Smuggling puts thousands out of work

Its 5 am and dozens of trucks are offloading bales of second hand merchandise from neighbouring Mozambique. Buyers are busy scavenging for quality merchandise from heaps of clothes donated by well-wishers in Europe and US to underprivileged communities in Africa.

They are not deterred by the surroundings, which resemble a squatter camp, nor the stench of urine from the nearby Sakubva stadium toilets, nor the decomposing debris of unsold tomatoes and cabbages at the Green Market a popular vegetable market.

This is Sakubva Open Air Flea market, where second- hand clothes are sold. The place is commonly known as mupedzanhamo, meaning poverty reduction in the local vernacular. The market has not only become a darling for local people, but for others from all over of the country.

Govt ups duty

The government is trying to curb the import of cheap second-hand clothes to protect the local industry from collapse by imposing a US$900 customs duty for a bale worth only US$150. This prohibitive duty has encouraged smuggling and in retaliation, government has increased security at the border.

But, the second hand clothes continue to flood Zimbabwean market because customs and police officials are willing to take bribes from smugglers. Mozambican officials have a different system – all imported second-hand clothes destined for charity are exempt from paying duty.

They claim to have confiscated 700 bales in 2009 and donated them to various orphanages across the country. Zimbabwe is causing some serious problems because the officials are corrupt. In our country such clothes destined for charity are exempt from paying taxes, said an official from Mozambican Customs official.

But in Zimbabwe, little is being done because confiscated goods are corruptly shared among police and customs officials and find their way back to the market again.

Police supplement salaries

Customs officials, according to sources, earn less than US$200 a month, but have bought posh vehicles and houses in up-market leafy suburbs through smuggling. Not only customs officials take bribes, the police earn less than customs officials and supplement their earnings by liaising with smugglers.

We cannot make ends meet on our current salaries. We have managed to fend for our families through smuggling, said a police officer who requested anonymity. He added that smugglers preferred to work with police officers rather than customs officials because they demand a lot.

Another junior officer said the smugglers were clever and cunning. During their patrols we have discovered that these smugglers have built makeshift bridges in order to ensure easy passage of their trucks, he said.

Security headache

A top police official could neither deny nor confirm such practices by their members. He said they had received reports of smuggling and had impounded around 300 bales and arrested suspects. The official acknowledged that smuggling was causing a headache for the police but said they would continue to intensify their operations along the border.

We cannot deny that there are some government officials and members of the police who are fuelling this smuggling. Our message is clear that those caught will face the full wrath of the law. We are carrying out investigations to establish whether our members are involved, he said.

Twenty-six year-old Tembo (not his real name), who has worked as a smuggler for the past seven years, said they had contacts in Manica and Chimoio, with their head offices in Beira port and Maputo.

His duty is to look for prospective buyers of second hand bales on the Zimbabwean side for a commission. Our job is simple. We look for clients and go to Manica where we meet with our suppliers. They supply us with bales at concessionary rates of US$150 or less, depending on the type of merchandise.

I then sell it to my client for US$200 and pocket US$50 profit. The buyer from Zimbabwe will supply transport. Usually we wait until darkness and move the consignment through undesignated points if we fail to reach an agreement with some Customs Authority over the bribe, said Tembo.

Crossing a minefield

On average, Tembo said their syndicate earns US$800 a week, four times what a civil servant earns. Despite risking their lives crossing a minefield on the both sides of the border, Tembo said they were not deterred, as smuggling had become part of their lives.

A middle-aged man, who identified himself as Father Fox, said they operated as a syndicate of police and heavily financed business people with command centres in Beira and Harare. This is not a business for small fish. It involves big money.

Clothes are smuggled every night. These people enlist services of some police officers who supply us with information on their patrols movement. We simply grease their palms with bribes and this makes our life so easy, said Father Fox.

Fox said the moguls were well organized and revealed that they send a convoy of supporting vehicles to ensure that the trucks they use to carry smuggled goods were protected from ambush.

Smuggling livelihood

The kind of people I am talking about will do anything to anyone who tries to stop them from accomplishing their mission. Its a mafia-style operation. Smuggling is so serious because people have made it their source of livelihood, said Fox.

An investigation revealed that smugglers have confidantes among the security details who supply them with information. They usually operate at night. They have surveillance vehicles that are sent on a spying mission before transportation of bales of clothes takes place.

Scores of buyers interviewed at the market said they opted for second hand clothes because they were affordable and of high quality. Our wages are still low and we cant afford expensive clothes and merchandise in boutiques, said Maria Matambanadzo, a civil servant.