24th Parliamentary Intelligence-Security Forum – Illicit Trade

Mrs. de la Vega spoke about the alliance against illicit trade, explained that this is a group of companies and brands, unions, associations that have been affected by smuggling, counterfeiting, and illicit trade in general. It has legal status which allows it to sit at a table with the government to fight and defend what is legal trade, safe trade, and protect Panama from being used as a hub logistic wrongly and erroneously. It is growing, with a common goal of being a bridge, a channel of communication with competent authorities, and all those that have to do with the fight against illegal trade. The alliance against illicit trade is a non-profit foundation whose vision and mission is to fight against this scourge of illicit trade. It works in coordination with government institutions to promote safe trade and promote good trade practices, including the issue of parallel imports.

Criminals use new routes, social networks, websites, border blind spots and mail to take advantage of high profits with low risk of being penalized. Consumers are looking for immediacy and the lowest possible price, so this forum is important because it emphasizes the link between illicit trade and organized crime, she mentioned.