Mandela charity trustee resigns over Campbell diamonds
Mr Ractliffe said he had kept the diamonds in order to protect the reputation of Nelson Mandela
The former head of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, Jeremy Ractliffe, has resigned from the charity's board after admitting he secretly kept diamonds received from the model Naomi Campbell.
Mr Ractliffe admitted he had the gems only when Ms Campbell mentioned him at the war crimes trial of former Liberian leader Charles Taylor two weeks ago.
Prosecutors say she received the diamonds from Mr Taylor in 1997.
Mr Ractliffe had apologised for his secrecy, the charity's board said.
The former chief executive handed the diamonds over to South African police after Campbell testified that she had given three stones to Ractliffe because she wanted them to go to charity.
Mr Ractliffe said he had kept the stones, which could link him to illegal "blood diamonds", because he wanted to protect the reputation of Mr Mandela and his charity.
Stepping down from his role as trustee, Mr Ractliffe apologised for causing "possible reputational risk" to the charity by not informing his colleagues of his receipt of the diamonds, the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund said in a statement.
'Suggestion'
At the trial, Ms Campbell said she was given some "dirty-looking stones" after a 1997 charity dinner hosted by South Africa's former President Nelson Mandela where Mr Taylor was also a guest.
She said two unidentified men appeared at her room and gave her the stones.
She told the court she did not have proof they came from Mr Taylor and had given them to Mr Ractliffe because she wanted the stones to go to charity.
Continue reading the main story Charles Taylor 1997: Elected Liberian president
2003: Arrest warrant issued, steps down, goes into exile in Nigeria
2006: Arrested, sent to Sierra Leone
2007: Trial opens in The Hague
"Naomi suggested they could be of some benefit to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund - but I told her I would not involve the NMCF in anything that could possibly be illegal," Mr Ractliffe said in a statement two weeks ago.
He said he took the diamonds as he thought it might be illegal for her to take them out of the country.
"In the end I decided I should just keep them," he added.
Mr Taylor is accused of using illegally mined diamonds to secure weapons for Sierra Leone's RUF rebels during the 1991-2001 civil war - a charge he denies.
Prosecutors say that from his seat of power in Liberia, Mr Taylor also trained and commanded the rebels.
The rebels were notoriously brutal, frequently hacking off the hands and legs of civilians.
Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF) trustee Jeremy Ractliffe has resigned from the charity's board, twelve days after admitting to the possession of "blood diamonds".

Earlier this month, supermodel Naomi Campbell testified against former Liberian president Charles Taylor when she claimed she received "very small, dirty looking stones" from two men, allegedly associated with Taylor. Campbell said she gave these diamonds to Ractliffe to "do something good with" in 1997. He gave the diamonds to police the day after Campbell's testimony. The police confirmed the stones were diamonds.

The board of the Mandela charity said in a statement, "Mr. Ractliffe regrets his omission to inform the chairperson, chief executive officer and the rest of the board of trustees of the NMCF of his receipt of the uncut diamonds until now... Ractliffe acknowledges that had he done so, he and the board would have found a better and lawful way to manage the situation."

Ractliffe took the diamonds from Campbell, fearing she might be prosecuted for removing uncut diamonds from South Africa, illegal without a license.

Ractcliffe said, "Naomi suggested they could be of some benefit to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund — but I told her I would not involve the NMCF in anything that could possibly be illegal... In the end I decided I should just keep them."

Taylor is on trial in The Hague, The Netherlands for allegedly trading diamonds for weapons to supply the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone. Taylor faces eleven counts for international crimes including rape, sexual slavery, enlistment of children under the age of fifteen, and pillaging.