…As most of the country went to the polls on Sunday in the first openly contested — although not entirely free — election in 25 years, heavy fighting raged on in the north, with the Myanmar Army using helicopters and heavy artillery to attack the KIA.

The question of how Myanmar's resource-rich ethnic border regions should be governed has always been at the heart of this conflict. Over the last decade, one specific resource has emerged as more important and valuable than any other: jade, Myanmar's single most precious natural resource. And it is central to today's conflict in Kachin state…