Hollywood caught in gem warfare

Level 2 Intermediate

1 Key words

Fill the gaps using these key words from the text.
protablemercenaryinspireevicttrivialise
vitaleliminateconictjewellerpariah

1. If something is , it is very important, necessary or essential.

2. If you someone, you force them to leave their home or their land.

3. If you something, you get rid of it because it is not wanted.

4. A isghtingbetweentwocountriesorgroups.

5. A isasoldierwhoghtsforanyarmythatwillpayhim.
6. If an activity is , it produces a lot of money.

7. If you someone, you give them the enthusiasm to do something.

8. A is someone who makes, sells or repairs jewellery.

9. A state is a country that other countries dislike and avoid.

10. If you something, you make it seem less important or serious than it really is.

2 Find the information

Lookinthetextandndthisinformationasquicklyaspossible.
1. WhostarsinthelmBlood Diamond?
2. How many people died in the civil war in Sierra Leone?
3. How much is De Beers planning to spend on publicity?
4. What percentage of jobs in Botswana are linked to diamonds?
5. What is the biggest employer in Namibia?
6. What was the diamond market in Britain worth last year?

Hollywood caught in gem warfare

JeevanVasagaronaDiCapriolmthatthreatenstotaketheshineoffAfricasdiamondtrade

Thediamondindustryhasbegunanadvertisingcampaigntoprotectitshighlyprotablebusinessfrom
thenegativepublicitythatmightresultfromaHollywoodlmaboutthetradeinAfricanconictdiamonds.
DeBeers,theworldsbiggestdiamondcompany,planstospend$15monpublicity,beforethelmBlood
DiamondisreleasedinDecember.Thelmcouldmakediamondsasunfashionableasfur.

InthelmLeonardoDiCaprioplaysaSouthAfricanmercenarytryingtondararepinkdiamondin
rebelheldterritoryinSierraLeone,awestAfricancountrywherethecivilwarwasnancedbydiamond
smuggling,andledto75,000deaths.InreallifeDiCapriohasbecomeasymbolforpeoplewhobelievethat
thediamondindustryisdestroyinglives.ThelmhasinspiredabandofKalahariBushmentoadvertisein
the Hollywood magazine Variety, attacking the diamond business. The Bushmen, who say they have been
evictedfromancestrallandsinBotswanatomakewayfordiamondmining,askedDiCaprioforhissupport.
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Hollywood caught in gem warfare
Level 2 Intermediate
Inanopenlettertothestartheysaid:Afterdiamondswerefoundonourlandwewereevicted...Those
diamondsareacurseforus.Wehopeyouwilluseyourlmtoletpeopleknowthatwetooarevictimsof
diamondsandwejustwanttogohome.

Some people in the diamond industry have accused Hollywood of trivialising the truth about African diamonds.
EliIzhakoff,chairmanoftheWorldDiamondCouncil,said:Thismovieisaboutsomethingthathappenedyears
ago,somethingthathasalreadybeenputright.Theindustryhasstartedawebsitetocounteranynegative
publicityfromthelm.Diamondfacts.orgtalksaboutthebenetstheindustryhasbroughttoitsworkersandalso
usesNelsonMandela,whodescribesthediamondindustryasvitaltosouthernAfricaseconomy.

In Botswana 25% of jobs are directly or indirectly linked to diamonds, while in Namibia the diamond trade is
the second-biggest employer after the government, the industry says. The Bushmen are not the only African
voices in the debate. Patrick Mazimhaka, a Rwandan diplomat who is now deputy chairman of the African
Union, wrote in a US newspaper recently saying that highlighting the negative role of diamonds in civil wars
missesthefactthatalotofgoodcanbedonewithmoneyearnedfromnaturalresources.Withgood
managementandcarefulleadership...naturalresourceshavebeenagreatforceforgoodinAfrica.

The purpose of the diamond trades campaign is to protect a market worth $2.3bn in Britain last year.
DiamondretailersmakeafthoftheirsalesatChristmas,whenthelmisdueforitsUSrelease.Itis
expectedtocomeoutinBritainintheNewYear.Wedontsee[thelm]asdamagingsolongasthe
historicalperspectiveisclear,Izhakoffsaid.Theindustrysaysthatconictdiamondsnowmakeupless
than1%ofalldiamondssold,comparedwith4%inthelate1990s,theperiodinwhichthelmisset.The
KimberleyProcess,aschemethatrequiresgovernmentstotrackroughdiamondsfromminestothe
polishedstage,hasalmosteliminatedconictdiamonds,theindustrysays.

Thissystemisnotperfect,butwearetryingveryhardtomakeitperfect,Izhakoffsaid.Wedontwanta
singleconictdiamondonthemarket.Butnoteveryoneagreesthattheproblemhasbeensolved.After
peaceagreementsendedseveralAfricancivilwars,themainsourceofconictdiamondsisIvoryCoast,where
rebels control some mining areas. According to the pressure group Global Witness, diamonds smuggled out
ofIvoryCoastintoMaliarebeingsoldontointernationaldealers.CongoBrazzavillehasbeenprohibited
from diamond trading because many people believe it is a centre of diamond smuggling, and next door in the
DemocraticRepublicofCongo,thereisstilloccasionalghtingforcontrolofdiamondminesandother
mineralseventhoughthecivilwarisover.SusieSanders,GlobalWitnesscampaigner,said:Wewant
strongerinternalcontrolstomakesurethatconictdiamondscantbesmuggledintocountriesthatare[inthe]
KimberleyProcessandexported.Thereislotsofsmuggling.Thecontrolsystemsjustarentstrongenough.

Jewellers in Londons Hatton Garden diamond district said they had been offered west African diamonds by
smugglers.Onejewellersaid:Theonlythingwecandoismakesuretheyrenonconictthroughoursources.
WedontbuyfromAngolaoranywherethatitcanbeturnedintoarms.SierraLeoneisoneofthecountrieswe
donttouch.Wegetpeoplecominginfromthere[saying]:Doyoubuyroughdiamonds?.Wesay:Whereare
theyfrom?[theysay]SierraLeone,andwesayGetout.Weredoingeverythingwecantomakesurewe
dontendupprovidingmoneythatisusedtobuyweapons.Infact,bothSierraLeoneandAngolahavepeace
agreementsnowandcantradeindiamondsagainbutconictdiamondsfromIvoryCoastarestillillegal.

ThereisafearthatthelmwillstoppeoplebuyingallAfricandiamonds,somethingboththeindustryand
thecampaignerswanttoavoid.ItwouldbeterribleifthelmmeantthatpeoplesawSierraLeoneasa
pariah,saidSanders.QuiteafewAfricancountrieshaveweakcontrolsystems.Its[thecase]inWest
AfricaandtheCongo.WhatwereallyhopedoesnthappenisthatpeoplesayImnotgoingtobuyAfrican
diamonds.WhatwewanttodoisprotectthelegitimatediamondtradefromAfrica.

Guardian News & Media Ltd 2006

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NEWS LESSONS / Hollywood caught in gem warfare / Intermediate

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Hollywood caught in gem warfare
Level 2 Intermediate

3 Comprehension Check

ArethesesentencesTrueorFalseaccordingtothetext?
1. De Beers is the worlds biggest diamond company.
2. ThediamondindustryisworriedthatthelmBlood Diamond will have a negative effect on its business.
3. Blood Diamond is set in South Africa.
4. TheKalahariBushmenareinfavourofthediamondindustry.
5. Nelson Mandela believes the diamond industry is very important for the economy of southern Africa.
6. 99%ofalldiamondssoldcomefromconictzones.
7. CongoBrazzavilleisallowedtotradeindiamonds.
8. Both the diamond industry and campaigners want to protect the diamond trade.

4 VocabularyAdjectives
Matchtheadjectivesfromthetextintheboxwiththeiropposites.
unfashionablerarecarefulnaturaloccasionalillegalweakinternal

1. careless 5.articial

2. strong 6. common

3.frequent 7. external

4. fashionable 8. legitimate

5 Vocabulary Adjectives+Nouns

Matchtheadjectiveswiththenouns.Checkyouranswersinthetext.

1. negative a. lands

2. natural b. perspective

3. legitimate c. war

4. ancestral d. resources

5. civil e. trade

6. historical f. publicity
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NEWS LESSONS / Hollywood caught in gem warfare / Intermediate

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Hollywood caught in gem warfare
Level 2 Intermediate

6 Vocabulary Wordbuilding

Completethetable.

Verb Noun

1. release
2. agree

3. describe

4. publicise

5. manage
6. protect

7. smuggle

8. solve

7 Discussion
Is it right to prohibit trade in items like fur for moral reasons? What about the lives of poor people who depend on
these items to make a living?

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NEWS LESSONS / Hollywood caught in gem warfare / Intermediate

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