Smuggling: its importance in the trinational region in front of the spatial structure

Abstract

The research focuses on the contraband´s spatial interactions that arise front to spatial structure, organization and pre existing complementary links, we identified through a diachronic analysis, establishing our field of study as the geographic area we call Trinational Macro Region: southern Peru, northern Chile and western Bolivia. This activity generates spatial dynamics and flows that are developed in the context of globalization and these exploit existing comparative advantages, i.e. the status of being neighbouring countries, the strategic location with respect to South America and the rest of the world, the communication channels, the absence of the state in these regions and price differentiation between licit products and contraband ones. These dynamic and flows, these are spatialize under various strategies adopted to transport contraband, storage and distribution of products.