iDIDJ Australia Didgeridoo Cultural Hub

[Ed Drury]

I wanted to make a couple of points that really only apply to customers in the USA buying from American vendors. It is (and has been for sometime) the law that goods brought into America from abroad be clearly marked with a country of origin label. If goods are already packaged overseas, the packaging must clearly display the country of origin label where it is visible to the customer. If not packaged, it must be affixed to the item itself as a sticker or printed on the item.

The penalties for not doing this can be pretty stiff and include jail time and pretty stiff fines. Additionally, if a customs agent is used, that agent can forfeit their license to operate. So why then, do we see didjeridus in the US without this label. Well, it could be that the sellers are unaware of these customs laws. Could be they know that they are seldom enforced and everyone knows they can get away with ripping those labels off once they get their shipments through customs.

In the old days, a complaint could be filled against an importer with the department of Customs and Immigration online. But those departments have completely been taken over by the department of homeland security. The DHS, for obvious reasons, probably doesn't give a rats hat about such trivial little rules. They may be more concerned with it now in light of some food problems traced to specific countries. Anyway, the point is, didjeridu sellers frequently break this rule of importing goods from overseas and I wonder why.

I want to be clear, there is nothing wrong with buying a didjeridu made in China or Indonesia or wherever. My problem is with the customer not knowing before he makes his decision to buy a stick. And my question is why would the sellers of these go to such trouble to conceal the origin of the instrument when it's been pretty well proven that the overwhelming majority of buyers in America don't care? Especially in light of the fact that there is a risk, however remote, of stiff fines and even possible jail time for breaking these rules?

Any thoughts or experiences with this?

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