The following is the statement of the Commissioner of Customs and Excise, Mr Richard Yuen, at Customs press conference to review 2008 today (January 22):
The major responsibilities of the Customs and Excise Department include revenue protection, anti-smuggling and anti-drug trafficking, intellectual property rights protection, consumer protection and trade facilitation.
The following is a summary of the enforcement situation of various cases last year:
Anti-smuggling
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In 2008, the Department detected 217 cases of smuggling, an increase of 17% over the year before.
In October, the Department cracked two largest-ever cases of smuggling by containers at sea with seizures worth over $240 million in total, including computer accessories, electronic products, precious metal, fur, ginseng, etc.
The Department notices that smuggling activities are becoming more professional and diversified. The latest modus operandi included the use of flood relief channel, purpose-made aerial rope and underground tunnels adjoining the boundary at Sha Tau Kok.
Anti-Narcotics
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On combating drug trafficking, the Department seized 624 kilograms of various kinds of drugs in 2008, an increase of 15% over 2007. A total of 686 cases were detected with 647 persons arrested, the largest number of persons ever arrested in the past four years. Among them, 66 were youth, aged under 21. The number has increased by 78% (37 persons) over 2007.
The largest drug seizure last year was ketamine. A total of 335 kilograms were seized, 10-odd times more than the 27 kilograms in 2007. This was primarily attributed to the detection of the largest-ever ketamine case in November with 307 kilograms of ketamine seized at the Airport cargo terminal.
Moreover, more nimetazepam was also seized as compared with 2007 as a result of the seizure of over 10,000 tablets of nimetazepam in a joint operation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen Customs in January.
The quantity of heroin seized was also 81% more than that in 2007 as a result of the seizure of a total of 18 kilograms of heroin from a number of arriving passengers in a single operation at the Airport between March and April.
Dutiable Commodities
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In respect of dutiable commodities, about 3,800 incoming passengers at various control points were found contravening the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance, a drop of 38% compared with the previous year (6,100 persons). These cases involved 1.9 million sticks of cigarettes (a drop of 16% compared with the year before) and 192 litres of liquor (a drop of 64%) exceeding duty-free concession.
In 2008, the Department effected about 1,570 cases connected with the smuggling, storage, distribution and peddling of illicit cigarettes, representing a drop of 14% compared with the year before. A total of 1,170 persons were arrested and over 73 million sticks of cigarettes were seized. The number of reports on illicit cigarettes received also dropped by 20%, indicating that the situation of the sale of illicit cigarettes had improved.
On combating illicit fuel, during the year, the Department effected 1,120 cases involving illicit fuel, a drop of 9% compared with the previous year. A total of 604 persons were arrested with seizure of 280,000 litres of illicit fuel, which is a drop of 70% compared with the year before. The duty potential involved was $1.3 million. The number of reports on illicit fuel received from the public had dropped by 23%, indicating that the scale of illicit fuel activities was shrinking gradually.
As illicit fuel activities may pose a fire hazard, apart from tax evasion, the Department and the Fire Services Department have strengthened cooperation in conducting raids on black spots in all districts, with inspections focusing on suspicious garages and related commercial premises to clamp down on the sale and storage of illicit fuel.
Intellectual Property Rights Protection
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In 2008, the Department cracked a total of 9,505 copyright infringement cases (a drop of 7% compared with the year before), including 7,679 piracy cases and 1,826 cases of trademark counterfeiting/false trade descriptions. A total of 1,841 persons were arrested, with goods seized worth $250 million.
Again, the goods involved in the piracy cases were largely pirated optical discs, with a total of 2.16 million discs seized last year. It is estimated that only 25 pirated optical disc retail shops are left.
On combating trademark offences, the Department stepped up raids at black spots, including hawker stalls and upstairs “showrooms” and storages in Yau Ma Tei, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok Districts with heavy flow of pedestrians. The Department noticed that illegal immigrants and people in breach of conditions of stay were frequently employed by unlawful syndicates to sell counterfeits recently. We had therefore stepped up joint actions with the Police Force and the Immigration Department to clamp down on these activities.
Consumer Protection
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Last year, the Department handled 1,370 cases concerning the safety of consumer goods and suspected contravention of the Ordinances on consumer protection, an increase of 18% compared with the previous year. The complaints received mainly involved suspected unsafe consumer goods, unsafe toys/children’s products, or short-weight cases.
In 2008, the Department took frequent actions against short-weight activities and successfully prosecuted 97 traders for selling goods short of purported weight or using inaccurate weighing equipment, including 25 crab retailers, 16 fruit retailers and 2 seafood restaurants, with the highest fine up to $8,000.
After Customs stepped up inspection of shops receiving Mainland tourists, the Department noticed that sale activities to rip off tourists have reduced significantly.
On the whole, all kinds of smuggling, drug trafficking and intellectual property rights infringement cases remained under control last year with no obvious sign of deterioration. Enforcement efforts on consumer protection had also been stepped up.
In the year ahead, apart from continuing combating the above-mentioned unlawful activities, the Department will focus on several key initiatives:
Youth Drug Abuse
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Faced with an upward trend of youth drug abuse, the Department will continue to coordinate actively with the “Task Force on Youth Drug Abuse” led by the Secretary for Justice to implement the recommendations of the Task Force, including working closely and conducting joint operations with the Police Force and the law enforcement agencies of other places, and stepping up spot checks of cross-boundary coaches and suspicious passengers. Moreover, the latest batch, with four Customs drug detector dogs will soon be deployed at various boundary control points for stepping up enforcement and enhancing deterrence.
Consumer Protection
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To clamp down on unscrupulous shops employing misleading and deceptive business practices, the Trade Descriptions (Amendment) Ordinance 2008 and eight related pieces of subsidiary legislation targeting specifically at the unscrupulous sale of electronic products and jewellery will come into operation on March 2. The Department will stringently enforce the Ordinance and conduct regular inspections of jewellery and electrical appliance shops and blitz checks against unscrupulous operators. It will also set up a telephone hotline to facilitate reports by the public. The Department welcome and calls upon members of the public to report unlawful acts to the Department without delay so that follow-up action can be taken.
Apart from this, to get the industry well prepared, the Department will organise talks for shop operators to assist their understanding of the requirements of the new legislation. Workshops will also be conducted for the Consumer Council and the Travel Industry Council to familiarise their staff with the new legislation so that enquiries and complaints can be handled more effectively. This helps ensure that the efforts of different parties can be well-coordinated to safeguard the interests of consumers and tourists following the commencement of the Amendment Ordinance.
In view of the prevalent practices of selling aquatic products (such as shrimps and crabs) and fruits short of weight, the Department will step up inspection and law enforcement action in this respect. The Department also encourage members of the public to report any malpractices to it.
Combating Illegal Importation of Food
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The Department will continue to assist the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department to combat illegal importation of meat, live poultry, etc., in conjunction with the Police Force. The Department will also continue to strengthen inspections of cross-boundary passengers, cargoes, vehicles and vessels at control points and liaise closely with the industry through the departments concerned to collect intelligence for the interdiction of large-scale and organised illegal importation of food and live poultry.
Road Cargo System (ROCARS)
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The “Road Cargo System”, an electronic platform developed to facilitate trade, will help ensure the smooth movement of land-mode cargoes in and out of Hong Kong. It helps speed up seamless customs clearance and enables the Department to dovetail with the global, national and regional developments in moving towards electronic customs clearance. The system is expected to be rolled out by the end of this year or early next year and fully implemented in 18 months thereafter. Upon receipt of information through the electronic platform, Customs officers can conduct risk assessment on a pre-shipment basis for determining whether the truck concerned needs to be inspected, thereby saving the time for cross-boundary trucks to wait at Customs kiosks for completion of clearance procedures.
Staff Recruitment
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In 2009/10, the Department will shall recruit about 40 Inspectors and 80 Customs Officers to the Service. The recruitment exercise will commence in the second quarter of this year. The appointees are expected to join the service and undergo training at the end of the year.
Lastly, to mark the centenary of the Customs and Excise Department, we are planning to organise a range of activities, including roving exhibitions, and issuing of commemorative stamp by cooperating with the Post Office, so as to enable the public to better understand the work and development of the Department. The details will be announced in due course.
Ends/Thursday, January 22, 2009
