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Asza Valdimarsdottir
Stringer (Reykjavik, Iceland)

Born in Iceland, raised in Malaysia and Thailand. Did an Undergraduate degree in English Literature in Ontario, Canada and an MA in International Broadcast Journalism in London, United Kingdom. Currently a stringer for an International (undisclosed) News Agency in Iceland. Oh, and Asza is pronounced 'ah-sha'.

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“Hm.. They’re not shiny”

Published 10th August 2010 - 3 comments - 843 views -

 

Now, I haven't been following the Blood Diamond case as closely as maybe I should have, but this is sort of what I gather from what has gone on up to this point. 
Naomi Campell -Supermodel
Campell says that she was unaware of the gift or where it was coming from, but after discussing it with White and Farrow, agreed that the diamonds must have come from Charles Taylor. She says that she didn't know who Taylor was, or even where Liberia was at the time of which she received the diamonds. The diamonds were given to her as "dirty rocks" and she says she got two or three. The morning after she got them she donated them to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. 
Carol White -Ex Agent of Supermodel
Now, I'm not sure if White is the best person to use as a witness in this trial considering her history with Campell. Yes, she was there at the time the diamonds were given to Campell, but White & Campell are currently going a whole other legal dispute between the two of them, so there might be some biased resentment.. Either way, I watched White on trial this morning on Sky News, and got a bit of an insight to what was going on. White, pretty much contradicts everything Campell has said. She says that Campell knew she'd be getting diamonds, and that Charles Taylor had told her so over dinner. White also says that there were about thirteen diamonds, and that she had to convince Campell not to take them out of South Africa, but rather donate them to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. White's testimony is now being questioned after she originally told the jury that Grace Machel (then Mandela's wife-to-be) had not been present at the dinner at which Taylor is supposed to have promised Campell the diamonds, but photographic evidence proves otherwise.
Mia Farrow -Actress
Most of Mia Farrow's testimony seems to be based on what Campell told her. Although she was present at the dinner (??) her testimony is based on events after the dinner. She wasn't present at the time at which Campell was handed the diamonds, nor did she ever see them. Farrow actually stated that Campell had used 'diamond' in the singular form when she described the gift. But while Campell testified that she didn't know who the diamonds came from, Farrow says it was never a question of who gave them to her - she always knew. 
Campell vs Taylor?
Now, I'm pretty sure that this trial is supposed to be about Charles Taylor and the eleven charges of war crimes & crimes against humanity which he faces. He, of course, denies all charges, and denies his alleged role in the brutal civil war in Sierra Leone. But I feel that a lot of the focus is on Naomi Campell, and I'm not quite sure why. Perhaps it's just media-hype. Using a super-model that's infamous for her attitude most certainly draws in an audience, but does it really matter whether she accepted diamonds or not? What matters is whether or not Taylor was committing all the crimes he is accused of - including selling blood diamonds while amputating innocent civilians... 

Now, I haven't been following the Blood Diamond case as closely as maybe I should have, but this is sort of what I gather from what has gone on up to this point. 
Naomi Campell -Supermodel
Campell says that she was unaware of the gift or where it was coming from, but after discussing it with White and Farrow, agreed that the diamonds must have come from Charles Taylor. She says that she didn't know who Taylor was, or even where Liberia was at the time of which she received the diamonds. The diamonds were given to her as "dirty rocks" and she says she got two or three. The morning after she got them she donated them to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund
Carol White -Ex Agent of Supermodel
Now, I'm not sure if White is the best person to use as a witness in this trial considering her history with Campell. Yes, she was there at the time the diamonds were given to Campell, but White & Campell are currently going a whole other legal dispute between the two of them, so there might be some biased resentment.. Either way, I watched White on trial this morning on Sky News, and got a bit of an insight to what was going on. White, pretty much contradicts everything Campell has said. She says that Campell knew she'd be getting diamonds, and that Charles Taylor had told her so over dinner. White also says that there were about thirteen diamonds, and that she had to convince Campell not to take them out of South Africa, but rather donate them to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. White's testimony is now being questioned after she originally told the jury that Grace Machel (then Mandela's wife-to-be) had not been present at the dinner at which Taylor is supposed to have promised Campell the diamonds, but photographic evidence proves otherwise.
Mia Farrow -Actress
Most of Mia Farrow's testimony seems to be based on what Campell told her. Although she was present at the dinner (??) her testimony is based on events after the dinner. She wasn't present at the time at which Campell was handed the diamonds, nor did she ever see them. Farrow actually stated that Campell had used 'diamond' in the singular form when she described the gift. But while Campell testified that she didn't know who the diamonds came from, Farrow says it was never a question of who gave them to her - she always knew. 
Campell vs Taylor?
Now, I'm pretty sure that this trial is supposed to be about Charles Taylor and the eleven charges of war crimes & crimes against humanity which he faces. He, of course, denies all charges, and denies his alleged role in the brutal civil war in Sierra Leone. But I feel that a lot of the focus is on Naomi Campell, and I'm not quite sure why. Perhaps it's just media-hype. Using a super-model that's infamous for her attitude most certainly draws in an audience, but does it really matter whether she accepted diamonds or not? What matters is whether or not Taylor was committing all the crimes he is accused of - including selling blood diamonds while amputating innocent civilians... 
If Naomi Campell had no idea about what was going on in the world at the time, and was seated at a dinner table with someone as highly-rated as Nelson Mandela - would you really expect her to know that Taylor was a crook? And by accepting diamonds as a gift, doesn't that make her just as human as any one else? (...although perhaps her self-entitlement a bit more elevated than the average person's...)


Category: Human Rights | Tags:


Comments

  • Carmen Paun on 11th August 2010:

    It’s just media hype. This is the perfect media story: you have one of the most well known supermodels in the world, blood diamonds, world leaders, Africa, etc. Media couldn’t wish for more for a perfect story!


  • Larisa Rankovic on 11th August 2010:

    I agree with Carmen. This kind of story, in the middle of summer - pure blessing for the media


  • Helena Goldon on 11th August 2010:

    Epic story! I laugh out loud at it just looking forward to the blatantly obvious outcome!


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