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The Rhodesia Herald,
November 23, 1965
A WARNING that the courts would deal severely with contraventions of the exchange control regulations to protect Rhodesia’s economy was given yesterday by the Salisbury Provincial Magistrate, Mr MF Garnett, when he fined an Asian storekeeper £100 and ordered that £40 in postal orders be confiscated by the Crown.
The store-keeper, Mohammed Bashir, of Burnside Café, Darwendale, was convicted under the Exchange Control Regulation of trying to send £40 in postal orders out of the country.
The magistrate found that on June 21, he had posted a registered letter containing the postal orders at Darwendale with the intention of sending them to India.
The magistrate told Bashir: “We cannot allow any trick, subterfuge, device, stratagem, scheme, arrangements or any other sort of ploy that is designed and which results in a contravention of these regulations … Measures such as these have been introduced quite obviously to protect the economy of this country, and it is the duty of the courts, I believe, to give full effect to the intention of the legislature, which has provided severe penalties for any breach of these regulations.
“I trust that the sentence I impose on you will be an adequate warning not only to you, but to any other persons who may feel disposed to contravene the exchange control laws of this country.”
The magistrate rejected Bashir’s claim that he had not intended sending the £40 in postal orders on his own behalf but on behalf of himself, his wife, father and mother.
Bashir’s attorney general, Mr JD Alexander, contended that it was legal for a person to send money out of the country on behalf of members of his family when money did not exceed £10 per person.
In his judgment the magistrate said the letter that accompanied the postal orders indicated that Bashir had intended to sending a total of £100 to India during June.
The senior prosecutor, Mr HC Duffield, appeared for the Crown.
LESSONS FOR TODAY
Exchange controls are Government-imposed limitations on the purchase and/or sale of currencies.
These controls allow countries to better stabilise their economies by limiting in-flows and out-flows of currencies, which can create exchange rate volatility.
The regulations are formulated for the purpose of strengthening the foreign exchange control, keeping international payments equilibrium and promoting the healthy development of the national economy.
Government should also consider rules on licensing virtual money, like crypto-currency platforms, which can encourage financial crime if left unattended to.
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