The Dark Secret Behind Your Shiny Makeup _ Undercover Asia _ CNA Documentary

Your eyeshadow shimmers, your lip gloss sparkles and your highlighter shines all thanks to this vital ingredient Mica, a sought-after mineral used in cosmetic products for that radiant glow But attaining beauty comes at a price That burden falls on the thousands of miners working illegally in one of India's poorest regions I am hungry, I am thirsty Thousands of people die of starvation I fell off a cliff The contractor, his son and his son-in-law left and ran away Their family have only one option, go to mica mines They have to earn some income So children also go along with them Where the consumer is not concerned, the industry can just hide The high-profile brands do need to be responsive about what is said out there This is the ugly secret behind the billion-dollar beauty business The global cosmetics industry is worth over 500 billion US dollars and growing From indie companies to luxury brands with celebrity endorsements, the market is overflowing with products There's been a boom in the cosmetic industry With social media and the rapid pace at which info is just put out, it's more accessible Because there's shimmer in the blushes, we can actually use them as lipstick And I found it's a nice option to have almost like a matte lipstick Stephanie Lee is a veteran makeup artist who has seen how certain looks and products become sought after by women I would say as a makeup artist, the trend has definitely changed from something more like heavy Towards radiant skin, very sparkly eyes and you know, shimmery lips Gives you this radiant, I'm a goddess kind of vibe Sparkly, shimmery, radiant Take a closer look at makeup products and you are likely to see this ingredient, mica Mica is a naturally occurring mineral that can be ground down to create sparkling powders From cars to cosmetics, mica is responsible for all that glitters Next to more complex ingredient names, it seems harmless But behind the glitter lies a deadly industry While mica can be found on every continent, India is regarded as having some of the world's largest and finest deposits But it's not the quality of its mica that is drawing attention For over a decade, investigative reporter Peter Bengtsson has been tracking the murky trade of this mineral in the eastern state of Jharkhand This part of India is super remote and it's really rural and poor For many villagers in these countryside areas, mica is the only option for income The more hands you get to go to the mines, the more children you have and who are able to help get food on the table Jharkhand is immensely rich in mineral resources But while almost half of India's coal, copper and mica come from this state Nearly 50% of its people still live in poverty 40-year-old Basanti Mosamat is from a small, informal mica mining community in Jharkhand Once a week, Basanti makes a 10-kilometre trek from her village into the forest She carries three days' worth of rations for her family and fellow villagers Their task? To find and collect enough mica to feed their families Basanti's husband died six months ago Her father-in-law, Nanku, stays with her and her five children The family's only source of income is from picking and selling scrap mica, commonly known as dibra With each scrap weighing mere grams, the entire group hopes to collect a few kilos' worth over the next few days Nanku has no other option than to mine mica Her father-in-law, Nanku, lives in a small village in Jharkhand Prone to drought and poor soil, Jharkhand's land conditions make it unsuitable for farming Deepak Bara is a freelance video journalist who is based in Jharkhand He has been documenting the state's mining policies for the past 15 years When it comes to irrigation, these areas are poor and people suffer due to it They cannot have access to the water These areas are poor and people suffer due to it They cannot have agriculture and the education is very low They just have to turn towards the business of mica to just support their families Nanku and this community are part of India's 100 million indigenous people, also known as Adivasis They are regarded as the earliest inhabitants of India, who used to occupy much larger areas than they do now The Adivasis make up over a quarter of Jharkhand's 38.5 million population They live on the outskirts of society and receive little support from the government in terms of health, education, job security and food We go to the forest to look for food Then we go to the forest to look for food Be careful! Continuously digging without any protective gear has left their hands scrapped and badly bruised From dawn to dusk, they claw through the dusty piles of rubble in search of this mineral that glimmers even in its most raw form But all that sparkle doesn't amount to much for the miners Each kilo of mica scraps currently sells for 10 US cents On a good day, they can collectively earn 2 US dollars Even now, I have to dig through the rubble and my hands get scrapped If I don't dig, I don't know how I will survive Extreme poverty has also forced miners into dangerous situations In a bid to seek out bigger quantities of mica Many descend into unstable caves, putting their lives at risk If something like this happens, thousands of people die Mica is the all-important mineral that provides sparkle and shine to eyeshadows, lip gloss and many other beauty products The global mica market is forecast to be worth almost 700 million US dollars by 2024 1.2 million metric tons of this mineral are mined annually In Jharkhand, eastern India, there are two main mining districts, Koderma and Giridi Almost half of Jharkhand's population lives in poverty Some of the poorest communities live near forested areas, which are devoid of basic facilities The lack of jobs, schools and businesses has forced locals to seek their livelihood in dangerous situations While many sift through topsoil for scrap mica, there are those who descend into abandoned caves and mineshafts to look for greater loads There are no safety measures here Each descent is a gamble for these mica hunters These shoes are made of iron, so they can be used as slippers If you slip or fall, even if you hit a rock, it's a problem With no proper lighting or safety gear, underground miners often rely on their knowledge of the terrain to guide them Mukesh Bulla has been mining for mica since he was a young boy If you hit too hard, the rock will break You can see the soil on the side of the rock It's like a tilkut You can hit a big rock here You can hit a rock here You can hit a big rock here Abandoned mines like these are especially dangerous and unpredictable It's scary, but you have to work according to your instructions You have to work according to the instructions If something happens, thousands of people die Mining collapses happen frequently In January 2021, there were at least three reports of mine collapses in Jharkhand's Koderma district It is estimated that 10 to 20 people lose their lives in such mishaps each month My uncle used to go to the jungle and dig up the soil One day, a contractor called him and took him away He said, we will give you Rs. 200 and you will work there He told everyone to go down and dig up the soil The rock fell from above and all four of them were buried The contractor, his son and his son-in-law left the place and ran away Like most mining accidents, that went unreported and was never investigated For fear that authorities would put a halt to their activities Because mining mica in Jharkhand is illegal In 1980, the Forest Conservation Act came into effect with the intent to protect India's vast forests In Jharkhand, this had a direct impact on mica mining The mineral was classified as a forest produce, making it illegal to mine or remove it from the land Suddenly, a once vibrant industry had to go underground At its peak in the first half of the 20th century, India had over 20,000 miners working in 700 mines Fifth generation landowner Deepak Kumar Singh has witnessed the rise and fall of the once booming mica industry If you touch anything, it has mica in it The British used to say that no Indian can touch mica or his eyes will go bad The British didn't believe it and they didn't want to give it to the Indians When a village used to be empty after seeing a red cap, the British fought with them And they took the position for the first time After that, the mining kept happening Many people got mining Although it is outlawed in Jharkhand, many indigenous communities continue to mine today At least 70% of India's mica output is illegally mined Despite the risks, miners like Mukesh remain undeterred In mica abundant areas, everyone in the family, including children, can be found scrounging for mica The high profile brands do need to be responsive about what is said out there But they are also very cautious about what they say The demand for better beauty is insatiable Every year, a quarter of all cosmetics products on the market are either improved or reformulated completely Singaporean Narissa Kumar Singh is one of the most popular cosmetics brands in the world She is the first woman in the world to win an award for best cosmetics Singaporean Narissa Loh founded an independent organic make-up brand in 2017 Her aim was to cut out unnecessary and potentially harmful chemicals found typically in many make-up items Mica is an important ingredient in her array of products Mica is typically used to create the pigments in make-up products It is also easy to be ground into fine powder to be able to create the textures that are needed for your pressed foundations, your blush, your eyeshadows After researching further, Narissa became concerned about using mica from India Instead, she turned to suppliers in America where the mica industry is more transparent Mica is an ingredient that is seen as controversial because people have differing views on the possible side effects whether it's ethically sourced or not Having mica sourced from India, of course the transparency would be a little bit of a concern Mica's controversial reputation emerged in the mid-2000s when there were investigations into the use of child labour in the industry According to the International Labour Organization, India has over 10 million working children Jharkhand is one of the worst states in this regard With no proper childcare or schooling system for indigenous communities, children often accompany their parents to pick mica Basanti's 14-year-old daughter, Karishma, has been working in the mines since she was five As the oldest child, she feels it is a necessity to help a family My father passed away, so I want to help We pick the mica, remove the soil, and break it We also break the mica and remove the soil I was in a big mess when the lockdown was lifted We pick the mica from this container India's indigenous children are severely disenfranchised, particularly in the eastern states With no access to nutritious food, more than 40% are malnourished There are no facilities in Florida, I don't even want to live in a village like this One day I eat, the other day I don't One day I'm hungry, the other day I'm thirsty I can't travel International organizations like Danwash and Ethical Consumer have raised concerns about the situation In about 2009, in Europe, we first began to read stories about the problems in mica mines, in India particularly And the child labor was the issue that always alerts Western consumers to problems They are very sensitive to the child labor issue Where the consumer is not concerned, the industry can just hide and it cannot worry about anything So in a sense, the high-profile brands do need to be responsive about what is said out there But they are also very cautious about over-committing Stories of children working in the mines set off a chain of reports exposing the underbelly of India's mica industry International media was also attracted to this plight of people The stories came out, children going to mica mines, helping out their parents So many documentaries were made which exploited the issue of child labor The spotlight only brought unwanted attention to what had been going on for decades But while it was portrayed as a system of brutal exploitation Jharkhand's politicians and journalists argue that these reports fail to address one critical detail The marginalization of indigenous people Children around mica mines, their family have only one option, go to mica mines and pick dibra There is no child care support from the government, if there is any, it's not functional So children also go along with them, they have to earn their family some income Sudivya Kumar, a member of Jharkhand's Legislative Assembly, feels aggrieved by the accusations His anger is echoed by the area's mining community, who feel they have been unfairly maligned I would like to know from the people who give reference to child labor, what is the definition of child labor? When people lost their jobs, if the mother is going to pick dibra, her child is also with her She also helps her in the process of picking dibra But this is not the issue, the definition of child labor is that if a contractor is hiring child laborers, then it is child labor But the question is, if a father, who has a 14 year old child, goes to help in the process of picking dibra And you take that photo and blame the child laborers for this, then I feel this is not right In response to the growing concerns, global coalitions such as the Responsible Mica Initiative or RMI Were formed with the intent to eradicate child mining in Jharkhand by 2022 By promoting better regulation and practices Brands like L'Oreal, Chanel and Sephora are among the members Despite these heavyweight signatories, change has been slow to come The problem around Mica is a systemic problem, it's not like you do a small campaign and things will get sorted out The ground reality is very different Any NGO who wants to work here, even government agencies You'll have to look at it from the perspective of health, employment, education, agriculture, environment, and so many things You'll have to look at the community as a whole For the rare few who manage to avoid working in the mines, there are still plenty of obstacles to overcome We have struggled and we have sent our husbands and sons to study as much as possible Instead of having a copy or pen in our children's hands, what do you call it? We throw it away and make them pick up a pot and earn and eat Dimpy Devi is a mother of three She mines Mica from a nearby forest as well as from the deposits that occur in her garden Before the lockdown, it used to cost five rupees, but now it's four and a half rupees If you pick a brick, it takes up 10% of the land You can see the soil here, it's covered in dirt We don't clean it and give it away That's why it takes up 10% of the land The party that takes the land, they remove it If it was clean like this, it wouldn't take up 10% of the land We can't do that much, if we do, we won't be able to pick even 10 kilos of land Dimpy lives in constant uncertainty because of her status in the eyes of the law The Forest Department says that this is government property The Mica that you pick is unlegal In Kodarma district, this is connected to bricks and stones If there are no bricks and stones, the poor will die like this We don't have any other employment here What will we do? Even then, if you steal secretly, Let's say, if you spend two or three thousand a week, you can't even do 1500 You have to face a lot of problems You have to live like this, you have to live like this We are used to living like this We don't have any other employment here When faced with additional family or health expenses, Mica pickers have few resources to tap on Unable to access formal banking systems, they turn to unlicensed lenders With interest rates as high as 200% a year, many families find themselves trapped in a cycle of debt and bonded labour Some miners told us that they are only allowed to sell Mica to specific traders Those traders that they borrowed money from, and to a price decided by that trader And that agreement would basically last until they had repaid their debt to this trader You definitely see the risk of bonded labour when these dependencies are created between wealthy lenders and the poor borrowers Other than speaking to grassroots workers and activists, villagers have few avenues to air their grievances Journalists like Ashok Verma gather informal feedback to document the challenges they face How much did you earn in a day? I used to earn 2 to 1.5 rupees per kilo How much did you earn in a day? 5 to 6 kilos How much did you earn in a day? Raids by forest authorities are common And miners sometimes resort to paying a bribe, or risk being shut down These areas, apart from being run by contractors, they are being run by their criminal goons And there is a whole network of people who make this mining happen And they are very powerful, and it can be very dangerous It can be life-threatening, because there are so many stakeholders Even deep in the forest, Basanti is not safe We are scared of the forest The police don't come here often We are scared of the forest This is where we live, and this is where we work They are taking everything from us They are taking our land They say, take it, take it You won't have any problem They are taking our land They say, you don't have to be afraid They say, take it, take it The demand for mica is not letting up And mica miners continue to work in dire conditions But there are large global forces at play too These industries make billions of dollars in revenue They make supercomputers, self-driving cars, complex beauty products But somehow they cannot trace mica from one or two areas in India Hi, today I'll be going through some makeup products that I have received I have with me today five new lipstick shades Adlin Xiao is part of a growing group of social media personalities who review cosmetic products 80% of beauty brands engage influencers to promote new product launches giving them an important voice in the beauty industry To be honest, I'm actually very embarrassed to only be finding out about all these only now I mean, I've been using makeup for ages It was initially just pure shock I looked at videos and learnt many new things about mica It made me think, how come I wasn't aware of these things before? The illegal mica mining trade in Jharkhand has been an open secret for years But how does this ill-gotten mineral get a clean bill of certification? The answer lies a hundred kilometres away In the mining district of Koderma, the mica cottage industry is in full force Regardless of its origin, local traders here can get a licence to process and sell mica Men and women from surrounding villages work in factories picking, cleaning, sorting and processing mica for international export It is a laborious and hazardous job Workers spend over 10 hours a day in confined spaces sorting through piles of mica Their thin cotton saris and scarves are the only protection they have against breathing in the microparticles of mica dust Prolonged exposure can lead to chronic respiratory problems and lung disease Over 80% of Jharkhand's processed mica will be exported to companies in China, Japan and Germany Ankit Bagaria is the director of Ruby Mica, a family business established in 1968 Each day, they are able to supply up to 1,000 kilograms of mica powder to buyers all over the world We manufacture over 50 different products catering to 11 different industry segments and supply to over 50 countries worldwide So our customers are coming from a diverse background, diverse population In 2019, India exported over US$58 million worth of mica to the world with the biggest buyers being China and Japan Ruby Mica is a member of the Responsible Mica Initiative You'll find a lot of bad publicity trying to tarnish and give this industry a bad name We are actually generating employment, we are actually generating livelihood We are trying to raise the standard of the region Given the vast quantities bought and traded, it can seem impossible to track where exactly a brand's mica comes from By the time it's mixed and reprocessed into thousands of products, no one is any wiser about how it was mined Back then, mica was totally overlooked and underreported No media attention, no attention by civil society groups internationally and corporate attention to mica was next to nothing too But when the allegations broke, make-up and automobile companies immediately came under fire The big names responded and pledged stricter compliance in managing their supply chains But some acknowledged the difficulties in tracing their mica and checking whether it was child labour-free These industries make billions of dollars in revenue They make supercomputers, self-driving cars, complex beauty products but somehow they cannot trace mica from one or two areas in India I don't think it's a question about ability, honestly, I think it's a question about interest Traceability has become a key concern for some manufacturers In January 2021, the European Union began legislating gold, tungsten and tin as conflict minerals and companies were now obligated to source their minerals responsibly The reason for these different pieces of legislation is to make businesses a lot more accountable for what happens in their international supply chain And in some instances, fines can be applied if they are found to have breached human rights or environmental rules overseas within the supply chain as well But to date, such regulation for mica has yet to be addressed Mica is quite a cheap raw material to actually produce and so the cost of actually making sure that it's been responsibly sourced as a proportion of the cost of the product sometimes does not make economic sense compared to other raw materials like gold or cobalt Eugene Tay is part of a responsible sourcing company that uses blockchain technology to verify the origin of goods and minerals in supply chains While he sees tech as part of the solution, he notes that more work is needed to make ethical trading a common practice Our role in all of this is to provide the technology that is easy to be adopted and used by different people across the world In order to ensure that responsible sourcing practices are happening they might have to be legislated for and organisations will need to build in the cost of compliance into their value chains And we as consumers need to accept that there is an increased cost to us In my position, I can help people be more aware or maybe I can start even to question brands if they are actually willing to talk about things Ultimately, it is up to my audiences to actually figure out whether they want to choose to buy these products or not In Koderma district, a community rally has been organised for Mica pickers to voice their concerns We want to get our say on what is happening Such rallies are being organised more frequently as the gravity of the problem can no longer be ignored by authorities Legislative Assemblyman Sudivya Kumar is using the momentum to continue advocating for the legalisation of mining We want to find a way to protect the forests and forests so that the community benefits and the forests are saved and in the principle of co-existence, the community and our assets and our resources are used in the right way This will be the most ideal situation and we will try to bring about such an ideal situation Under India's constitution, indigenous people are entitled to live off the land Along with fruits, flowers and other minerals Mica was once classified as forest produce a status that they say should be restored They extract the debris from the mines and there is no damage to the forest but it is stopped We harvest the roots of the forest and eat them We feed our children We feed them The government says that if you live in the forest you destroy a lot of things You cut down trees and sell them If we live in the forest, where will we go? Dimpy, like many others, will continue to mine as it's her only means of survival If we choose to live in the forest the government should give us a clear path so that we don't have a problem in earning a living This is what should happen The Jharkhand state government is pushing for mining to be one of its economic growth initiatives But so far, no real action has been taken with mica mining And without a clear plan for change the dire need to survive will remain as it is for now