Anyone can join in the labor, automatically acquiring one share in future returns. With the money, Kafil built a house for his young family. The entrepreneurs who provided tools, dynamite, tents, and other supplies took a significantly bigger cut, up to one- third of the total shares. Once the emeralds are sold to middlemen, the rough stones travel to Pakistan, East Asia, or the Middle East, where they are then cut and reappraised for sale on the international gem market. Many of the miners are acutely aware that the brilliant stones they dig from the mountains are worth many times what they earn.
Theft is a temptation, despite the watchful eyes of fellow miners that make decampment difficult.
A lot of people do that -once they find an emerald, they run away. Next time we find an emerald, we won't let anybody know. Small stones go in our pockets, big stones go in theirs. Other miners, like Kafil, view mining emeralds as doing their patriotic duty to fund the war against the Taliban. Per day he never makes much more than a dollar, which he dutifully turns over to his father.