The diamond global watchdog Kimberly Process has allowed imports from Zimbabwe after they voted in favour of a modified version of the Jerusalem Agreement that was drafted in November 2010.
The deputy minister of mines and minerals in Zimbabwe, Gift Chimanikire, said that he had received a letter from the Kimberly Process allowing the sale of the gems weeks ago.
The Jerusalem Agreement will allow Zimbabwe to undertake two diamond auctions this year. Zimbabwe had been banned from exporting its diamonds due to reports if human rights abuses at the Chiadzwa diamond fields. The violence and smuggling charges put the nation on the Kimberly Process black list in 2003.
The mines ministry of Zimbabwe has been trying to get its diamonds certified for sale ever since. Late last year the officials in Zimbabwe threatened to sell the diamonds with approval and flood the global markets with the controversial Marange Diamonds.
As part of the Jerusalem Agreement an amendment has been made in the violence clause which now required 3 rather than the previous 2 Kimberly Process member nations calling for a monitoring investigation. This will make it more difficult to get a formal Kimberly Process investigation into the alleged human rights abuses in the Marange diamond fields.