Activists
Hail “Principled Position” of World’s
Most Famous Jeweler, Call for Americans to Boycott
Companies Selling Burmese Gems

For Immediate Release: March 8th, 2005
Contact: Jeremy Woodrum at 202-223-0300 (office),

202-246-7924 (cell)

(Washington,
DC) Washington, DC) The US Campaign for Burma
(USCB) today hailed a decision by leading
jeweler Tiffany’s to refuse to sell jewels
mined in the Southeast Asian country of Burma.
The move comes just three months before the
60th birthday of the world’s
only imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize recipient
Aung San Suu Kyi, who has called on companies
around the world to refuse business with Burma.
“Tiffany’s deserves our
praise and patronage for making this ethical
decision,” said Aung Din, co-founder of
USCB who spent over 4 years behind bars as a
political prisoner. “Mining in Burma supports
the ruling dictators while bleeding the Burmese
people, which is why no one should buy these
‘blood gems.’”
The decision comes just days after Tiffany’s
had indicated it might resume buying goods from
Burma. In a statement sent to US Campaign for
Burma on March 5th, in which Tiffany’s pledged
to not sell rubies from Burma, Tiffany’s Chairman
and CEO Michael Kowalski said, “We support
democratic reforms and an end to human rights
abuses in that country. We believe our customers
would agree with that position.” Tiffany’s
subsequently confirmed that the ban extends
to products mined in Burma, including jadeite
and spinel.

The export of jewels—specifically rubies
and jade—is a major money-maker for Than
Shwe’s ruling military dictatorship. The brutal
and unforgiving conditions in Burma’s mines
have also created an HIV/AIDS epidemic in Burma.
Dr. Chris Beyrer, head of the prestigious Johns
Hopkins University Fogarty AIDS International
Training & Research Program states that
the relationship between gem mining and HIV/AIDS
in Burma couldn’t be more direct: “Gem
mining, overseen by Burma’s regime and its cronies,
has created a cauldron of HIV/AIDS in Burma.
The two are completely intertwined, and that
is why I would never buy a gem from Burma.”
Additionally, many elements
of the mining industry are controlled by known
drug traffickers. On January 24th, the Department
of Justice indicted eight members of the United
Wa State Army, which it called, one of the “largest
heroin producing and trafficking organizations
in the world.” The indictment included
the identification of several businesses used
to launder narcotics money from Burma, including
Hong Pang Gems and Jewelry Ltd.
Burma’s democracy movement, led by Aung San
Suu Kyi, has called on international businesses
to shun Burma until there is a transition to
freedom and democracy in the country. Since
2000, over 40 companies have ended ties to the
country, including Kenneth Cole, Jones New York,
Tommy Hilfiger, and Federated Department Stores.
When Macy’s cut ties to Burma, it cited rampant
corruption, adding it “was unwilling to
make payments that could violate the US Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act, which bars US companies
from making unofficial payments to foreign officials”.Adds Aung Din, “We are
actively researching to find out if any other
jewelers are importing from Burma. We think
their customers will be dismayed to hear about
participation in Burma’s ‘blood gems’ business.”

As Suu Kyi’s 60th birthday
nears, a growing chorus of international
luminaries are calling for her release. In October
of 2004, 27 musicians, including Paul McCartney,
R.E.M., U2, Coldplay, Bonnie Raitt, Damien Rice,
Ani DiFranco, Matchbox Twenty, and others donated
songs to a two-CD set dedicated to raising awareness
of Aung San Suu Kyi’s struggle. Yesterday, the
United Nations added to a growing chorus of
voices calling for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release
by announcing it would give an award to Suu
Kyi on March 8th, International Women’s Day.
US Secretary of State Condeleeza Rice has called
Burma an “outpost of tyranny”.

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