Extortion fuelling Bangladesh food prices

(August 17, 2009) A Bangladeshi minister on Sunday blamed soaring food and other commodity prices in the country on widespread extortion by crime gangs in the transport sector. "A food-laden truck driver has to pay illegal tolls up to 21,000 taka to different extortionist groups while travelling a distance of 400 km," Food and Disaster Management Minister Abdur Razzaque told a seminar. He said, "Such abuses are rampant especially on transports reaching the capital from northwestern regions of the country." He said truck drivers made up their losses from traders and traders, in turn, passed on the cost to consumers. Razzaque said he had passed information on extortion to law enforcement agencies and urged them to address it aggressively. Traders say extortionists are active on every route, stopping food trucks on the highways and exacting tolls. "We must crush the extortionists ... but are unable to because police officers often favour them for a pay back. Also, crime gangs are sometimes backed by dishonest political leaders," a senior official of the food ministry said. Bangladesh government is struggling to keep commodity prices down. It has cut or withdrawn duties on some commodities, including sugar.