Blood Diamonds: A River or a Droplet?

She suspects that even more conflict diamonds still are flowing from other troubled areas of Africa and is not prepared to accept the 1 percent figure.

"But even if it were only that amount, that's a lot of small arms and rifles and grenades that could be used" in conflicts.

Most of Africa's diamonds are mined in well-established industrialized mines in Namibia, Tanzania, South Africa and Botswana, all peaceful countries.

Simmons, who traveled to the latter two of those countries this month on a fact-finding trip, has launched a fund to train more Africans in diamond-related skills.

But because the trip was sponsored by the Diamond Information Center, the publicity arm of De Beers, Zwick, who declined to be interviewed for this article, reportedly suggested that Simmons had been used by the diamond industry.

Simmons defended himself, saying his contacts at De Beers are "smart businesspeople" for arranging the trip. De Beers is a supplier of Simmons Jewelry.

"But to suggest I'm a sellout is wrong," he told the New York Daily News.

Later, Simmons wrote on an industry Web site, "The entertainment industry, including Warner Brothers and those involved in the film 'Blood Diamond,' need to remember that the message they send about diamonds from Africa out into the world can have serious negative repercussions for the African people in countries which rely heavily on the revenue from diamonds to sustain themselves and to grow."