Chinese Entrepreneur Reveals Mine Seized, Illegal Mining Resulting in Barren Land

Under the Chinese Communist Party regime, corruption and scandals are rampant, and the mining industry is no exception. Recently, an entrepreneur who had invested in the mineral industry in mainland China disclosed to the media the dark secrets behind mineral extraction in China.

Xiao Yunjun had engaged in iron ore and gold mining in Hubei and Hunan for nearly a decade. Currently, there are over a hundred types of mineral resources in China, with large mines being operated by state-owned enterprises, while private enterprises usually handle reserves below ten million tons. The common types of minerals are metals like iron, copper, tin, and manganese, and non-metallic minerals such as gypsum and quartz.

However, since Xi Jinping came to power, there has been a crackdown on private enterprises. The Communist Party regime has been seizing privately owned mines under various pretexts, leading to a monopoly in the industry.

For instance, China’s rare earth resources are mainly located in four regions—Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Inner Mongolia, with Jiangxi possessing the most. Rare earth elements are used in everyday items like LEDs, LCD backlights, and hospital MRI machines, as well as crucial national security applications like missile guidance systems. Therefore, private exploitation of rare earth mineral resources is not permitted, and it is under strict state control.

In recent years, a massive mining rights case worth billions of yuan was exposed in Shaanxi, involving large-scale coal, iron, and rare earth mineral resources. Behind this case were issues of corrupt mining rights dealings, financial transactions between officials and businesses, with former Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission secretary Zhou Yongkang being implicated.

Xiao Yunjun believes that the mining industry in China is one of the most severely corrupt sectors due to its large scale and profitability, making it a hotbed for corruption. He revealed that all these scandals are driven by government actions using various means, such as manipulating mineral resource auctions, collusion between officials and businessmen, falsification of reserve data to deceive banks for illicit gains.

He shared an incident about a coal mine rights auction where the government and a local company colluded to fix the process, hinting to Xiao not to bid further as it was prearranged, showcasing the manipulation and corruption prevalent in the industry. This kind of corruption allows for the unjust enrichment of certain individuals at the expense of fair competition.

Xiao further highlighted how these corrupt practices have detrimental and irreversible environmental impacts resulting from illegal mining activities in collusion with the government, leading to pollution, destruction of habitats, and severe ecological damages.

He mentioned the example of a mining operation involving a toxic substance like potassium cyanide for gold extraction, which contaminated the land and water sources, causing irreversible harm to the ecosystem. The whole process of iron smelting and ore selection generated pollutants like dust, noise, and toxic wastewater leading to widespread environmental degradation.

He also underscored how the Chinese authorities excel in deceiving international organizations by showcasing sanitized, environmentally-friendly operations while concealing the true impact of their activities, especially in state-owned enterprises.

Notably, the Chinese Communist Party’s overseas mineral investments have also been marred by accusations of violations. In a report released by the Business & Human Rights Resource Center in 2023, multiple Chinese mining companies operating abroad were accused of committing 102 cases of persecution from January 2021 to December 2022 across 18 different countries, with the most accusations in India, Peru, the DR Congo, Myanmar, and Zimbabwe. These allegations mainly revolved around negative environmental impacts, especially water pollution, harm to wildlife and their habitats, and water resource exploitation.

Xiao Yunjun emphasizes that the corruption prevalent in China is not constrained within its borders but extends to overseas ventures, where the CCP leverages bribery and manipulation to secure deals and payouts to local officials for mutual gain, thereby perpetuating corruption on a global scale.

He concludes by stating that corruption is ingrained in China, affecting both state-owned and private enterprises, albeit in different forms and mechanisms, showcasing the systemic issues that underlie the mining industry in the country.