Smuggling

SMUGGLING

The border was established here after Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830. Soon, the prices of goods in Belgium and the Netherlands began to differ. The people here knew what was cheaper in Belgium and made every effort to go there to get it. And by bringing what was cheaper here to Belgium, money could be made. But not through the official border crossings where they would have to declare the goods and pay for import. No, over their own little sandy paths, through the back door; smuggling.

PUNGELEN

Sometimes customs officers shot at cars, and the smugglers, in turn, spread tire spikes to puncture the tires of pursuing cars. They could no longer be said to be engaging in the sport of smuggling. And now? Now there are no border controls anymore, and we can simply do our shopping in Belgium as well.

Back then, smuggling was called 'pungelen'. The bag they carried on their back was referred to as a "pungel". Sometimes, pungelen was just like a game, where customs at the border had to try to catch the smuggler. The smuggler, in turn, tried to outsmart customs. What was smuggled? Anything that could make money. A hundred years ago, it was salt, which they earned half a cent per kilo. During the war, among other things, bread and tobacco products. Yes, tobacco and alcohol have always remained popular smuggled goods; and not to forget: butter.

BUTTER SMUGGLING

After World War II, especially in the 1950s, there was a lot of money to be made with butter. In pitch darkness, adventurous young men crept in small groups along the forest paths that led from the Netherlands to Belgium. The butter was in a backpack that could hold 25 kilos. The 'pungelaars' carefully maneuvered in the dark night; alert for the officials and customs officers hiding along the route. When the price difference for butter became very large, people tried to cross the border with cars full of butter. These were no longer poor border inhabitants, but professional smugglers.

Source: information panel at the border

Eddy&Rita