Shops in Mexico are increasingly being raided by the federal officers and cops to seize the clothes illegally imported from the United States.
Most of these clothes stem from charity institutions and meet the country's rising demand for low-cost clothing. Around six out of every 10 garment items in Mexico are either illegally imported.
These clothes somehow reach the storehouses in the border cities of the US like Laredo, McAllen and El Paso, from where they are sold in lots.
The Mexican traders buy and bring these garments inside the country in commercial vehicles or cars by bribing the drivers who mislead the border officials by saying that these would be used as raw inputs.
However, under pressure from clothing producers, the Mexican authorities have started increasingly raiding the shops. They state that such illegal imports of clothes helps traders to evade taxes.
In nine such raids carried out in 2008, the authorities seized more than 300 tons of used contraband clothing from the street markets across the country. In about 30 raids last year, 650 tons of clothing was seized.
The local vendors are, however, are not happy with the raids and defend themselves saying that a majority of the people in Mexico cannot afford to buy new clothing from malls or retail outlets.
Mexico once housed a flourishing textile industry, and it used to be a leading supplier of clothing to the US. But in early 2000s, the Chinese textile industry overtook the Mexican industry.
Editor's note-
No country can afford to allow illegal entry of goods into its territory. However, mere confiscating goods may not solve the problem altogether and other steps are necessary to address the issue.
Fibre2fashion News Desk - India
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