Exports to US to be X-rayed

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is set to subject to its new X-ray scanning system all exports bound for the US, Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales said yesterday.

Morales said the new requirement for 100 percent examination of shipments going to the US is in line with US Public Law No. 110-53.

He stressed it would be implemented after the bureau received a letter from the US Embassy in Manila about the passage of 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 late last week.

The Customs chief head said the bureau is all set for the implementation of this new rule, especially with the purchase of five more X-ray machines for the scanning system of shipments at the country’s major ports.

“We have just received five new X-ray machines acquired through a loan with the Chinese government. We have 15 units now ready for operation and we believe that this will be enough to accommodate all US bound shipments,” he told reporters.

Morales said five more units will  arrive before the end of the year which will be operational by 2008.

Morales said he would meet with of US Homeland Security officials to discuss the new requirement at BOC, which is expected to help in implementation of the new anti-terror law in the US.

“Based on our earlier discussions, I think the US will deploy personnel to put their GPS-enabled seals on scanned shipments which could be monitored by Homeland Security. In the event that the seal is broken, they would know,” he said. “On our part, we will put our usual Customs seal if the shipment is cleared for transit.”

He said the bureau is currently eyeing Philippine Export Zone Authorities (PEZA) in Laguna and Cavite to install the new X-ray machines to focus on exports.

Morales also expressed willingness to install new gamma ray machines in Philippine ports as part of the US’s tightened security in detecting nuclear weapons should the US seek his approval.

Shippers had earlier expressed concerns that their exports to other countries, especially to the US will be affected by the US legislation of a 100 percent scanning requirement for all incoming shipments.