Customs drop $l8,000 claim

Press, 8 May 1982, Page 6

Customs drop $l8,000 claim

The Customs Department has dropped a claim for $18,084 against the officers’ mess at the United States Navy Antarctic support force base at Harewood. The officer-in-charge of the force, Commander Wayne Jones, said that the claim had been made last year after Customs Department inquiries into “public affairs nights” being held at the base. The claim related to the provision of duty-free liquor which was made available to guests at the evenings. The Customs Department has approached the base with regard to licensing the facilities there. The matter is now being negotiated between the American Embassy in Wellington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Also under discussion are future controls to be exercised at the base’s stores, where approved personnel can buy duty-free goods. The stores have also been the subject of customs inquiries. The chief customs officer (enforcement) in Christchurch, Mr B. W. Ford, said the matter of claims made in respect of goods sold through the stores has been dropped. “The Customs Department, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been discussing with the American authorities appropriate controls for future sales,” Mr Ford said. “The claims have been withdrawn as the result of

technicalities, technicalities which are being cleared up at the moment,” Mr Ford said. Another area of customs concern, and one which has received considerable public attention, has been the discovery of drugs in mail and parcels addressed to Americans in the Antarctic. The discqveries led to several court appearances and resulted in three convictions. “The majority of the drugs seizings have been finalised and some minor follow-ups are being made,” Mr Ford said. “Not all of the addressees have been identified,” he said. The matter was now being processed under normal New Zealand customs requirements, with the co-operation of the American authorities, Mr Ford said. Commander Jones said he hoped that the • discussions between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the American Embassy would result in a revision of the memorandums of agreement between the two parties. The present memorandums had been in force since 1967. “I am confident that given a little more time between them they will work out some revisions to the agreements. “I have every hope that before the start of the next season we will have all these controls in place,” Commander Jones said.