30 firearms, 13 pistols seized in six months
30 firearms, 13 pistols seized in six months
TANGERANG (JP): The Directorate General of Customs and Excise
revealed on Wednesday they had foiled the smuggling of a number
of firearms, explosives, sex toys, uncensored Video Compact Discs
(VCDs) and Chinese traditional medicine for various illnesses
into the country through Soekarno-Hatta airport over the past six
months.
Director General of Customs and Excise Permana Agung said that
authorities managed to foil the smuggling attempts with the help
of X-ray scanner observation and officers' screening of
passengers arriving at the airport.
He said that between January and June, his officers had
confiscated a total of 30 firearms, three spear guns, 13
game/lighter pistols and 30 kilograms of explosives, which were
all mostly imported from the United States.
Referring to Law No. 8/1948 on firearms and Law No. 12/1951 on
states of emergency, Permana said those importing firearms or
explosive devices into the country must obtain a permit from the
National Police chief.
"In eight cases within the six months, our officers also
managed to seize 6,000 uncensored pornographic VCDs and six sex
dolls," he told reporters at his office at Soekarno-Hatta
airport.
The products were mostly from Europe, the U.S., Japan and
China.
According to Permana, most passengers usually hid the smuggled
articles in their luggage, hand bags or through a shipment.
"Importing uncensored VCDs without a permit from the Film
Censor Body (LSF) violates Law No. 8/1992, while bringing in sex
toys also violates Article 282 of the Criminal Code on
pornography," he said.
He said in a single case within the period, his officers also
seized various kinds of medicine smuggled from China through the
airport. Ministry of Health Regulation No. 917/1993 requires all
medicines to be registered with the ministry before they are sold
to the market.
Permana said none of smugglers had been detained.
"Even though there is no detention, we have handed over the
cases to police," he said.
He said that what matters more is that the authorities were
able to curb the danger and prevent those products from reaching
the market.
Meanwhile, chief of the airport police station Insp. Suari
Wahyudi told The Jakarta Post that all of the confiscated
firearms and explosives would be handed over to the city police
while the medicines, VCDs and sex toys would be destroyed.
She said the police could not arrest firearms smugglers as
long as they were still in the airport, which is recognized as a
green site, an area where carrying firearms is allowed as
international law applies there.
"If they are found carrying firearms in public places, of
course I will immediately arrest them," she said.
Head of Soekarno-Hatta Airport Customs and Excise Jusuf
Indarto declined to comment when the Post asked him the total
value of the seized illegal products.
"Let's not talk about the amount of money; we should think
about the dangerous impact if these things are obtained
illegally," he said.(01)