CDs smuggling attempt foiled

TANGERANG (JP): The customs officers at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport here have foiled at least three compact disc smuggling attempts to Malaysia and Saudi Arabia since last month, an airport official said Monday.

Heru Santoso, a senior customs officer at the airport, told reporters that his office has collected a total of 16,817 CDs of various types such as Audio CDs, Video CDs and CD-ROMs.

The discoveries of the potential export items, which had no proper documents, have taken place on three different occasions since Jan. 25, he said.

"The suspected smugglers cost the country and the copyright owners some Rp 756 million," Heru said, giving no explanation of whether the customs officers or police had already apprehended any of the would-be senders.

He also did not say whether they had contacted their counterparts in the countries of destination, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, for further investigation.

"We were able to dig out the attempted smuggling thanks to our talented officers examining every suspicious item and the shipping documents of the goods," he added.

In many cases, the senders described the items they wanted to send overseas simply as electronic gadgets or computer devices, Heru said.

According to Heru, such smuggling has violated the existing law on copyrights for which those found guilty could face maximum imprisonment of seven years and a fine worth Rp 100 million.

Jakarta has been dubbed heaven for pirated CD traders and producers.

The mushrooming number of street traders can be found easily at many spots in the city's popular shopping areas such as Blok M in South Jakarta and Glodok in West Jakarta.

At prices averaging between Rp 10,000 and Rp 15,000 each for either audio items, videos or games, the pirated CDs attract not only local enthusiasts but also foreign visitors, including those from Europe, the States and the Middle East.

As a comparison, the prices of the originals are about Rp 50,000 on average.

The pirated video CDs, for example, are not only pornography and old films. Many newly-released films are also on offer without serious action from the local authorities.

In many local dailies here, the suppliers advertise their pirated video CDs at Rp 500,000 per package of 100 CDs for a variety of films. (41/bsr)