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Article: Porous Burundi Borders Could Thwart Embargo; Smuggling Called Threat to OAU Sanctions
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- August 2, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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For months now, Burundi's border with Zaire ostensibly has
been closed. But that has not stopped Burundian traders from
smuggling goods and commodities across the border with ease.
And, according to economic analysts and diplomats, that fact
would not change if the Organization of African Unity imposed
sanctions on this tiny, violence-wracked central African country.
In fact, the analysts said, given how easily Burundians
smuggle goods to and from neighbors Zaire and Rwanda, the "full
economic blockade" promised Wednesday by the OAU in response to last
week's military-led coup may materialize as nothing more than a
futile gesture.
"The big question is how they are going to ...