Anti-smuggling forces likely to own confiscated illegal sugar

By Bach Duong, Bui Hong Nhung   April 13, 2016 | 05:38 am PT
Anti-smuggling forces likely to own confiscated illegal sugar
An anti-smuggling search. Photo: VnExpress file
Anti-smuggling forces could claim all the confiscated sugar smuggled into the country to themselves, according to a recent industry proposal to the government.

The Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association (VSSA) submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister to allow the anti-smuggling forces to receive 100 percent of illegal sugar they found in the market, instead of the current 30 percent. 

The association said it is a part of their agenda against the sugar smuggling boom in the country. They estimate that each year, 300,000 to 400,000 tons of sugar is smuggled into Vietnam, mainly from Laos and Cambodia. 

"The figure [30 percent granted to anti-smuggling forces] is quite small while the battle against sugar smuggling is very tough, so we've asked that full value of each shipment be donated to anti-smuggling forces," a top official of the association told VnExpress on the phone today.

At present, the government allocates 70 percent of the value of confiscated smuggled goods to the local budget to support anti-smuggling activities, according to a circular issued in 1998. 

The association proposed that the confiscated sugar would be auctioned publicly to sugar manufacturing enterprises only. The association explains that the auction would help to prevent traders from using the invoices from the state auction of illegal sugar to legitimize smuggled sugar.

 
 
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