Eliminating smuggling

The detection and subsequent destruction of a mind boggling haul of five million cigarettes valued at over Rs. 100 million by the Customs authorities as reported in our lead story yesterday should awaken the authorities to the burgeoning smuggling business that is flourishing in our midst.

According to our report had the contraband gone undetected the State would have been the loser by a staggering Rs.69 million in duties. What is even more alarming is the modus operandi employed to smuggle in the contraband.

The cigarettes were smuggled in the baggage of Lankan housemaids returning from the Middle East who are entitled to duty free allowances and other tax exemptions. The arrangement had apparently been to smuggle in the cigarettes and hand the consignments to a contact.

This is proved by the fact that all addresses given to these housemaids were fictitious ones. Hence there certainly would be some big time operative behind the racket.

Significantly it is reported that the import of cigarettes had drastically dropped due to the Government imposing a high 300 percent levy on imported fags under the Mathata Thitha policy. Hence the ingenious method adopted to smuggle them through an fairly innocent method.

It was also reported that some of the brands detected were those used at Casinos and Five Star Hotels.This warrants a deep probe since there is apparently a massive racket to import cigarettes bypassing duty payments thus robbing the State of much needed revenue.

It is also worthwhile to ascertain if there is a nexus between our middle returnees and some individuals or persons acting on behalf of a cartel. There is no question that this is only the tip of the iceberg of a smuggling behemoth that could pose serious consequences to the country’s economy.

As is well known smuggling today is almost institutionalised in the country with even politicians and customs officials in the pay of racketeers to let contraband, including narcotics, pass through. The cancer had taken such deep root today that there is huge black economy that is being fed by the spoils of smugglers.

Not even big names in the corporate world are beyond a bit of sleight of as seen from the recent customs interrogation of a well known business tycoon in the country. The nature and magnitude smuggling has assumed has even led to the murder of a prominent customs officer some time ago, which is also an indication how this has eaten into the moral fabric of society.

Time was when the only smuggling Sri Lankans read about was the detections dome at Palliyawatte which had gained notoriety as prominent ‘shipment point’. These were mostly textiles which were surreptitiously smuggled into the open market under the cover of darkness.

These were pre-free economy days when there were restrictions where such free flow of smuggled goods would have caused a major upheaval in the economy. However with the advent of the open economy smuggling almost became an adjunct of the free market system which lent its way to a thriving black economy that is having it’s stranglehold to this day.

Hence the Government should activate all relevant arms to stamp out this trend lest it makes more inroads into the national economy. It should bear in mind that the unaccounted money in larger circulation is also having an impact on the rising cost of living and indirectly spawning a culture of impunity in economic terms.

The Customs Department should be strengthened and rewards enhanced for honest officers. More vigilance also should be made at the Airport which has today turned into hub for smugglers.

Above all the Government should take steps to ensure it rakes in all dues by way of duties from all taxable sources. It should be firm in stamping out racketeers who harm the national economy through underground operations.

‘Wild’ TUs

Trade unionism which had taken root in almost all spheres of human endeavour went a step further to conquer the animal frontier as we reported yesterday where some employees of the National Zoological Gardens in Dehiwela struck work following a dispute with the Zoo’s Assistant Director.

The zoo was closed till 12 noon as a result locking out hundreds of visitors while it took the presence of Minister Gamini Lokuge who is in charge of the subject to resolve issues where the demands of the strikers were met.

While the wild creatures we hope were not treated to a spectacle they would not have witnessed even in the jungles what impression this ‘lock out’ would have created in the minds of the sizable number of foreigners present is anyone’s guess.

This mini rumble in the jungle would also have forced some of the animals to miss their regular meal times and it is surprising that they too did not rise up in protest which would have had graver consequences for all concerned.

Perhaps the Trade Unions may have harboured the thought that the authorities would capitulate under such circumstances but it should think twice before holding the animals to ransom as some of their breed do with hospital patients and school children.

The Dehiwela Zoo at one time was known as the best Zoo in Asia with a wide array of exotic animals from different continents. Deterioration set in over a period of time which lost for us this honour.

Today the concept of captivity breeding is gradually becoming outdated for zoos as seen in some countries where visitors could watch animals roam in their natural habitats covering a vast expanse of forest land.

Sri Lanka which has an abundantly rich fauna should try introducing this system which would vastly appeal to wildlife enthusiasts not to mention the tourism potential.

There is also a wide scope for expansion of the Dehiwela Zoo which today are devoid of some of the attractions of the past. The Minister should take immediate steps to restore our Zoo to its previous glory.