Knowles And Lopez Chastised By Human Rights Campaigners
22 January 2007
Picture: Singer Beyonce Knowles greets fans at the Hyundai Department store Seoul, South Korea - 10.11.07
Knowles And Lopez Chastised By Human Rights Campaigners
Superstars Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Lopez have been criticised by human rights campaigners after the pair agreed to wear diamond-encrusted jewellery to promote the gemstone industry at last week's (15JAN07) Golden Globes.
The celebrities were asked to brandish the jewels as part of the Raise Your Right Hand campaign - the industry's attempt at combating the negative publicity brought on by the release of Leonardo Dicaprio's new film BLOOD DIAMOND - in exchange for a $10,000 (GBP5,550) donation to an African charity of the stars' choice.
The movie is set during Sierra Leone's diamond-fuelled civil war, where the Titanic star plays a South African mercenary on the hunt for a rare pink gemstone.
However, pressure groups such as Global Witness, whose Combating Conflict Diamond Campaign highlights the role of the jewels in funding wars, have called upon Hollywood to stop the distasteful promotion of the precious gems, because of the way African rebels used amputation to terrorise civilians in the search for conflict diamonds.
Global Witness campaigner ALEX YEARSLEY says, "It's rather disgusting if you think about Sierra Leone and the hands that got hacked off there.
"It's an attempt to hit back at the film. You can imagine the PR campaign that came up with it.
"But the industry didn't do much for the Sierra Leonean women with no right hand when all this was going on."
The celebrities were asked to brandish the jewels as part of the Raise Your Right Hand campaign - the industry's attempt at combating the negative publicity brought on by the release of Leonardo Dicaprio's new film BLOOD DIAMOND - in exchange for a $10,000 (GBP5,550) donation to an African charity of the stars' choice.
The movie is set during Sierra Leone's diamond-fuelled civil war, where the Titanic star plays a South African mercenary on the hunt for a rare pink gemstone.
However, pressure groups such as Global Witness, whose Combating Conflict Diamond Campaign highlights the role of the jewels in funding wars, have called upon Hollywood to stop the distasteful promotion of the precious gems, because of the way African rebels used amputation to terrorise civilians in the search for conflict diamonds.
Global Witness campaigner ALEX YEARSLEY says, "It's rather disgusting if you think about Sierra Leone and the hands that got hacked off there.
"It's an attempt to hit back at the film. You can imagine the PR campaign that came up with it.
"But the industry didn't do much for the Sierra Leonean women with no right hand when all this was going on."
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