Despite an agreement arranged in a peace process in Koidu, Sierra Leone, between the rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and the government, the RUF are using the forced labor of children and young men to mine diamonds. UN officials claim that their presence in the country is to enforce a cease-fire and they are not going to help enforce the mining ban. They also claim that it would take away the only means of wealth the impoverished town has, and that the task would be both dangerous and difficult. International outrage is occurring as the rebels continually find ways to mine diamonds and illegally smuggle them out of the country.
See Douglas Farah, The Washington Post, August 19, 2001