Lang Son determined to eliminate "hot spots" of poultry smuggling

	Customs determined to prevent poultry smuggling
	Lang Son strengthens prevention of poultry smuggling across border
	Lang Son: Poultry smuggling on the rise

​According to Steering Committee 389 of Lang Son province, from the end of September, poultry smugglers have increased the frequency and the volume of poultry breeds through the area, especially Loc Binh district border area. The smugglers often take advantage of the dark night to break down fences and carry cages containing poultry breeds into border communes such as Yen Khoai and Tu Mich (Loc Binh district). When they arrive at the gathering place, the poultry breeds will be loaded to trucks to move the inland.

Motorbike and truck drivers are very active, such as sending people to monitor the authorities, driving vehicles flexibly with high speeds to avoid the authorities. Some drivers even crashed their vehicles into competent authorities, causing many difficulties in inspection, control, arrest, and handling.

According to data from Steering Committee 389 of Lang Son province, from the beginning of August, the authorities seized 31 cases and imposed administrative fines of over VND214 million; confiscated and force the destruction 101,800 chicken/duck breeds; 8,532 kg of poultry products of all kinds.

The anti-smuggling forces of Loc Binh district alone have detected and prevented 19 cases of illegal cross-border transportation of poultry, seizing more than 40,000 chicken and duck breeds.

Lang Son province authorities confiscate chicken breeds smuggled from China.

Talking to Customs Magazine reporters, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Duc Binh, Chief of Chi Ma Border Gate Border Guard Station, said that to prevent poultry smuggling, the unit has strengthened to conduct closed patrols on the border line and worked with Customs, Police, and Market Surveillance forces to organize patrols in border communes to prevent and destroy breeding poultry gathering points.

In addition to the Border Guard force, Chi Ma Customs has also deployed synchronous solutions to prevent poultry smuggling through the area. Mr. Nguyen Bao Ngoc, Director of Chi Ma Border Gate Customs Branch (Lang Son Customs Department) said that the branch has strengthened professional measures to monitor vehicles through the border gate area, thereby promptly discovering smuggled poultry cages hidden in containers of re-imported goods through the border gate.

To effectively prevent the illegal cross-border transportation of goods, especially poultry and poultry products at the end of the year, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Head of Steering Committee 389 of Lang Son province Duong Xuan Huyen requested the authorities to seriously, drastically and synchronously implement the instructions of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Provincial People's Committee, and the Steering Committee of 389 provinces on combating illegal trafficking of poultry and poultry products across borders.

Vice Chairman Duong Xuan Huyen requested the Lang Son Border Guard to continue to maintain and strengthen blocking camps on the border; expand inspection and control at the border gate area, border-crossings to promptly detect, prevent, and strictly handle illegal immigration and transportation of poultry and poultry products goods across the border; reinforce the fight, arrest and strictly handle those who illegally trade and transport poultry and poultry products across the border into the inland.

Requiring Lang Son Customs Department to strengthen inspection and control of import and export activities to detect and strictly handle the smuggling of poultry products. In particular, Lang Son Customs Department needs to strengthen the anti-smuggling force at Chi Ma border gate area to coordinate with others in fighting against smuggling and illegal transportation of goods across the border; coordinate with the Border Guard and other forces to properly inspect and handle violations.

Market Surveillance Force and Police are request to strengthen the fight against smuggling of poultry and poultry products, gathering points, and domestic trading points to prevent acts of trading, abetting, and storing illegally imported poultry and poultry products of unknown origin on the market; strictly control veterinary work, prevent farms, livestock facilities, and households from legalizing smuggled poultry breeds of unknown origin from the border into the inland. At the same time, the authorities should intensify the force to inspect and control food service establishments that use poultry products and poultry breeding points to serve people's production.

The Steering Committee 389 of districts and cities, especially areas with a high risk of poultry smuggling across the border such as Loc Binh district and Cao Loc district, performs well in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods; direct the People's Committees of communes and towns, especially border communes, to drastically combat smuggling, assign specific responsibilities to commune-level leaders if illegal transportation of poultry and poultry products occurs through the area; and increase information to farmers to proactively implement disease prevention measures.