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Week of January 24, 2008 |
| New Haiti customs system slows Miami River cargo By Risa PolanskyA recent change in Haiti's system of collecting customs duties is causing confusion at ports of call, leaving cargo lingering and causing delays in transit — hitting Miami River businesses hard. "Everything is still because of events that are taking place in Haiti. There's not a lot of trade happening," said Fran Bohnsack, executive director of the Miami River Marine Group. Richard Dubin, vice president of Miami River-based Haiti Shipping Lines, estimates that, since November, business has been down 80% from past seasons. During November and December, he usually sees 10 to 12 boats come in to facilitate trade to Haiti, he said. Last year, it was only two or three. "Believe it or not, some people are still trying to get their Christmas cargo through the customs process there," he said. "It's been a nightmare." Supportive of the change to "properly collect the duties and put them in the right pockets" in Haiti, it's the execution of the new system that cargo business are struggling with, Mr. Dubin said. Munir Mourra, president of River Terminal Services, agreed "the problem is not the fact that the duties are being collected, it's the application." Haitian port workers have been poorly trained to handle new regulations, Mr. Dubin said, and communication has been muddled. "It should be a one-day, two-day process," he said. "I've had cargo sitting at the port for almost two months." The delays mean "there's a lot of people hurting and a lot of merchandise spoiling," Mr. Dubin said, noting that "the majority of the cargo that comes from South Florida to Haiti is food items, and they're perishable." Throughout the river, Mr. Mourra said, "we fear that this might cause a humanitarian crisis." As food exports to Haiti dwindle, "prices of goods (there) are probably going to be doubled," he said, to the detriment of the Haitian population, which depends on the "basic commodities" that come from here, such as rice, beans, oils and cornmeal. Miami jobs have already suffered, Mr. Mourra said. "Pretty much the stevedoring has been off" on the Miami River, he said. "We've had to lay off some people." Mr. Dubin predicts "you'll see a lot of the businesses that support these boats probably close, go out of business, lose a lot of money." The situation in Haiti has been "getting better," Ms. Bohnsack said, since it began in November. But because of the numerous entities affected, from exporters to stevedores, she said, it's "hard to get it started right back up again." Those who have diverted their shipping routes may have a hard time going back to Haiti, Mr. Mourra agreed. "Once you pull out a vessel," he said, "it's very difficult to go back." As is convincing exporters to trust the process and try shipping Haiti again after they've been burned by inefficiency there, Mr. Dubin said. The local industry has been reaching out to Haitian officials to facilitate a smoother transition, both River businessmen said. If the situation is not soon resolved, it could have a "major impact to sales and to labor" here, Mr. Mourra warned. The local Haitian Consulate did not return a call for comment. |
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