About essay: Investigate the roles and relationships between states and other key actors in collectively addressing global challenges.
Name: Holger Adrian Ramos Benavides
Course: Business, International Relations and the Political Economy (LSE and Political Science)
THE KIMBERLEY PROCESS AND ITS DIVERGENCES
a. INTRODUCTION
Global governance is a subject of broad debate from the public and private sphere mainly because of the challenges that globalization implies. Under this perspective, the development of public policies to adequately address the challenges of social, political or economic integration without undermining the sovereignty of States becomes a clear objective. But integration does not only go through the economic or commercial spectrum, it represents concrete actions to achieve as much as possible, the global public goods, among others: economic stability, security, environmental, humanitarian assistance and knowledge (Joseph Stiglitz 1995).
This desire is reinforced under the perspective of integration has been promoted by entities of global reach such as called international organizations IOs (Module 3 Unit 2 LSE) which may have different spectrums such as the International Criminal Court in the field of jurisprudence or the World Trade Organization in the commercial field. Certainly, the challenges go further and, under this approach, theories such as complex interdependence are explored, which preach that there are multiple channels connecting societies (Nye and Keohane), this means a link in different degrees of non-governmental organizations, multinationals, States and civil society. In this context we can ask ourselves whether this need for integration and, in a certain way, the normalization of global actions has implied greater equity and real progress to achieve global public goods and put a clearer perspective on the path of the current international system.
One of the cases that can demonstrate how international public or private law organizations interact to attack global problems and improve the conditions of citizens in a specific context is the Kimberley Process.
b. THE KIMBERLEY PROCESS AND ITS DIVERGENCES
If we consider what implies an efficient participation of the international organizations in the solution of conflicts we can mention some suppositions: Interest of the States in resolving economic, social or political aspects with external aid; The participation of public or private law entities and civil society in the resolution of conflicts; the acceptance of clear international rules for actions where the exploitation of citizens does not intervene.
If we analyze these assumptions, we can say that the Kimberly Process has been very well received because in this consensus States and Regional Economic Integration Organizations (representatives of 81 countries) participate and where only one diamond producer country (Ivory Coast) is outside of this scope; According to information from the Kimberley Process, the latter represents less than 2% of global production.
However, the reality does not seem to be ideal which it is described by the journalist James Melik in the article Diamonds: the Kimberley Process works? This article details the critical points in the effective control of diamond mining and how internal conflicts in the countries make it difficult, to say the least, to comply with what is established so that the Kimberley process scheme (KPCS) works.
c. CONCLUSIONS
One of the basic ideas of the Kimberley Process focuses on the understanding of the political, economic and social local sphere and the projection to global perspective. One of the reflections may be that global governance evidences objective limits set by local actors. In this case, this is not related exclusively on how states respond to globalisation but what kind of coyuntural interest excludes them on a global context as in the case of Zimbaue, where conflicts over internal governance make it difficult to comply with what was agreed in the Kimberley Process. But positively we can highlight the role of non-governmental organizations and private actors that promote measures such as certifications to guarantee fair trade or human rights.
