Rolex and Chopard slammed for opacity in gold and diamond sourcing
Rolex failed to even figure in the ranking as it provided no information on human rights due diligence
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Human Rights Watch has criticised Swiss firms Rolex and Chopard for lack of sufficient publicly available information on their gold and diamond supply chains and human rights due diligence.
In a 99-page reportExternal link released on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch rated Chopard “weak” and chastised Rolex for complete non-disclosure among 13 major firms in the jewellery sector. None of the companies assessed managed to make it to the “excellent” category. American jeweller Tiffany took the top spot and was the only firm that made it into the “strong” category.
Geneva-based Chopard, which makes both jewellery and watches, received some kudos for obtaining some of its gold from artisanal mines in South America and helping them achieve Fairmined certification.
“Of all the companies assessed, Chopard stands out for its efforts to support responsible mining in the artisanal sector. However, the company provides little public information on its supply chain or due diligence for the bulk of its gold and diamonds,” the report said.
Biel-based Rolex, on the other hand, failed to even make it into the rankings.
“Rolex has not responded to Human Rights Watch’s letters and publishes virtually no information on human rights due diligence and its supply chain. On the basis of available information, we are unable to determine whether Rolex conducts any human rights due diligence,” the authors wrote.
Entitled “The hidden cost of jewellery”, the release of the report was timed to have an impact on consumers’ conscience just ahead of Valentine’s Day.
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The detailed study, by the Swiss branch of the non-governmental organisation the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), showed that some international refiners continued to import gold from producers responsible for environmental pollution and human rights abuses. “Gold that has been processed for many of the products on display [at the fair] is suspected to include…
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