Gold mining on Longpye Island set to proceed despite local opposition
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Htet Nadi/Thant Zin (NP News) - Oct 4
Despite many local residents protesting against PDF's gold mining project in Longpye Island, Mingin Township, Sagaing Region, they are preparing to mine the gold, according to local sources.
It is reported that the senior leaders of the Mingin Township, affiliated to the NUG have been preparing to implement the gold mining project on Longpye Island since September 26 without consulting with the locals.
Laungpye is a large village with about 500 households, and the locals rely on income from growing crops on the alluvial land surrounding the village.
“Laungpye Village is located quite far downstream of Mingin. That area lies on the eastern bank of the Chindwin River and connects with Taze Township. It also connects with Kani. Since the PDF is involved there, historically, those areas were sites of large-scale illegal logging. Normally, during the rainy season, the island would be submerged. Now that the water has receded, they intend to mine gold in that location,” a local resident said.
Therefore, more than a thousand people from at least seven villages in the area protested against the gold mining project on October 2, fearing that it would damage the environment.
However, it is reported that dozens of gold-mining rafts have been placed in the above-mentioned area, which is currently being controlled by the PDF around the island near Laungpye village, despite local objections. They are reportedly preparing to mine the gold.
Similarly, in the past, there were large gold mines operated by the PDF in Kapyit and Kway villages in the upper part of Mingin Township, according to a source familiar with the matter.
“The main thing is the lack of rule of law. First, in the village of Kapyit, along the Chindwin River in Mingin Township, the island is submerged during the rainy season. In the summer, the island is exposed. There is a lot of gold mining on that island. There are about 100 or 200 gold mining sites with more than a thousand gold miners. The PDFs get a lot of money from there. They also have the opportunity to buy weapons and other things. When they got information that Tatmadaw would drop bombs on these areas, they left Kapyit for Kyay, a bigger village located in the upper part. They do the same business in Kway,” he said.
The above source also said that the large gold panning blocks controlled by the PDF in the Chindwin River in Mingin Township are causing many negative impacts on local residents due to unregulated activities, such as landslides and cyanide waste.