Proactive measures to combat smuggling and trade fraud.

(Baonghean) - Nghe An is the largest province in the country in terms of area, with a population of over 3 million people. Vinh City is the commercial center of the North Central region, resulting in a very large volume of goods consumed. With its border, sea, road, air, and rail connections, Nghe An is a "hot spot" for smuggling, counterfeit goods, and prohibited items...

According to the assessment of the Provincial Steering Committee 389, in recent times, the situation of illegal trade and transportation of goods across the border, in the sea, and in the domestic market has generally not shown any signs of complexity, and the value of the violations is not large. The illegal transportation and trading of smuggled and prohibited goods such as narcotics, explosives, firecrackers, timber, wild animals, gasoline, alcohol, tobacco, and automobiles through the Nam Can International Border Gate still occurs on a small scale and secretly in areas adjacent to the border gate and through trails and unofficial crossings along the Vietnam-Laos border.

In addition, items such as energy drinks, electronics, refrigeration equipment, confectionery, refined sugar, cosmetics, blankets, mats, and household items from Thailand are smuggled into Vinh via the Ha Tinh suspension bridge border gate; mobile phones, stationery, cosmetics, children's toys, fabrics, ready-made clothing, shoes, food additives, processed and frozen foods, plant and animal breeds from China are smuggled through the Quang Ninh and Lang Son border gates or through Nghe An province to the southern provinces for consumption.

Many toys of unknown origin were seized by the provincial market management agency.

According to the Economic Police Department of the Provincial Public Security, commonly counterfeited items include: alcoholic beverages, bottled water, confectionery; food products, MSG; shampoo, cosmetics, laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, floor cleaner, fabric softener, labels, and various types of packaging...

In particular, the forces have intensified market inspections and food safety checks, thus detecting and handling many cases of transporting livestock and poultry of unknown origin, chemicals, and agricultural products that do not meet food safety and hygiene standards.

In the first 10 months of 2016, the Steering Committee 389 of Nghe An province inspected and handled 9,793 cases; the total value of fines collected was estimated at nearly 316 billion VND. This included nearly 87 billion VND in administrative fines; over 151 billion VND in fines and tax arrears; and an estimated value of over 77 billion VND in confiscated goods. The confiscated goods included: prohibited goods, smuggled goods, goods violating food safety and hygiene regulations, counterfeit goods, and expired goods.

Throughout the year, the police, market management forces, and other functional agencies organized inspections, detected, and promptly handled cases of violations related to the production and trading of counterfeit, imitation, substandard, and expired goods. Specifically: 490 barrels of various types of paint, 46 bottles/cans of counterfeit laundry detergent, 770 bottles of counterfeit dishwashing liquid; 193,560 counterfeit storm-resistant brackets, 952 packages of counterfeit MSG; 9,010 packages of counterfeit crispy frying powder; 103.25 tons of counterfeit fertilizer; 1,152 packages of counterfeit cosmetics; 9,743 bottles/cans of expired soft drinks...

The police and border guard forces are directing their professional departments, district police, and border guard posts to focus on conducting thorough investigations; closely monitoring the situation, methods, and tactics of criminals, especially new methods and tactics; identifying key routes, areas, and targets requiring concentrated efforts; strengthening operational measures and establishing cases to combat large smuggling rings and groups; and effectively combating the production, trading, and transportation of prohibited goods, smuggled goods, counterfeit goods, and commercial fraud, especially the trading and transportation of counterfeit money, fireworks, and explosives.

To strengthen market inspection and control, and strictly handle violations in production, business, and service provision to ensure healthy market development, in addition to functional forces, local authorities in districts, cities, and towns need to focus on directing specialized departments and the authorities of communes, wards, and townships to intensify efforts to combat smuggling, counterfeit goods, and goods violating food safety and hygiene regulations. They should also mobilize the entire population to participate in the fight against smuggling, counterfeit goods, and commercial fraud, especially in providing information and reporting violations to relevant agencies. Simultaneously, inter-agency inspection teams should be established to strengthen market inspection and control.

Viet Phuong