Kachin activists demand jade reform
Yangon - The National League for Democracy must bring transparency to business, especially the jade trade in the Hpakant area, Kachin political parties told the Eleven Media.
“Economic opportunities must be equal. Non-Kachin people are running businesses in Hpakant. Residents have no opportunities. There must be more economic equality. There was only one party before and only the business related to it monopolised everything. There was no transparency in the past,” said Kwan Gaung Aung Khan, the chairperson of the Kachin Democratic Party.
Ci Ci Naw Jar, general secretary of the Kachin State National Congress for Democracy, said that businesses digging for gold, jade and amber were influenced by cronies using huge finance and heavy machinery. They were too close to the authorities and instead the industry should be controlled by residents.
Ci Ci Naw Jar said: “The NLD should return confiscated land to the farmers and other residents. Then the public will be happy and the NLD will have more supporters.”
The chairperson of the Kachin State Democracy Party Manam Tu Jar said that controlling jade excavating in Hpakant should be the first priority to be solved by the NLD despite the importance of transport, health and education.
He said: “The owner of the natural resources should be the public. Stealing natural resources without the benefits of the public must be banned and handled systematically. Many people died in the landslide of the slag heap left by jade excavating. Their bodies were not recovered. The companies are doing jade excavating as fast as the current government’s term is running out. They do that without checks and restrictions. The public pay the price. The natural resources must be controlled by the public.”
The NLD was urged to work for peace and to build a federal union.
The party won 12 seats for the Lower House in Kachin State out of 18, the Union Solidarity and Development Party secured three, the Lisu National Development Party won one and the Kachin Democracy Party was victorious in one. For the Upper House, NLD has 10 out of 12, the National Unity Party won one and there is one independent.
For the Kachin State parliament, the NLD won 22 out of 36 seats, the USDP retained seven, the Unity and Democracy Party won one, the Lisu National Development Party two, the SNLD one, and the NLD won all the ethnic minister seats for the Bamar, Shan, Lisu and Rawan.
