Drug hunt all for show

So "name and address withheld" doesn't understand why people are treated like criminals when they pass through Customs at Darwin airport. The answer is simple: Customs officers are becoming increasingly frustrated as the realisation they have lost the war on drugs sets in.

The Customs officers who appear to be standing around doing nothing are keeping an eye on passengers to see if anyone is acting suspiciously, which might indicate they are carrying prohibited drugs. The reality is the customs officers and their drug-addicted canines know they are only there to keep up appearances.

Hardly any prohibited drugs enter Australia through our airports. More than 90 per cent comes on merchant ships. Customs checks only 3 per cent of shipping containers.

Customs officers at the airport are wasting their time and ours. Some time this disastrous war on drugs will end and the millions of dollars our governments waste each year will be used for something productive.

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: 9th July 2004
Source: Northern Territory News
Author: Gary Meyerhoff