Inside Indonesia’s multibillion-dollar illegal gold rush
The global uncertainty of the past few years has sent the price of gold skyrocketing; a rare beneficiary of conflict, trade wars and geo-political instability.
Global mining operations are proliferating as a result — many of them, artisanal, with little oversight if any.
They often come with devastating consequences for the Indigenous communities and environments around them.
In Indonesia, illegal mines are now producing almost as much gold as the country’s authorised operators.
SBS International Correspondent Claudia Farhart travelled to Petak Bahandang, an Indigenous Dayak community on the island of Borneo, where traditional beliefs are falling victim to economic realities.
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