The customs branch of the South African Revenue Service (Sars) has confiscated goods worth R2-million that illegally bore the 2010 Fifa World Cup logo, Sars said on Friday.
Spokesperson Adrian Lackay said the goods were seized on four occasions in Durban in the last quarter of last year. ”The goods included kit bags, socks, ID-card holders and soccer balls,” he said.
”We are very concerned that these goods are getting into the country four years before the event,” he added. ”The trend follows the German experience where 2 500 seizures were made ahead of and during the 2006 Fifa World Cup.”
On Friday, Sars joined 169 members of the World Customs Organisation in observing International Customs Day and repeating South Africa’s commitment to join the global offensive against all forms of illegal trade.
In the past two years, there has been a steady increase in the number of and valued of confiscated counterfeit and pirated goods. The number has risen from 335 cases in 2004/05, valued at R235-million, to 725 cases, valued at R540-million.
The goods included DVDs, CDs, clothing, footwear, cellphone accessories, vehicle parts and cosmetics. — Sapa