Afghanistan's Gem Hunters | Afghan Scene Magazine - Asia-Africa ...

sceneAfghan Scene December 2009 sceneAfghan Scene December 2009 Armed only with a back copy of the Guardian MARTIN PATIENCEset off in search of emeralds in the high PanjshirIt all felt a bit ominous. With a rucksackpacked with five litres of water I wasstruggling my way up the Hindu Kushmountain range, thousands of feet abovesea-level. Behind me was a man carryinga yellow sack - a yellow sack packed withexplosives, that is. And then on the way upthe narrow path, I spotted three or fourgreen Islamic flags marking a gravestone.What happened there, I wondered. Well,it seemed that someone had been taking arest - his last as it turned out - when he wasstruck by a rock fall.But the reason for all the pain and highaltitudepanting was simple: we were headingto the emerald mines.14Afghan Scene December 2009www.afghanscene.comwww.afghanscene.comAfghan Scene December 200915