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| Travelers must always ensure there are no prohibited items in their bags (File) |
A Filipino domestic worker is feeling
aggrieved because after her luggage went missing for 10 days on her arrival in
Hong Kong from Tuguegarao and Manila, she was told by the airline that it had
been thrown away as it contained boiled chicken, which is not allowed to be
brought it.
The Filipina said Cebu Pacific sent her
a message on October 24 that a “tagless center company” had disposed of her
luggage after they found a prohibited food item inside. Nevertheless, the
airline offered her a compensation of HK$1,000.
“Hindi
po ako pumayag, now $1,300 daw kaya gusto ko din ipa Tulfo sila kasi kawawa
yung mga susunod na gaganunin nila,” said the distraught passenger. (I did
not agree so they raised the offer to $1,300 but I still want to inform Senator
Raffy Tulfo about this because I feel sorry for those who might suffer the same
fate).
Mylene, the passenger, admitted that she
had put a piece of boiled chicken in her luggage, along with some smoked fish
before she left Tuguegarao en route to Hong Kong. But, she hastened to add they
would not have gone bad if her suitcase did not go missing.
“Sinabi
ko agad na may masisira sa loob nung ni-report ko (na nawawala) pero ang tagal
nila hinanap. Halos araw-araw akong nag email pati ang amo ko, pero bakit ganun
po, tinapon? Ma se save ko pa sana yung damit ng kapatid ko na padala ng friend
niya, puro branded pa mandin….”
(I immediately told the airline when I reported my bag as missing that
something would rot inside but it took them
awhile to locate it. I was emailing them almost every day, even my employer, so
why did they have to throw it away? I could have at least saved my sister’s
clothes sent to her by her friend, which were all branded).
Mylene said she also lost two rings and
some shampoo and perfume which were all in her luggage.
As for the half-cooked chicken which she
had strangely chosen to bring all the way from her hometown in Cagayan, she
said it would have been still edible if her suitcase arrived with her in Hong
Kong on Oct. 15.
“At
saka yung manok hindi naman agad-agad masisira kasi boil ko lang, then
pinatuyo. Hindi naman po basa,” Mylene argued. (The chicken would not have
gone bad quickly because I boiled it, then let it dry. It was not wet).
She also said airline staff did not warn her about the chicken when she was forced to repack her bags at Tuguegarao airport in front of them because she had exceeded her weight allowance.
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| The letter from the baggage handler which raised the compensation offer to $1,300 |
The least they could have done after
misplacing her bag was to call her first so she would have time to check it,
said Mylene.
“May
karapatan po ba sila na basta na lang itapon ang maleta ko?”, Mylene asked.
(Did they have the right to just throw away my suitcase?)
Compared to many overseas destinations,
Hong Kong has far more relaxed restrictions on food that can be brought in, so
it is not uncommon for newly arrived travelers to carry all sorts of food items
in their bags.
However, Hong Kong customs regulations
do restrict the entry of the following items into the city, either for security
or health reasons: dangerous drugs, psychotropic substances, controlled
chemicals, antibiotics, arms, ammunition, weapons, fireworks, strategic
commodities, rough diamonds, animals, plants, endangered species,
telecommunication equipment, game, meat, poultry, eggs and powdered formula.
Medicines not covered by prescriptions,
including antibiotics; as well as alternative smoking products such as vapes
and e-cigarettes, are also prohibited.
All the said items were included in a
government statement issued in January this year, in anticipation of a huge
number of travellers flying into Hong Kong after it lifted all pandemic-related
restrictions,
The government in particular warned
people against bringing into Hong Kong any “game, meat, poultry or eggs without
a health certificate, adding that this is an offence punishable with
imprisonment for up to six months and a fine of $50,000.
The prohibition against the importation
of unlicensed poultry and egg is largely due to a fear of salmonella, which the
Center for Disease Control says causes more foodborne illnesses than any other
bacteria. Chicken is said to be a major source of these illnesses.
But while a violation may have been
committed by travelers who flew in with any one of these prohibited items, law
enforcers at the airport are the ones who would normally seize the luggage,
inspect its contents and carry out an arrest if necessary.
In this case, the airline, which was in
the wrong in the first place for not transporting the bag as scheduled, should
not have disposed of it without even giving any notice or warning to the owner.
This was probably why an offer of compensation was made.
But as Mylene was told, her streak of
bad luck could have been worse had she been stopped at the airport because of
the prohibited food items in her bag. At best they would just be confiscated,
but she could also be possibly charged in court for violating customs
regulations.
