Irrawaddy-Apr 5
The Myanmar military regime’s recent order halting all jade mining in Kachin State was issued with the aim of putting pressure on the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), according to Colonel Naw Bu, the ethnic armed group’s information officer. Myanma Gems Enterprise, a state-owned company under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, announced in the March 31 issues of the regime’s newspapers that jade mining in Lone Khin, Hpakant, Maw Lu and Maw Han will no longer be allowed so that, it said, the country’s precious resources can be conserved for succeeding generations, and the environment and the safety of jade miners can be protected. The KIA is still considering how to respond to the jade mining ban in Kachin. In the meantime, it will wait and see what the regime does to companies that fail to comply with the order. Jade is the main source of income for the KIA, which is fighting for greater autonomy in Kachin State. The trade is also responsible for decades-long tensions between the KIA and Myanmar’s military, which battle for control of jade revenues. The armed group has publicly opposed the military regime since its coup last year, and also trained and armed local resistance groups, collectively known as the People’s Defense Force (PDF), which are fighting the regime. Read more at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-juntas-jade-mining-ban-targets-resistance-funding-kia-says.html
