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Agence France-Presse

A torrent of water, rock and heavy sludge spun Sai Ko as he clung to a corpse to survive – a memory that still traumatises the young “jade-picker” three months after Myanmar’s worst ever mine disaster.
Heavy rainfall in July triggered a massive landslide in Hpakant – the green heart of Myanmar’s jade trade in northern Kachin state – that entombed nearly 300 miners.
Today, Sai Ko is still recovering from head injuries sustained when the unstable mountain of waste collapsed beneath him.
Two of his friends were less lucky, among the victims of the under-regulated, notoriously corrupt, multibillion-dollar industry that exploits the most vulnerable.
“We fear all sides of the industry,” the 22-year-old says, now back in his home village in central Myanmar.
The July 2 disaster was the worst the country has seen, but fatal landslides in Hpakant are common, especially during the relentless monsoon rains.
As the country gears up for its November election, lobby group Global Witness says it now has a chance to “reset” its policies for an industry that continues to fuel decades-long conflicts.
It is calling for a stop to large-scale mining, regulation of waste dumping and environmental protection laws with “real punishments” for those who violate them. Otherwise “things will only get worse”, it warns.

The once stunning mountains of Myanmar’s Hpakant township have been destroyed beyond recognition.
Satellite images show a brown sore that has spread rapidly since the 1990s, cutting across swathes of the surrounding lush jungles. Fuelled by seemingly insatiable Chinese demand for the green gemstone, jade mining has turned the area into a treacherous moonscape of mud.
Naung Latt from the environmental group Greenland estimates about 50 mountains have simply been mined away to nothing. Deforestation is near absolute, while diverted water flows mean the local Uyu
river now breaks its banks even more frequently.
Could Chinese investments cost Suu Kyi the Myanmar election?
But powerful stakeholders are benefiting from the lack of regulation in an industry estimated to be worth up to 31 billion dollars a year, says Global Witness.
Very little of the profits ends up in state coffers, with most high-quality jade smuggled over the border into China.
The military’s direct involvement through its conglomerates presents a “huge conflict of interest”, the NGO says, explaining the military also controls access to the area and enjoys oversight over much of the industry.

Hundreds of thousands of Myanmar’s poorest have for years headed to Hpakant to pick up what is left behind by the big companies.
They end up exploited by mafia operations that benefit kingpins and various armed groups, says Yangon-based analyst Richard Horsey.
“The whole industry is criminal, with these guys at the bottom,” he says.
One major player is the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a rebel group which has been fighting the military for decades for control of the mines.
Covid to conflicts: is Suu Kyi really a sure bet in Myanmar election?
“Those with weapons dominate here,” one local official says, asking not to be named. “When someone finds a good stone, the police, special branch and KIA all come to demand their share.”
But the jade also funds conflicts further afield, with militias and ethnic armed groups from across the country enmeshed in the trade, says Global Witness. And ubiquitous narcotics add yet more danger.
With nearby Shan state pumping out heroin and meth at rock bottom prices, multiple sources confirmed the mines have seen an explosion in drug use in recent years. Naung Latt estimates up to 85 per cent of jade pickers are users.

A stalled gemstone law, which would help clear up the industry, must be finalised, says Global Witness.
“Armed actors need to exit, or be pushed out,” the NGO says, adding that resource governance should be included in ongoing peace talks – and China must be pressured into cracking down on illegal border trade.
When contacted, every stakeholder points the finger elsewhere.
“The KIA cannot stop companies allowed by the government,” KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu protests, but admitted his organisation does collect “taxes” from miners.
Myanmar moves step closer to new bids on China-backed belt and road project
Local administrator Phon Gring claims the main problems are confined in areas under the control of non-state armed groups and the military.
Military spokesman Major-General Zaw Min Tun, meanwhile, insists his institution works “in line with the regulations”, refusing to comment further.
Sai Ko’s recurring headaches mean he still cannot work.
He and his family refuse to return to Hpakant’s perilous mines, but he fears for the lives of others he knows there, insisting: “I just want the government to make it safer.”


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Myanmar

Pressure mounts on Myanmar to act on deadly jade mining industry after landslide killed almost 300 people

Volunteers bury bodies of miners in a mass grave as relatives look on during a funeral ceremony near Hpakant in Kachin state.Photo: AFP

(FILES) In this file photo taken on July 5, 2020, miners offer jade for sale to brokers in a jade night market in Hpakant in Kachin state. - Fuelled by seemingly insatiable Chinese demand for the green gemstone, jade mining has turned Hpakant -- the green heart of Myanmar's jade trade in northern Kachin state -- into a treacherous moonscape of mud. (Photo by Ye Aung THU / AFP) / To go with AFP story Myanmar-mining-crime-jade

(FILES) In this file photo taken on July 4, 2020, the bodies of miners in wooden coffins and wrapped up in bags are placed in a mass grave before being buried, following a deadly landslide in an area where people work in open-cast jade mines, near Hpakant in Kachin state. - Fuelled by seemingly insatiable Chinese demand for the green gemstone, jade mining has turned Hpakant -- the green heart of Myanmar's jade trade in northern Kachin state -- into a treacherous moonscape of mud. (Photo by Ye Aung THU / AFP) / To go with AFP story Myanmar-mining-crime-jade

(FILES) In this file photo taken on July 2, 2020, rescuers recover bodies near the landslide area in the jade mining site in Hpakant in Kachin state. - Fuelled by seemingly insatiable Chinese demand for the green gemstone, jade mining has turned Hpakant -- the green heart of Myanmar's jade trade in northern Kachin state -- into a treacherous moonscape of mud. (Photo by Zaw Moe Htet / AFP) / To go with AFP story Myanmar-mining-crime-jade

In Myanmar’s largest jade mining town, the semi-precious stone prized by Chinese costs more than money

Unlicensed miners known as yemase search for jade stones by torchlight at night on a waste site in Hpakant, in Myanmar’s Kachin State, last year. Photo: Hkun Lat

-ONE TIME USE ONLY-Freelance jade miners look for jade in Hpakant Township, Kachin State, Myanmar 16 July, 2020.[16AUGUST2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Hkun Lat

-ONE TIME USE ONLY-Final products of jade are displayed at one of the jewellery shops in a touristy market Boygyoke in downtown Yangon, Myanmar on 24 November, 2018.[16AUGUST2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Hkun Lat

-ONE TIME USE ONLY-Freelance Jade miners search fâor jade stones as a dump truâck from a company dumps waâste in Hpakant, Kachin Staâte, Myanmar on 16 September, 2018.[16AUGUST2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Hkun Lat

Volunteers carry a bag with half of the body of a miner to be buried in a mass grave, following a deadly landslide in an area where people work in open-cast jade mines, near Hpakant in Kachin state on July 4, 2020. - Dozens of jade miners have been buried in a mass grave after a landslide in northern Myanmar killed over 170, most of them migrant workers seeking their fortune in treacherous open-cast mines near the China border. (Photo by Ye Aung THU / AFP)

-ONE TIME USE ONLY-A Jade buyer uses a flashlight to inspect the condition of jade that is being sold in Lunghkang jade market, Hpakant Township, Kachin State, Myanmar on 15 July, 2020.[16AUGUST2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Hkun Lat

Revealed: Myanmar’s US$31 billion jade mining industry and its 'ties to country's elite'

Industry insider says almost all jade mining companies had a “hidden” Chinese investor, who would provide capital, funding and sometimes the necessary skills. Photo: AP

Merchants looking at jade stones displayed at annual Gems Emporium in the capital Naypyitaw, Myanmar. Photo: AP

Villagers in the jungles of Myanmar's northern Kachin state stand upon staggering wealth: Jade worth tens of billions of dollars. Yet they see almost none of that money, even as the precious stone is dug out from under them. Photo: AP

A report says big mining operaters have links with high-ranking officials suchas the family of former military leader of the country Than Shwe. Photo: AFP

Covid, conflicts, Rohingya: is Suu Kyi really a sure bet in Myanmar election?

Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Photo: AP

Workers print a flag with the logo of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy NLD party at a printing house as election campaigns kick-off in Yangon, Myanmar, September 7, 2020.Picture taken September 7, 2020. REUTERS/Shwe Paw Mya Tin NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES

epa08619673 A man wearing protective face mask with the images of Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and logo of her party, National League for Democracy- NLD, sells party flags among vehicles near a traffic light in Yangon, Myanmar, 23 August 2020. Myanmar scheduled to hold its general election on 08 November 2020. Both Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint will be running again. EPA-EFE/LYNN BO BO

A supporter of Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party gives thumbs up from his car during the first day of campaign for Nov. 8, general election Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw)

Could Chinese investments cost Suu Kyi the Myanmar election?

Protesters in Myanmar demonstrate against the Myitsone Dam project during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photo: AFP

A graffiti is seen on a stone at the confluence of the Mali and Nmai river at Myitsone, outside Myitkyina, capital city of Kachin state, Myanmar March 30, 2017. Picture taken on March 30, 2017. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun To match Exclusve CHINA-SILKROAD/MYANMAR-DAM

FILE PHOTO:Chinese President Xi Jinping and Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi shake hands at the Presidential Palace in Naypyitaw, Myanmar January 17, 2020. REUTERS/Ann Wang/File photo

epa08381130 Myanmar soldiers carry medical aid, provided by China, at the Yangon International Airport in Yangon, Myanmar, 24 April 2020. A medical team from China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) arrived Yangon to cooperate with Myanmar military medical team in the prevention and control the COVID-19 and coronavirus. EPA-EFE/NYEIN CHAN NAING

Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi speaks during a joint press conference with Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peter Szijjarto, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Budapest, Hungary, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. (Zsolt Szigetvary/MTI via AP)

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The industry, fuelled by China’s insatiable demand for the gemstones, is notoriously dangerous and corrupt
With nearby Shan state pumping out cheap heroin and meth, there has also been an explosion in drug use in recent years



The industry, fuelled by China’s insatiable demand for the gemstones, is notoriously dangerous and corrupt.


Myanmar’s changing ties with China

Asia elections

Aung San Suu Kyi

Pressure mounts on Myanmar to act on deadly jade mining industry after landslide killed almost 300 people

The industry, fuelled by China’s insatiable demand for the gemstones, is notoriously dangerous and corrupt With nearby Shan state pumping out cheap heroin and meth, there has also been an explosion in drug use in recent years

The industry, fuelled by China’s insatiable demand for the gemstones, is notoriously dangerous and corrupt

With nearby Shan state pumping out cheap heroin and meth, there has also been an explosion in drug use in recent years