00:00Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Kyong King Sing has called on the customs department to focus on cracking down on liquor smuggling instead of targeting people's private collections.
00:12The controversy stemmed from a dialogue session with the Northern Region Liquor Dealers Association,
00:18in which customs department assistant director V. Kamal Hasan reportedly said that keeping large personal collections might constitute a violation of the Excise Act 1976.
00:31In a Sinshu Daily report, Kamal Hasan said that any premises used for storing liquor must be licensed,
00:39and that collections of up to 30 or 40 bottles at home, often built up over years through special festival additions,
00:46were technically not permitted without a license.
00:49In response, Tiong said the Excise Act 1976 states that keeping alcohol for personal use at home is not illegal,
00:58and that the customs department had confused the public by claiming otherwise.
01:03In his statement, Tiong asked if the customs department assumed that those with a large stock of liquor at home intend to sell it,
01:10saying that the law does not set a maximum limit for storing liquor,
01:15and quantity alone should not be the deciding factor,
01:18as people who collect branded shoes or toys would also need a license if so.
01:24He stressed that the customs department must focus its enforcement on eliminating smuggled liquor flooding the market,
01:31rather than harassing people over liquor bottles kept in their homes.
01:36Natalie Chan, FMT.
