By Chrispin Inambao ORANJEMUND 2006 saw a record 71 miners and other employees contracted to service several mining sites scattered in the diamond-rich Sperrgebiet, the mainstay of the economy, being arrested for stealing diamonds, while top-grade loot was seized as well. Namibian and South African detectives and security from the mine appear to have made great inroads in unmasking the clandestine activities of a well-orchestrated syndicate operating from Port Nolloth, a known haven for nocturnal, illicit diamond dealing. A pack of vicious Rottweiler dogs deployed along the fence, a wide array of state-of-the-art surveillance camera systems strategically positioned, complemented by an x-ray system and a network of well-paid informers are among a raft of security measures. According to Hilifa Mbako, the Group Manager for External Affairs and Corporate Communications at Namdeb, the 50/50 mining venture between the Government and De Beers “during the course of 2006 recorded 19 cases of diamond theft”. What he terms as “very significant police action” in Port Nolloth during 2006 resulted in “many of these syndicates” being neutralized followed by a discernible decrease in diamond trafficking between Namibia and South Africa particularly in recent months. During 2006, seventy-one individuals were either arrested or suspended in connection with the alleged theft of 549 uncut diamonds with a combined mass of 574.13 carats. The provisional value of the diamonds recovered from the suspects exceeds N$2 million. Of the total number arrested last year 44 were Namdeb employees, while service providers that have security clearance to work on the mine employed the remaining suspects. “The largest amount of stolen rough diamonds found on a single person was 145.95 carats with a value of N$785 004. This person was apprehended in the Scannex low dose x-ray facility at Mining Area Number One when the contraband was detected upon his person by an x-ray search,” said Mbako. “Most diamond thefts occur from the bedrock areas, usually during the hours of darkness. It is important to understand that diamond theft syndicates are well entrenched in Namdeb’s mining operations,” he said in response to a question. As diamond theft is not limited to any group and the lure of the rough diamond weakens even the strongest of individuals, Mbako noted that during 2005 a senior member of management was arrested for stealing diamonds from the operation he was managing. Diamond barons operating from Port Nolloth in South Africa coordinate and fund the syndicates that have been operating this illegal trade within a legal trade in which the individuals who in most cases did not steal the diamonds are paid to act as “moles”. And when these individuals manage to “courier” the ill-gotten stones out of the mine they receive a cash payment or a “share” of the contraband and in some of the cases they are contractors working for Namdeb and not necessarily its employees. In the past, cases were reported of diamond thieves tying a parcel of diamonds to a shaft of an arrow and then shooting this projectile out of the mine, while others are known to have used homing pigeons to fly the diamonds out of the mining area. The more daring swallowed the stones but were arrested after the x-rays detected gems in their stomachs. On Rottweilers, he says though these beasts have proven an effective deterrent to persons wishing to make an illegal entry or exit, “these are secondary measures and Namdeb does not place its full reliance on perimeter protection to secure its product.” Despite the arrests, Mbako strongly feels “there has been a significant decrease in diamond theft over the past decade. Apart from expenditure on technology and systems, the company has worked hard to change the workforce’s culture towards diamond theft.” And an in-house campaign sensitizing workers at Oranjemund on the harm caused to the economy by diamond thefts is also paying dividends and has seen what Namdeb General Manager Chris Sivertsen calls the “Robin Hood syndrome” being nipped in the bud. “Namdeb’s product protection philosophy focuses on ‘protection at source.’ In terms of this approach, every effort is made to protect the raw product as it passes through the various stages of the recovery process, from sampling to final sorting. To this end, Namdeb measures and monitors the levels of risk the product is exposed to as it is processed through these various stages. This risk is then mitigated through the maintenance, or enhancement of protection measures that are applied in each setting,” explained Mbako. And more and more employees are handing over the diamonds they pick up in the mining area with well over 70 pick-ups being handed in for a reward over the past six months. Since 1990, Namdeb has invested well in excess of N$200 million in security-related technologies to protect this strategic resource. A large portion of this money has been used to fund remote bedrock mining surveillance systems. And as such, high-grade bedrock areas are under constant 24-hour surveillance in all weather conditions. And recently the Namdeb Board approved a further N$30 million to upgrade the mine’s mobile security surveillance systems. In cooperation with its technical partners the group prides itself on having pioneered some of the world’s top surveillance technologies. Those convicted of possessing or dealing in diamonds can face a fine of up to N$1 million or a jail term of up to 20 years or both in terms of the Diamond Act.