LIQUOR SMUGGLING IN FINLAND

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20987, 16 October 1933, Page 3

LIQUOR SMUGGLING IN FINLAND

<§> ; CONVENTION SIGNED IN LONDON OVERCOMING ABUSE OF BRITISH FLAG (BRITISH OFFICIAL WIBBL2S3 ) (Received October 15, 5.5 p.m.) RUGBY, October 13. A liquor smuggling convention which follows general lines of a similar convention concluded in 1924 with the United States was signed by Great Britain and Finland this afternoon at the Foreign Office. The importation of alcoholic liquors into Finland is subject to Government control and monopoly, and during the last seven or eight years smuggling has been taking place on an extensive scale. Finland concluded with her Baltic neighbours a liquor-smuggling convention in 1925, and several other countries have assented to the seizure, outside territorial waters, of liquor-smuggling ships flying their flags. The League of Nations Council has recommended States to assist Finland in her difficulty over smuggling. There is abundant evidence that the immunity from seizure outside territorial waters enjoyed by vessels flying the British flag is resulting in the number of liquor smugglers of foreign nationality being enabled to engage in the traffic on an increasingly large scale in ships registered in the United Kingdom. According to the Finnish authorities 15 of them are at present actually engaged. Finnish opinion became much exercised at the continuance of this traffic by international adventurers under the protection of the British flag, and the recent blowing up of one of the Finnish coastguard patrol boats has given rise to grave indignation. Under the new convention Finnish Government vessels will be entitled to stop and if necessary arrest vessels flying the British flag which are suspected of smuggling liquor into Finland,