Rwanda National Police

Three sacks full of assorted skin bleaching products and one bale of second-hand clothes have been seized from smugglers in Rubavu District as they attempted to sneak them into Rwanda through Lake Kivu.

They were impounded during the operation conducted on Wednesday, August 26, by the Revenue Protection Unit (RPU), a Rwanda National Police (RNP) arm charged with fighting smuggling and fraud.

Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Bonaventure Twizere Karekezi, the Police spokesperson for the Western region, said that the smugglers abandoned the fours sacks on the shores and fled back towards the same direction in the waters, after spotting security personnel.

"RPU received credible information about smugglers, who would be sneaking some unknown goods into the country later in the night, from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), through Lake Kivu," CIP Karekezi said.

"An operation was organized in partnership with members of other security organs; the smugglers were intercepted at about 10PM at the shores in Kivu village, Nengo Cell of Gisenyi Sector near La Corniche border Post," he added.

The smugglers swam through the water from across in DRC to Rwanda with the body whitening lotions packed in banned plastic bags before packing them in sacks to prevent any contact with the water.

The bale of used clothes was also wrapped in plastic bags.

The smugglers are suspected to be Congolese, who had been hired to deliver the goods to yet to be known owners in Rubavu.

"The seized skin bleaching products are in four types; Cocopulp, Caro-light and Creme eclaircissante," CIP Karekezi said.

The three types are among the 1,342 listed cream and oil brands with hydroquinone and mercury, which are prohibited in Rwanda.

The skin bleaching products are labeled illegal under the ministerial order determining the list of cosmetics, whose use is prohibited in Rwanda; the law on organization, functioning, and competence of the Council of Pharmacists; and the law relating to the regulation and inspection of food and pharmaceutical products.

The products contain chemicals such as mercury and hydroquinone, which can cause liver damage, reduce resistance to bacterial and fungal infections, and increase anxiety, according to the World Health Organization.

If it enters the bloodstream it also results into fatal liver and kidney damage, although medics say the most immediate visible side effect is skin scarring.

Health experts confirm that prolonged use of corticosteroid creams and lotions can also decrease levels of collagen in the skin.

Collagen strengthens and supports the skin, and a reduced amount can increase the risk of striae commonly known as stretch marks.