mother, Princess Diana’s private collection.
Diamonds, the stone also attracts abundance, strength, power, courage, fortitude, creativity, imagination, purity, harmony, faithfulness, and innocence, increased feelings of self-respect and love, and relationships full of pure love. What is worth or more valuable than the sparkle and romance that comes with Prince Harry’s engagement ring is that it boosted this country’s diamond marketing and public relation machinery. Botswana diamonds also have an emotional attachment coming with their production; they are not just sold for fantasy but they are dug out naturally and are as natural as they come.
International media says the ring was more fitting not only to Markle but for the fact that the jewel has connection with Botswana, which is the second biggest supplier of conflict-free natural diamonds, according to data from the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. The Kimberley Process (KP) Certification Scheme helps control rough diamond trade among 81 countries who have joined forces to eliminate conflict diamonds, ensuring transparency and prohibiting diamond trade with countries not part of the initiative
"Choosing a diamond from Botswana speaks to Prince Harry and Meghan’s shared commitment to social and environmental responsibility, as Botswana diamond mining has contributed to transforming Botswana into one of Africa’s most prosperous economies,” Business Insider said just after the royal engagement. The publication further says, "Botswana diamonds are also sourced from mines that follow internationally recognized labor and environmental standards."
The most asked question: Natural diamond vs threat of synthetics?
At any diamond event or occasion the most asked question is whether natural diamonds will withstand the advent of synthetic or lab made diamonds. Big industry players always have one common response; synthetic diamonds will never take away the emotionality and socio-economic factor that comes with natural diamonds.
This week during the De Beers Diamond Conference, CEO of the giant mining company Bruce Cleaver answered the most asked question. Cleaver downplayed synthetics as just for “fashion, fun and lighthearted”, when compared to emotions, luxury and economic impact that comes with natural diamonds. Cleaver told journalists who asked if he is threatened by lab made diamonds that De Beers remains a “natural diamond business.” De Beers has always been against production of man-made diamonds but last year May it made a U-turn on the decision, and started venturing into synthetics.
Having 130 years in the diamond industry, De Beers coined a marketing tag “A Diamond is Forever” in 1947, as a crusade to counter the production of artificial diamonds. It is a natural belief that the big threat that comes with synthetic diamonds on the traditional industry is that some synthetics are falsely marketed as natural. The US’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires lab-grown diamonds to be marked.
At the same Diamond Conference, coming from De Beers’ rival, Lucara Managing Director Naseem Lahri concurred with Cleaver saying synthetics will never be a threat. Lucara brands itself as “producers of large, high quality, Type IIA diamonds in excess of 10.8 carats.” Lucara also produced the historic 1,109 carat ‘Lesedi La Rona’ (second largest gem diamond ever recovered) and the 813 carat Constellation (sold for a record P631 million or US$63.1 million).
“As a lady I can tell you how much diamonds mean to me. As for the threat that comes with synthetic diamonds, De Beers has done well in selling emotions. Let us sell how diamonds are produced. Botswana produced diamonds are well branded and produced ethically. We (natural diamonds producers) will always have a market for diamonds (natural),” said Lahri.
Synthetics threat is forever
Some believe lab-grown diamonds are the next generation of diamonds and allow the consumer peace of mind in knowing there is no forbidden or unethical labor sources behind the production. Natural diamond production, for years has been stained with conflicts, political crises and civil wars. There has been bad publicity linked with production of diamond as the media coined them ‘blood diamonds.’
Experts believe the real threat that comes with lab diamonds, when overlooking romantic value and being pragmatic, is that they are 40-60 percent more affordable than a mined diamond. A research says synthetic variants are around 15-25 percent cheaper. Diamond expert Paul Zimnisky says the average discount of a 1 carat generic lab-grown diamond to a natural diamond had widened to 42 percent by mid-November from 29 percent in January.
When giant diamond producer De Beers renegaded from its anti-synthetics stance last year May, something happened in the world of diamonds, a 1 carat synthetic diamond cost about $4,200 while an equivalent mined gem sold for $6,000. De Beers has always sold its synthetics for $800 a carat. Synthetics are produced in a laboratory at high heat and pressure putting together carbon atoms. Production costs are said to have lowered to make the artificial diamonds and experts estimate that to produce a synthetic could be as little as $300 a carat from $4 000 over past decades.
Zimnisky says while synthetic diamonds make 3.5 percent of the world’s diamond jewelry, the share could grow six times or more in the next four years. The world’s biggest consumers of diamonds; India and China are now looking into synthetics and it becomes a threat to economies of natural diamond producing countries like Botswana. China is now said as the biggest maker of synthetic diamonds used as cutting tools. It is said India is number two in production of synthetic diamonds, but China is said to be a bigger player making 56 percent of the world’s lab-made diamonds.
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BPS, Mosala Funeral Parlour butt heads over SA national remains
A squabble has broken out between Pule Mosala Funeral Parlour and the Botswana Police Service (BPS) over the remains of a South African national who has been in the Mosala mortuary for more than nineteen months. The deceased was one of 10 suspects who were controversially shot dead during a lengthy shootout with law enforcement authorities in Gaborone’s Phase 2 early last year.
The deceased individual’s family based in Soweto, has encountered difficulties in repatriating the body which has been in the care of Mosala Mortuary Services. Following the incident, it has emerged that all 10 bodies were transported to PFG mortuary in Lobatse for a brief period while the police attempted to locate their next of kin. It is reported that the families of the deceased were eventually identified and informed to come and identify their loved ones, including other South African nationals who were part of the criminal group. These families also witnessed the autopsy procedures conducted at Princess Marina Hospital in Gaborone.
Except for the family from Soweto, nine of the bodies were claimed and taken by their separate relatives. The Soweto family claims they lack the resources to bring the body back to South Africa and has made it known that they are looking for money. To end the supposed verbal agreement over the body’s storage for repatriation, Mosala Funeral Service has filed a case against the police at the Lobatse High Court.
According to Keakantse Mmotlhana, the company’s Sales and Marketing Manager, 10 people who were killed in Phase 2 by gunfire were all temporarily transferred to one of PFG’s branches in Lobatse by the police while efforts were made to find their next of kin. She expressed outrage at the statement made by the Minister of Defense and Security, recently.
After Assistant Police Commissioner Dipheko Motube called her office to apologize for giving the Minister wrong information during a news conference, she confirmed that they had accepted the apologies. He made it clear that one of the victims was still at Pule Mortuary in Lobatse.
Bushie Mosala, the director and owner of Mosala Funeral Services, confirmed that the body of a South African national has been in his mortuary for the past nineteen months. He expressed his desire for the police to remove the corpse from the mortuary, characterising the situation as a “nightmare.” He has instructed his legal team to file a lawsuit against the police in the Lobatse High Court concerning the body.
Mosala urged the acting Police Commissioner to come forward and apologize to the nation for the situation, asserting that the public has the right to know the truth regarding the body of the South African national, w
C -002Bhich was preserved by the police as evidence.
The South African High Commission in Gaborone had not responded to queries from Weekend Post at the time going of going to press.
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BOSETU frustrated by Gov’t new dispute winning strategy
Botswana Sectors of Teachers Union (BOSETU) has expressed alarm over a troubling trend by the government. Tobokani Rari, Secretary General of the BOSETU, stated that it appears that these days, whenever there is a dispute between workers and the government, the administration is fast to run to the courts to attempt and muffle unions.
“This is quite disturbing development, we have seen it with the Botswana Doctors Union, there was a disagreement over the shift allowance, government rushed to court, they indeed got order that was saying the doctors should go and do the work. We have seen it with the nurses, they rushed to court they got the order, we are now seeing it with the teachers, they rushed to the court and they got what they wanted,” said Rari, who also served as the Secretary General of BOFEPUSU.
Rari raised concerns that the government’s enforcement of teacher’s work, through a court order will result in reduced classroom productivity and morale. Rari added that this situation would negatively impact labour relations and teachers emotional wellbeing due to dissatisfaction in their work places leading to persistently poor academic outcomes.
“You can get an order that forces people to work, but what happens at work, it heightens emotions, it destroys relationships and the morale goes down and productivity does. Courts and judgments don’t solve productivity issues. Productivity only comes when people are satisfied at the workplace, so if you force them to work through a court order then you may not get the maximum out of the working population,” said Rari
MESD vs BOSETU COURT CASE
“As you are aware, the Ministry of Education approached courts and they were demanding three things from the court in this case between BOSETU and the ministry. First, they were demanding that the joint letter that was written by BOSETU and Botswana Teachers Union (BTU) asking members to stop doing course work because there was no agreement be declared unlawfully and BOSETU should write to its members and withdraw that letter within 24hrs. The second thing that they were looking for, was to interdict BOSETU from further issuing any instructions to that effect going forward. Lastly was that court should hold BOSETU to pay the cost of the lawsuit on a punitive scale,” Rari said.
Rari stated that the court decided to rule in favour of the Ministry of Education on all three relieves sought, that the savingram should be declared unlawful, that BOSETU should withdraw the contents savingram within 24hrs.
Court also said BOSETU should not issue any of such instructions going forward up until the case of contempt that BOSETU has taken to court, the contempt of the 2009 judgment has been decided. Court also awarded cost to the ministry on a punitive scale.
“BOSETU is a law abiding citizen and therefore we are bound by any laws and judgments that are there in Botswana and arise on the courts of Botswana hence we have complied with the order. On the 31st after the court case, we wrote to all our members and told them that the contents of that savingram as far as coursework is concerned has been withdrawn,” said Rari.
Rari said what happened in this case is that the judge decided to listen to the urgency without the responding affidavits of the opposing party, BOSETU, and went on to rule the merit of the case, which surprised the union.
“However we have been in discussion with our lawyers because if we leave things like this, we feel like we cannot leave that unchallenged. We have taken a decision to appeal the judgment,” Rari confirmed.
2023 COURSEWORK AND INVIGILATION AGREEMENT
“We would like to make our members aware that the following day after the judgment, we were able to meet the Ministry of Education and we have arrived at a conclusion that we signed an agreement that coursework rates will be increased by 5%. If court had ruled that coursework is the duty of the teachers’ means it wouldn’t have been any agreement after the court case, it tells you that the issue is still open and it is on the table. We have arrived at an agreement that there is going to be an increment on all components of coursework and invigilation,” Rari pointed out.
Rari further explained that Article 2 says union party is to submit detailed proposals on the intensity of the coursework for further engagement. Intensity of coursework means where the coursework payment starts in terms of varying from different subjects. He said the outcome based subject that are taught Maun Senior Secondary School and Moeng college which are agriculture and hotel and tourism is that ministry have agreed and acknowledge that there are some peculiarity in their coursework and therefore should be paid in line with the peculiarities that are contained in their coursework.
CONGRESS RESOLUTION
Rari pointed out the resolutions taken at the conference where the issue of application of corporal punishment was addressed. “BOSETU will issue out a memo to their members to advise them that they should not apply corporal punishment, they should leave it to be applied in line with the Education Act.”
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BMC sees red as mass buffaloes disrupt plans to supply schools
The Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) which had struck a deal with the Ministry of Education to supply some schools in the northern part of the country is counting losses as mass migration of buffalos jeopardize the Commission’s plans.
Information reaching this publication shows that the beef exporter was recently given the greenlight to supply government schools with beef. According to documents seen by this publication, as a result BMC had scheduled to buy and collect cattle in the Nata-Gweta and Boteti constituencies from 11 to 17 September.
This was after BMC and the Ministry of Education struck a deal for the former to supply government schools with beef. Letters exchanged between Ministry officials state that it has been recommended to the ministry to support BMC by allowing it to supply schools with beef products.
The Ministry indicated that it was aware that some schools have contracts that are currently running with suppliers such as local butcheries.
The Ministry revealed that at the same time BMC has 256 tins of frozen quality meat at its Maun Plant.
The Ministry requested the Director-Regional Operations to appoint an officer to manage the procurement of meat for schools that do not currently have running contracts. The Ministry further stated that Modalities of collection will be arranged between the region and the schools identified.
According to the Ministry, a list of schools including the condition of their cold rooms and their number of deliveries and kilograms per week they buy should be compiled. The Ministry also requested its officials to share the list with headquarters and the acting director-Basic Education, and engage BMC accordingly to procure.
But this plan ran into trouble after it emerged that between 300 to 500 buffalos migrated from the buffalo fence area to Nata, Dukwi and Mosetse areas.
The Department of Veterinary Services sprang into acting by revising movement protocol for cloven-hoofed animals with immediate effect following buffalo sightings in zone 3b which covers Nata/Sowa, zone 3c which is around the Dukwi areas as well as zone 6a, which covers the Mosetse area, which fall under zones, 3b, 3c, 5,6a and 8.
The Department of Veterinary Services indicated that as a result, movement of live cloven-hoofed animals and their products out of zones 3b, 3c, 5, 6a and 8 were prohibited and that movement of live cloven-hoofed animals within and into these zones is only allowed for direct slaughter at licensed slaughter facilities under veterinary movement permit issued through BAITS.
The department also indicated that the movement of fresh products derived from cloven-hoofed animals such as raw milk, skins and fresh meat into these zones is also only allowed under a similar arrangement.
Movement of live cloven-hoofed animals into these zones for rearing and other purposes will not be allowed, and farmers and the general public is requested to continue being vigilant and report any buffalo sightings to the nearest veterinary office, the police or the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, the department said.
Meanwhile the Ministry of Agriculture has stated that following the press release on prohibition of movement of live cloven-hooved animals and their products in and out of Zones 3b, 3c, 5, 6a & 8, the acting Minister of Agriculture Karabo Gare, his counterpart Acting Minister of Environment, Wildlife & Tourism Mabuse Pule, acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture Mr. Joshua Moloi, Director of Veterinary Services Dr Kefentse Motshegwa and other government officials visited the areas of Sepako and Dukwi respectively on a mission to consult with communities regarding the invasion of the places by buffalos.
Minister Gare alluded that they have been sent by the President of Botswana, who is equally worried by the current situation. He noted that the affected areas have a total of around 300000 cattle and if the situation goes unchecked, there might be detrimental effects on the economy of this country.
He encouraged the communities to help government going forward by reporting any spotted buffalos in their areas, emphasizing that buffalos are dangerous and can kill people and that care should be exercised at all times.
The Director of Veterinary Services mentioned that they closed the above mentioned zones to allow for testing of buffalos & cattle for foot & mouth disease. The wildlife department’s Director Mr. Moremi Batshabang assured farmers and the community that they will eliminate small clusters of buffalos found within communities and translocate larger clusters to ensure their safety.