DIRECTORATE GENERAL CUSTOMS AND EXCISE

IN
OVERCOMING THE BLACK MARKET



















YONNY ANGGI DWI SUKMAWAN
2-D
30
PRODIP III KEPABEANAN DAN CUKAI
SEKOLAH TINGGI AKUNTANSI NEGARA




CUSTOMS ROLE IN OVERCOMING THE BLACK MARKET


A. INTRODUCTION

In daily life, we are familiar with trade activities, even regional or international trade.
In a trade we know about some regulations, agreements, and treaties that binding trade
itself. Such as the price of a good to be paid by the buyer to purchase the good and there are
some taxes that must be paid as a result of purchasing and selling a good. Then if we want
to do an import or an export activity, we have to pay import and export tariff that have been
set by the government. All of that have been set by the regulation of our country to stabilize
the economic condition, so it can be developed well.
As one of the tax collector institutions in our country, Customs and excise office
have a very important role to control and protect the trade activities in our country. Especially
for the international trade activities involving export and import the goods in our country. The
function of customs office as a trade facilitator is very important to help the traffickers to do
their trade activities. Moreover there are some free trade area that located in Indonesia, such
as Batam, Bintan, Sabang, and Karimun. In free trade area, all of goods that enter and exit in
that area will be exempted from import tariff, the value-added tax, and the sales tax of luxury
goods. So that people live in Batam can utilize the potential of that area and be able to
compete with the other area in Asia Pacific (ASEAN Free Trade Area).
What the matters now is the emergence of the market that through from illegal
trading practices that utilize the presence of free trade area as a means to do a trade with the
price is skewed or the price is cheaper than the normally price. Because in the process of the
goods that entry to Indonesia, there are some import tariff that must be paid by the trafficker.
But the traffickers find a solution to escape from it. The tariff that given by the government is
so high. It makes the traffickers suffering a decreased profit sale. And finally black market is
the solution of their business.
What is black market? When it happen for first time? What the effect of black
market? How the role of customs in overcoming black market? In this explanation text, all
about black marked will be discussed. Then the purpose is to show the reader why and how
black market happens and develops in human activities especially in a trade activity.








B. EXPLANATION
Black market is a sector of economic activity involving the illegal economic
transactions, especially in a buying and selling merchandise unlawfully or illegal. Its own
products can be illegal too, such as the sale of weapons or illegal drugs; stolen merchandise;
or official merchandise being sold illegally to avoid the payment of import duty, value added
tax, sales tax on luxury goods and license terms. Black Market is closely linked to smuggling.
Smuggling is all forms process to get good or merchandise which is forbidden using methods
that violate the law or illegal method, therefore items which appear on the black market are
usually the result of smuggling goods.
At the beginning of the 18th century in the United States there were many evil
organized groups took the opportunity to set up a black market which were producing and
selling alcohol. Then, since many residents were not believe that drinking alcohol as a very
dangerous thing and by the laws should be prohibited, illegal liquor store continued, and
groups such as the Mafia grew stronger through the great market activities by distributing
alcohol and other illegal drugs. Another black market practices also occur in countries of
Burma, which is under the authority of Ne - Win. The country became one of the poorest
countries in the world. Those countries are only able to meet their needs through the
activities of smuggling and black market trading. The black market also began to develop in
many places during the world war. The system of distributing and controlling the prices
applied by several countries during World War II encouraged the widespread of black market
activities.
Now, the goods traded in the black market have varied not only drugs and illegal
goods but also goods that are used in daily necessities. They are also traded in the black
market, for example: mobile phone, laptop, bags, shoes, clothing, tobacco and the others.
They are sold at a tilted price, so compelling people to buy it. For example, when the price of
Blackberry Dakota still over $ 5 million, on the black market blackberry dakota just for $ 1.6
million. This causes the buyer or the seller has the same advantage. The buyer can obtain
the goods at low prices when the market price is still high and sellers get the advantage
because goods are sold poorly.
Free trade area is usually become the main target in trade activities by the
traffickers. In Indonesia there are some areas which are designated as free trade area, they
are Sabang, Batam, Bintan, Karimun. But the most famous of all is the area of Batam.
Because of the seller consider that Batam is a heaven of shopping place. With the freedom
of great import tariff and tax make people in there tend to establish or engage black market
activities. So, In Batam black market becomes the reference of Indonesian people to find
goods that smells of technology. Whereas the purpose of a free trade area in Batam is to
increase the competitiveness of the industry and prepare ahead of the ASEAN Free Trade
Area around the area of Batam. The cheap goods should not be taken out of the area of
Batam, but if it happened, the goods should be subject to import tariff and other taxes.
Because of the lack of supervision and the number of incoming lines to Batam, this makes
the regulation ignored by the other people. So that incoming goods in and out of Batam to
other areas of Indonesia is very easy to be implemented. With the existence of imported
goods that are cheaper than domestic product makes the domestic products became
unrivalled with imported goods and there is less interest of it.
Some of the above statement indicates that the existence of a black market in
addition to bring profit turned out to be carrying a lot of harm to our country, especially for
products that are produced in our country. It could be said that the goods sold on black
market have features that almost same as the original but actually it has some weakness
such as the lack of warranty. Then the goods of black market typically are original goods but
it did not qualify the time checking doing by the manufacturer or commonly also called by
reject items or goods. Then another weakness is some of the features of the goods are not in
favor or we can call it as reduction of specifications of goods itself. Moreover the goods that
exist in the Black Market usually are a replica of Chinese-made goods that are similar to the
original. Buyers not only concerned with the cheap price in goods but also took a care the
things such as this. Black Market can be solved and prevented by the existence of support
from the people or society and Government agencies especially for Customs and Excise
instances. Customs and excise institute was very instrumental in controlling the rise of black
market in our country. What should be done to customs in order to overcome the problem?
Directorate General of customs and Excise is the name of a government
organization that is responsible for customs and Excise, during the occupation of the
Netherlands, customs and Excise is often called a douane. As one of the state instances
which have a big responsibility. Customs has the basic tasks that implement the most basic
tasks of the Ministry of Finance in the field of customs and Excise, based on regulations
determined by the Minister and secured the Government's regulations relating to the traffic of
goods in or out of the Customs Area and collected the import tariff and Taxes and other
charges based on the applicable regulations in our country. To carry out the basic tasks of
this, of course is not an easy job for customs and excise considering a lot of smuggling or
illegal importing goods from certain areas. Moreover with the emergence of a black market in
various points cause customs should work with double extra care. Based on a statement
already presented in the previous paragraphs, Black Market brings many disadvantages
especially for the country's foreign exchange supply. Then the implementation of Customs is
attempting to minimize the black market spot in our country.
Based on the origin of the black market on the 2nd paragraph and the goods bought
and traded by that time, it can be concluded that the black market is an illegal activity and
has a negative impact in the economy and the well-being of a country. In our country such
activities like that are contrary to the regulations, especially in the instance of the Directorate
General of customs and Excise, such activities should be completed. In accordance with
narcotics sub director in customs office and the function of the CNT (Customs Narcotic
Team) that is carrying out the preparation of regulation formula, drafting of standardization
and technical guidance, evaluation and implementation of intelligence, patrols and operations
in the framework of prevention and action of violation of customs regulations in narcotic
drugs and psychotropic substances, precursors, goods smuggling, as well as the planning
and management of narcotics operations support. Described in the Customs regulations No.
17 of 2006 on clause 102 that everyone is doing the smuggling of imported goods the
shortest prison are convicted of 1 (one) year and the longest imprisonment 10 (ten) years
and criminal fines of at least Rp 50.000.000,- and at most Rp. 5 billion,-. Viewed from the
point of the beginning of the emergence of a black market and some of the regulations that
exist in our country, especially the regulation of the General Directorate of customs and
Excise, it can be concluded that the principle of black market contrary to what exist in our
country.
With the existence of Customs and Excise regulations on Directorate General
Customs and Excise is able to minimize the illegal trade as well as black market spot began
to expand in the our country especially in the spot like frontier. In this case the regulations
and supervision in frontier areas especially for prone to smuggling should be tightened.
Affirmation of the regulations against the perpetrators of smuggling or illegal trade should be
defined so it can give deterrent effect against the perpetrators who are in the black market
spots. In addition to supervision and affirmation of the law, it should be done an education
involving customs and Excise Agency and its tasks and functions to the general public so
that the public can understand on how to support the condition of economy in our state and
how to protect the foreign exchange as a source of State revenue. So the importance of
education is expected to each person of the general public could examine and provide a
good solution for the developed of economic condition in our State. If all of that is done well
and properly, we are sure that the existence of the black market that exists in our region will
be reduced. So it is able to restore the economic condition was unstable due to the existence
of Black Market.


C. CONCLUSION
After we know and understand about the black market in the previous paragraph, we
can draw some conclusions. First, black market is started from the international trade
process which involves the presence of exporting and importing of goods. Due to the import
tariff payable paid by the traders when importing the goods makes them suffering a
decreased profit on sales. So they are thinking of ways to avoid the imposition of import tariff.
One of ways is by smuggling the import of goods. Then the black market also comes from
the sale of illegal goods such as drugs that should be banned in that country so the
entrepreneurs opened a hiding black market to sell forbidden goods.
The next conclusions prove that goods sold in the black market are causing harm to
the public or the Government. Such as the goods sold in black market are not origin goods,
the goods that sold in black market are experiencing a reduction specifications, in black
market the goods usually did not qualify the time checking doing by the manufacturer or
commonly also called by reject items or goods. And black market goods typically have no
warranty. Black market also gives disadvantage for the state like decreasing the state
revenue. The existence of black market needs to be prevented in some ways. One of them is
through government regulations in the field of customs and Excise.
Based on the explanation on the previous paragraph can be concluded that the role
of customs in tackling the black market is divided into a number of points, they are :
1. Tighten the function of supervision at the frontier areas that are prone to the
black market.
2. Tighten the functions of control and evaluation in the supervision of the black
market. In the hope of being able to minimize the occurrence of smuggling
practices.
3. Affirmation of the regulations against the perpetrators of smuggling or illegal
trade should be defined so it can give deterrent effect against the
perpetrators who are in the black market spots.
4. The functions of the education to the public. So the public also understand
how the impact of the existence of the black market and public can help in
order to minimize the presence of customs.