A ruby weighing in at more than two kilograms has been found in Myanmar, with some estimates valuing the rock at millions of dollars, a testament to a warning by United Nations experts that this country’s gem mining industry is bankrolling the military’s civil war.
Unearthed near the town of Mogok, in the heartland of the lucrative gem-mining industry in upper Mandalay Region, the ruby measured 11,000 carats, or 2.2 kilograms, according to the Global New Light of Myanmar, the mouthpiece of the military government.
The “antique giant” was inspected by the military’s anointed President Min Aung Hlaing and his acolytes, the news outlet reported, noting that it was discovered after his government was elected “by the people through free and fair multiparty democratic general elections.”
That election, which took place in three phases in December and January, was widely derided as a sham, creating a path for Min Aung Hlaing to retire as chief of the junta and trade in his military uniform for a suit and tie after he was named “president” of a civilian administration.
But the ruby has generated enormous interest for its color and size and might fetch far more than a general market rate of about $500 a carat, valuing the stone at a minimum of $5 million. But some estimates say it might only be worth $100 a carat.
“The giant ruby has a purplish-red color with yellowish undertones and is considered to have a high-quality color grade. It also has moderate transparency, excellent vitreous luster, and remains in its natural state without any treatment or enhancement,” the New Light added.
Mogok is a strategically located ruby mining hub and has witnessed fierce fighting for control of its lucrative gem mining business. In mid-2024, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and People’s Defense Forces seized the area after the opposition Three Brotherhood Alliance went on the offensive.
But control reverted to the military last November amid Chinese mediation. The latest find is second in size to the record set in 1996, from the same region, which measured 21,450 carats but was lacking in color and quality.
“Although the ruby discovered in 1996 was the largest in terms of weight, the recently discovered ruby is considered more valuable because its color and quality are superior in comparison,” the New Light dispatch stated.
Online experts say buyers would be attracted by its sheer size, and this could boost its value. The 25.59-carat cut and polished Sunrise Ruby, also from Myanmar, was sold at Sotheby’s for a world record $30.42 million in 2015.
However, the United Nations has warned that gemstone mining – also known as conflict or genocide gems – is fueling the bloody civil war in Myanmar, which erupted in early 2021 after Min Aung Hlaing and his military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
In 2019, a U.N. Independent Fact-Finding Mission named two companies – Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited and Myanmar Economic Corporation – that it says are owned and “influenced by” senior military leaders, including Min Aung Hlaing.
It found that both companies were involved “in a diverse range of activities, including jade and ruby mining in Kachin and Shan states” while also re-engineering Rakhine State “in a way that erases evidence of Rohingya belonging to Myanmar.”
International human rights and humanitarian law violations in northern Myanmar, including forced labor and sexual violence perpetrated by the military, were also reported in connection with their business activities, the report’s authors noted.
Targeted sanctions were urged and have since been imposed, but the military has recently been accused of smuggling precious stones into Thailand or selling them to China, from where sanctions can be evaded and the stones on-sold into the international market.
Judges at the International Court of Justice are deliberating after a trial alleging that Min Aung Hlaing and other senior military leaders committed a genocide against the Muslim Rohingya.
