POSITION:BETWINNER-betwinner casino-betwinner Official site > betwinner Official site >
Updated:2025-01-22 05:01 Views:131
Photo credit to the Bureau of Customs (BOC). Photo shows boxes of allegedly smuggled cigarettes that operatives seized during a warehouse raid in Indanan, Sulu on March 2023.
MANILA, Philippines – Illegal cigarette smuggling has become a significant contributor to funding terrorism and organized crime, both in the Philippines and around the globe, authorities and experts have warned.
Evidence presented in various reports and investigations highlights the strong connection between illicit tobacco trade and criminal activities, raising concerns over national security.
Article continues after this advertisementDuring a Senate ways and means committee hearing on January 9, 2025, Committee Chairman Sen. Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian said the issue of illicit trade is not only an economic concern but also a threat to peace and order.
FEATURED STORIES NEWSINFO Sandigan finds former Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista guilty of graft NEWSINFO CIDG chief Torre to file cyber libel raps vs Jay Sonza, vlogger NEWSINFO Hontiveros assures Marcos: No risky clauses in anti-teen pregnancy bill“By not curbing illicit trade, it’s funding these terrorist groups who are wreaking havoc in our southern borders,” Gatchalian noted.
AboitizPower Distribution Utilities senior vice president and chief operating officer Anton Perdices, said MobileAP, a mobile application designed to automate electricity bill payment and monitor consumption in real-time, has been gaining momentum across the group’s franchise areas, thanks to the pandemic-driven digital adoption.
READ: PNP cracks down on cigarette smuggling
Article continues after this advertisementAt the same hearing, Bureau of Customs (BOC) Deputy Commissioner Juvymax Uy pointed out that the Philippines’ porous borders, particularly in the southern region of Mindanao, facilitate smuggling.
Article continues after this advertisementUy emphasized that local vessels are not required to have automatic identification systems, making it difficult to track their movements. Additionally, private ports, which are under the jurisdiction of local government units (LGUs), further complicate regulatory oversight.
Article continues after this advertisementUy revealed that illicit cigarettes are frequently found in Abu Sayyaf camps, reinforcing the link between smuggling and terrorism.
“The people in the southern borders do not smoke the same cigarettes as those in urban areas,” Uy said, indicating that smuggled products dominate in areas controlled by armed groups.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Philippine government has steadily intensified efforts to combat cigarette smuggling.
BOC Assistant Commissioner Vincent Maronilla said from 131 seizures in 2021 amounting to P1.71 billion, their seizures increased to 318 in 2024 with an estimated value of P9.19 billion.
But illegal cigarette smuggling in the Philippines has escalated to a point where experts warn of a potential national security crisis.
Prof. Rohan Gunaratna, a renowned security expert, confirmed during a conference last June 2024 that terrorist groups including the Abu Sayyaf and rebel groups were among the beneficiaries of illicit trade. He also revealed that smugglers used Palawan, Zamboanga, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi as entry points for illicit cigarettes from Indonesia and Malaysia.
“Indonesia is a key source for the cigarettes coming in,” Gunaratna said “The Philippines is not benefitting from this revenue, because the carriers are the groups who are not recognized entities or the government.”
Antonio Israel, president of the Nicotine Consumers Union of the Philippines and lead convenor of the anti-smuggling campaign, “EKIS sa Smuggling,” stated that armed groups in Mindanao are already engaging in illicit trade.
Israel warned that “the billions of pesos generated from smuggling can be used to fund unimaginable crimes that threaten our national security.”
The risks associated with illicit trade became evident when elements of the Naval Forces Eastern Mindanao (NFEM) intercepted a fishing vessel loaded with untaxed cigarettes in Davao Occidental on November 5, 2023.
Authorities seized over 700 master cases of smuggled cigarettes worth P29.4 million. Two of the nine arrested suspects were identified as active members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), further cementing the link between organized armed groups and smuggling operations.
Furthermore, a 2021 police operation in Zamboanga City led to the arrest of two arms suppliers for the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG). The suspects were found in possession of high-powered firearms and millions of pesos worth of smuggled cigarettes, indicating that the illicit trade is closely tied to arms smuggling and violent activities.
The connection between cigarette smuggling and terrorism is not unique to the Philippines. A 2018 report from the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force stated that “large-scale organized smuggling likely accounts for the vast majority of cigarettes smuggled globally.”
The report also noted that illicit tobacco is often trafficked through the same routes used for drugs, weapons, and other illegal goods.
The U.S. State Department has identified direct links between cigarette smuggling and terrorist organizations such as the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and Hezbollah.
vgs slotSimilarly, an Alarabiya News report in 2017 highlighted how former Algerian al-Qaeda leader Mokhtar Belmokhtar profited extensively from cigarette smuggling. In the Maghreb region, over 13 billion cigarettes were illicitly traded in 2016, financing extremist groups.
Dalia Ghanem-Yazbeck, an El Erian Fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, explained that conflicts in the Middle East have made cigarette smuggling an increasingly attractive revenue stream for terrorist organizations.
Subscribe to our daily newsletter
“Conflicts in the Middle East are making smuggling a very profitable source of income for terrorist groups because of the porousness of the borders and lack of material and manpower of the security forces in some regions such as the Sahellodibet,” she said.
READ NEXT Bill expanding aid to private school teachers, students OKR... Senators honor cop who survived shootout with gunmen in Zamboanga EDITORS' PICK DBM clears up budget confusion, confirms signed GAA is complete Pacquiao Int’l Hall of Fame awaits, supports Senate, 1-Pacman return to Congress Taylor Swift rallies support for victims of LA wildfires Manila Water’s Lakbayan program boosts water education Chinese engineer, 2 Filipinos nabbed for espionage targeting PH security Cigarette smuggling fueling terrorism, crime – Gatchalian, experts warn MOST READ Sandigan finds former Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista guilty of graft CIDG chief Torre to file cyber libel raps vs Jay Sonza, vlogger Ruffa Gutierrez mum on Herbert Bautista’s case; shows support for ‘Incognito’ Chinese engineer, 2 Filipinos nabbed for espionage targeting PH security Follow @FMangosingINQ on Twitter --> View comments
