Venezuelans turn to fish smuggling to survive economic crisis
Source: Reuters
EL YAGUAL, Venezuela, Jan 7 (Reuters) - People in Venezuela's savannah heartlands struggling to survive the national economic crisis have found a novel way to make ends meet: fish-smuggling to Colombia.
While contraband of gasoline and medicine has been going on for years, little is known about the trade in tonnes of fresh-water fish by Venezuelans who pile them onto long, motorized canoes and traverse dangerous waterways for days into Colombia.
Fishermen and traders in the border state of Apure, in Venezuela's "llanos" or agricultural plains, speak openly of negotiating with Colombian guerrillas and bribing Venezuelan authorities in a trade that keeps whole villages fed.
"There's no other work. The fish pay for our food, our clothes, our children's studies, everything," said Jesus Rodriguez, 53, who supplies coporo fish to buyers at the beginning of the smuggling chain.
Read more: http://www.trust.org/item/20150107105750-nwq18/