A total of 35 landslides occurred in Lonekhin-Hpakant jade land in Hapkant Township, Moenyin District, Kachin State, in 2020 killing 206 people and seriously injuring 71 others, according to the Township General Administration Department.
The worst landslide happened on July 2 killing 173 and injuring 43. In the latest one that occurred at the old jade mining site owned by 111 Company near Kaungsan Village, Seikmu Village-tract, on December 31, a Kachin national died after falling off above 100 feet. He was the 206th person to have died in the 35th landslide.
Famous for being a land of jade, Hpakant Township attracts migrant workers from various regions who are locally called jade scavengers. Last year alone, over 300,000 migrant workers flocked to the township. The region still has three mining companies in partnership with the government and 74 private companies whose mining licenses are still valid.
However, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation had ordered those mining companies to suspend their operation in Lonekhin-Hpakant jade land for four months from October 2020 to January 2021 due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Despite the order on suspended operation, scavengers are searching for jade pieces in the land on a daily basis. They are doing their jobs by risking various forms of danger such as landslides, falling and quarrelling.
