The map of illegal Argentina

By Estudio Chaloupka

The map of illegal Argentina" is the name of a brand-new and singular tool to combat illegal trade, launched in March last by the Argentinian Confederation of the Medium-sized Enterprise (CAME, for its acronym in Spanish), and the Anti-Piracy Argentina Civil Association.

The tool is readily available at www.argentinailegal.com, and can be accessed both by PC or cell phones.  It has a simple and efficient interface, intended to be used by consumers, who are able to raise an anonymous complaint to report the existence of illegal point of sales or counterfeited goods, by easily locating in a Google map the geographical point where the potential infringement is taking place.

The next step is to report the specific type of crime or crimes that are being committed, by selecting among of the following options: smuggling, counterfeiting, theft of merchandise, street stalls, sweatshops or human trafficking. Users are then prompted to inform the type of product that is being illegally traded, by selecting again an option from a display list, that includes cigarettes, medicines, clothing, footwear, food and drinks, and toys. It is also possible for users to upload a photograph or image of the potential infringement, though the absence of a photograph does not affect validity of the complaint.  All complaints are received by CAME, and then forwarded to judicial authorities or to security forces, as appropriate.

"Illegal trade is a million dollar business designed by organized mafias who developed a system of slave labor, human trafficking in sweatshops, smuggling, counterfeiting, theft and piracy of goods, unfair competition, drug trafficking and corruption", explained CAME in a recent press release, where it was also stated that this illegal business generates around 3.600 million dollars each year.