Smuggling continues in Kien Giang

	Seizing more than 1.2 tons of smuggled wastage
	Part 2: The “process” of sugar smuggling in An Giang
	Flow of smuggled goods across the Mekong river border - Part 1: "Matrix" of illicit sugar

Illegal road transport at the Kien Giang border.

Developments at sea

The border area between Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand continues to be a hotspot for smuggling activities. Since the beginning of the year, the Coast Guard Command has detected seven ships trading nearly 850,000 liters of illegal oil. The 28th Squadron of the Border Guard Command also detected four cases of oil smuggling, seizing five vessels, 32 smugglers, and over 194,000 liters of oil. The total value seized was over 12 billion VND.

In addition to illegal oil smuggling, in the coastal areas of Kien Giang, illegal transportation of cigarettes is also a problem. In Phu Quoc, Border Guard forces seized 2,500 packs of cigarettes disguised in Styrofoam containers of seafood and fruit, of which half were discovered at An Thoi port and the other at Bai Vong port.

In the coastal area, border forces discovered 1,750 packages of foreign cigarettes also disguised in containers of seafood. Regarding smuggled cigarettes, in early July, Customs Control Team (Kien Giang Customs Department) during a patrol and inspection in To Chau ward, Ha Tien city, discovered the illegal transportation of 1,490 packages of cigarettes.

The Customs Department of Ha Tien border gate seized illegal sugar.

Control against smuggling

At the meeting on the implementation of anti-smuggling work in the last six months of the year, the Steering Committee of Kien Giang Provincial Steering Committee 389 was organized, the functional forces said that, in addition to the sea route, key routes of smuggling still focused on the routes of Rach Rach, Dam Chit, Cho Dinh, Nha Sap in Giang Thanh district; the trail on either side of Ha Tien international border gate; area of ​​Chua road, Duong Xuong, Da Tien mountain belong to My Duc ward, Ha Tien city.

The coastal route from Milestone 313 and 314 runs along Ta Lu Beach - Mui Nai - Den Mountain - Bai No - Phao Dai Door to To Chau Wharf in Ha Tien City. The work of preventing and combating smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeiting faces many difficulties, in addition to objective factors, there are also subjective factors, said the forces.

Preventing and fighting smuggling has not promoted the synchronous power of coordinating forces, most of which are independent. Law dissemination has not been highly effective.

Forecasting the situation in the last months of the year, rising consumer demand will lead to more smuggling, illegal cross-border transportation of goods, commercial fraud and counterfeiting in the market. In particular, the beneficiaries take advantage of open and convenient policies on immigration management that can mix drugs with luggage, seafood and fruit items, which are difficult to control. In addition, illegal transportation of scrap and sawn wood products tends to increase, concentrating on Cambodia's border patrol routes to 314 milestones in Vietnam and inland. At sea, foreign boats are catching seafood and illegal smuggling activity increases. The sea area of ​​Northern Phu Quoc Island to Ha Tien is likely to see smuggling of sand, tobacco, wood and petrol.

Vice Chairman of Kien Giang Provincial People's Committee Le Thi Minh Phung, Head of Steering Committee 389 Kien Giang province, asked provincial forces to coordinate with localities to implement measures to prevent smuggling and trade frauds, fake goods in the area; opening peak periods, organizing checkpoints to control the roads in the border areas and on the river and the sea; coordinating, patrolling and inspecting with functional forces in the locality.

Ha Tinh: Smuggling and Trade fraud are still complicated

Additionally, the forces need to pay attention to two localities in the border areas, namely Ha Tien city and Giang Thanh district; inspect and handle illegal warehouses in border-gate and border-gate areas; installing cameras to monitor places of gathering and transporting contraband goods; communicating and educating border residents not to participate in and abetting smugglers; continue to open projects to eliminate smuggling across borders; patrolling and focusing on destroying smuggling for petroleum products, drugs and cigarettes.