The flower fields stretch out from the mountain village along most every road — fluttering patchworks of white and pink and purple.
The beauty in this corner of Shan State, in northeastern Myanmar, might seem a respite from the country’s brutal civil war. Instead, the blooms are a symptom: It is all opium poppy in these fields, and Myanmar again ranks as the world’s biggest exporter of the raw material to make heroin and other opiates. Since descending into a full-blown civil conflict nearly four years ago, after the military overthrew the elected government, Myanmar has cemented its status as a hotbed of transnational crime.
Myanmar is now the biggest nexus of organized crime on the planet, according to the Global Organized Crime Index. The criminality flourishing in Myanmar’s fertile soil carries disastrous consequences for its 55 million people and is spreading the fruits of transgression across the globe. With more than half of the country battle-struck following the military coup in February 2021, Myanmar is racking up dubious superlatives.
It is now the world’s largest producer of opium and one of the largest manufacturers of synthetic drugs, including methamphetamine, ketamine, and fentanyl. Concocted with precursor chemicals from neighboring China and India, tablets made in Myanmar feed habits as far away as Australia. With factories in overdrive and international law enforcement overwhelmed, street prices of these drugs are alarmingly cheap.
Myanmar is not just a narco-state; it is also thought to be the world’s largest exporter of certain heavy rare earth elements that power clean energy worldwide. In battlefields turned toxic wastelands, workers dig in illegal mines, then dispatch the rare earths to China along old smuggling routes. The Southeast Asian nation is also home to the best jade and ruby on the planet, much of it extracted by young men addicted to the same drugs that are flooding the global market.
The war in Myanmar is expanding the reach of Chinese criminal syndicates, which operate with impunity and monopolistic ambition in the region, despite occasional crackdowns by Beijing. Chinese weapons flow both to the ruling junta and to the resistance forces that are fighting it.
In Myanmar’s borderlands, criminal networks that unite Chinese kingpins with ethnic warlords are kidnapping people from all over the globe to toil in factories that scam people online. International police organizations report that this online fraud has bilked billions of dollars from retirees and lonely hearts in the United States, China, Europe, and beyond.
“Organized crime has a vested interest in conflict continuing because it thrives in that environment,” said a representative for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. “And the longer the conflict goes on, the more territory falls under the control or influence of parties who stand to profit.”
The Myanmar military and the ethnic militias that have aligned with it are the biggest drivers of the illicit economy. Since the coup, international sanctions imposed due to the army’s human rights record have cut into the junta’s profits. However, those fighting for democracy and regional autonomy also recognize that illegal proceeds are the easiest way to fuel their war machine.
In the Shan Hills of Myanmar, the opium poppy is referred to as “the peace flower.” This name is ironic, as there has not been true peace in Shan State for decades. This planting season, opium farming in Pekon Township reached a troubling milestone, with farmers now cultivating opium flowers openly in their villages, free from the fear of authorities.
Before the coup, efforts were made to convince Shan opium farmers to abandon their traditional practices in favor of substitutes. However, impoverished farmers argue that there was little market for such crops, and opium remains more lucrative. Prices for opium resin are currently reaching $430 per pound, three times what they were a few years ago.
The U.N.O.D.C. estimates that up to $1.26 billion in heroin, mostly derived from Shan State opium, was exported from Myanmar this year. Many opium farmers in Pekon are sharecroppers displaced by fighting, earning as little as $2 a day.
Production of synthetic drugs in Myanmar has intensified since the military takeover, with ethnic armed groups producing new club drugs. Synthetic drugs are being smuggled out of Shan State to various countries, reconstituting the infamous Golden Triangle.
On Myanmar’s border with Thailand, individuals are forced into cybercrime and online gambling industries, with many having been misled by job advertisements. The United Nations estimates that at least 120,000 foreigners are being coerced into these activities in Myanmar.
Three months before the military coup, the pine forests around Pangwa in Kachin State had 15 rare earth mines. By three months after the coup, there were five times as many. Myanmar is believed to be the world’s largest exporter of certain heavy rare earths, which are essential for electric vehicles and wind turbines.
With no environmental or labor safeguards in place, high-intensity mining has gripped Pangwa, leading to significant environmental degradation. Residents report that toxic chemicals have infiltrated the soil, and many are afraid to drink the water.
As the conflict continues, the illegal extraction of resources in Myanmar is expected to persist, further entrenching the country’s status as a hub for organized crime and transnational illicit activities.