In Reply to: Need help - Clothes for orphanage posted by Lorraine on Monday, 24. July 2006 at 07:51 Bali Time:
We had a problem at the airport in May. We took over box's of vitamins for Sothern Cross Bali Association and Smudge. On arrival they attracted the attention of the customs who took us into the "back room" We were asked loads of questions like how come a company would just give perfectly good vitamins away? How come we can afford to come to Bali so many times? Do we, or are we intending on selling the vitamins in Bali?How much are the vitamins worth? Would we like to pay a "tax" to have the vitamins released? All this even though we had the paperwork to support the donation, who they were going to, and the legitimacy of Southern Cross.
While we were in the office, on the wall to the right, from floor to cieling and two deep, are all the confiscated stripey bags that have been taken from travelers. We observed custom officers with bottles of alchohol, and witnessed a lady from UK being asked for "tax" on an extra bottle of wine she had brought. She eventually gave them 10 pound as that was all she had. No reciept was given and she was allowed to go.
We were in the "office" for about an hour and a half, refusing to pay any monies over, and refusing to leave without the vitamins. Eventually we were allowed to pay for Smudge's driver to come into the airport to verify we were, who we told them we were.
If your going to take clothing over to Bali, my advice is to put it into your suitcase with the stripey bag on the bottom, then the donations, then your clothes on top. Bali's poor will always need help from tourists, and tourists will always want to help Bali's poor, especially Australians.