For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
July 29, 2003
Presidential Letter
To the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate
Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)
Consistent with section 204(b) of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b), and section 301 of the National
Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1631, I hereby report that I have issued an
Executive Order (copy attached) to imple-ment the Clean Diamond Trade
Act, Public Law 108-19 (the "Act"), which authorizes the President to
take steps to implement the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme
(KPCS) for rough diamonds in the United States. In addition, my
Executive Order amends Executive Orders 13194 and 13213 to harmonize
those orders with the Act and to reflect recent developments in Sierra
Leone and Liberia. The prohibitions in section 1 and 3 of the order
take effect at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on July 30, 2003, and
the remaining provisions of the order take effect immediately.
On January 18, 2001, the President issued Executive Order 13194
taking into account United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR)
1306 of July 5, 2000. That order declared a national emergency in
response to the role played by the illicit trade in diamonds in fueling
conflict and human rights violations in Sierra Leone and prohibited the
importation into the United States of rough diamonds from Sierra Leone
that were not controlled by the Government of Sierra Leone through its
Certificate of Origin regime.
On May 22, 2001, I issued Executive Order 13213 taking into account
UNSCR 1343 of March 7, 2001. That order expanded the scope of the
national emergency declared in Executive Order 13194 to respond to,
among other things, the Government of Liberia's complicity in the
illicit trade in rough diamonds through Liberia. Executive Order 13213
prohibited the direct or indirect importation into the United States of
all rough diamonds from Liberia, whether or not such diamonds
originated in Liberia, except to the extent provided in regulations,
orders, directives, or licenses issued pursuant to the order.
The United Nations ban against the importation of rough diamonds
from Sierra Leone without a certificate of origin, imposed by UNSCR
1306 and renewed by UNSCR 1446 of December 4, 2002, expired on June 4,
2003. The United Nations Security Council decided not to renew the
measure in light of the Government of Sierra Leones increased efforts
to control and manage its diamond industry and ensure proper control
over diamond mining areas, as well as the Governments full
par-ticipation in the KPCS. Although the hos-tilities fueled by and
funded with conflict diamonds have ceased in Sierra Leone, the
attendant peace and stability are tentative, fragile, and jeopardized
by ongoing illicit diamond production and smuggling. In addition, the
Security Council, through UNSCR 1478 of May 6, 2003, renewed for 1 year
the absolute import ban on rough diamonds from Liberia based on
evidence that the Government of Liberia continues to breach the
measures imposed by UNSCR 1343.
In a related development, representatives of the United States and
numerous other countries, including Sierra Leone, announced in the
Interlaken Declaration of November 5, 2002, the launch of the KPCS.
Participants in the KPCS are expected to prohibit the importation of
rough diamonds from, or the exportation of rough diamonds to, a
non-Participant and to require that shipments of rough diamonds from or
to a Participant be controlled through the KPCS. The Clean Diamond
Trade Act, which I signed on April 25, 2003, enables the United States
to implement the KPCS by providing that, when the Act is in effect, the
President shall, subject to certain waiver authorities, prohibit the
importation into, or exportation from, the United States of any rough
diamond, from whatever source, that has not been controlled through the
KPCS.
My Executive Order will implement the Clean Diamond Trade Act and
amend Executive Orders 13194 and 13213 to harmonize those orders with
the Act and to reflect recent developments in Sierra Leone and
Liberia. Section 1 of the Executive Order puts in place, as of July
30, 2003, the prohibitions of section 4(a) of the Clean Diamond Trade
Act. Section 2 of my Executive Order assigns various functions of the
President under the Act to the Secretary of State and the Secretary of
the Treasury, including authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to
issue implementing regulations.
Section 3 of my Executive Order amends Executive Orders 13194 and
13213 in the following ways. Executive Order 13194 is revised to
control rough diamonds from Sierra Leone through the KPCS, rather than
through the Certificate of Origin regime of the Government of Sierra
Leone. Executive Order 13213 is revised to remove, con-sistent with
section 4(a) of the Clean Diamond Trade Act, licensing and other
authorities with respect to rough diamonds from Liberia.
Finally, section 4 of my Executive Order provides that for the
purposes of the order and Executive Order 13194, the definitions set
forth in section 3 of the Act shall apply, and that the term "Kimberley
Process Certification Scheme" shall not be construed to include any
changes to the KPCS after April 25, 2003.
My Executive Order demonstrates the U.S. commitment to exclude
conflict diamonds from international trade, while promoting the
legitimate trade in rough diamonds that is so vital to many nations in
Africa and elsewhere.
Sincerely,
GEORGE W. BUSH
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