At least one person is dead and dozens more are missing after a landslide at a jade mine in northern Myanmar, a member of a rescue team has said. The landslide in the Hpakant area of Kachin state happened at about 4am on Wednesday local time, and there were fears up to 100 people were missing. Myanmar’s jade mines are notoriously dangerous. In 2014, a report by Global Witness put the value of jade production in Myanmar at about $31bn, nearly half of Myanmar’s GDP that year. The vast majority is smuggled to China, where jade is highly sought-after and associated with royalty, bypassing tax authorities.

Source: The Guardian December 23, 2021 01:29 UTC