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Coordination between customs services and the justice sector is necessary to best resolve customs disputes. This is the plea made during the national “Customs-Justice 2024” meeting, especially since this cooperation has already proven itself in the field, particularly with regard to the handling of disputes and the encouragement of customs conciliation.
The Minister of Finance, Laaziz Faid, affirmed that the meetings between the two sectors contribute to finding solutions for better treatment of issues relating to customs disputes, which will make it possible to better manage the procedures for settling cases for the benefit of the Treasury and of the general interest, emphasizing the importance of these meetings.
“The meetings between the customs and justice sectors will make it possible to define the general framework to establish the bases of coordination between the two bodies, for the sake of taking charge, on an ongoing basis, of the various legal and operational issues recorded in several areas of common interest, within the framework of respect for justice and the rights of the parties,” he said.
For his part, the Director General of Customs, Major General Abdelhafid Bakhouche, reported the results obtained thanks to this coordination between the two sectors.
This cooperation has given “very positive results”, particularly in terms of handling disputes and to encourage customs conciliation as one of the directions of criminal policy and as an effective measure for the settlement of customs disputes at the amicable, according to the details of Mr. Bakhouche, who was keen to underline the importance of these meetings. “This national meeting organized by the General Directorate of Customs, in coordination with the Ministry of Justice, confirms the real desire of executives from both sectors to consolidate institutional cooperation links both at the central and operational level,” a- he indicated.
For his part, the first president of the Supreme Court, Tahar Mamouni, indicated that this event is now an annual tradition and constitutes an “essential milestone for cooperation between these two sectors”, welcoming the joint efforts of the two bodies as well as the important role of customs in protecting the country against economic crimes.
Mamouni recalled the reforms provided for in the criminal procedure code, in its section linked to the prerogatives of public prosecutors, to proceed, with dispatch, to the allocation of seized goods to avoid their deterioration.
“It is inconceivable that seized goods would remain unused for years,” he said.
Customs conciliation: 11,300 requests processed in 2023
During this meeting, organized in application of the recommendations sanctioning a similar meeting held last year between the justice sector and customs – this mainly focused on the development of coordination and cooperation between customs and the justice sector for the examination of customs disputes in their aspect relating to legal proceedings and the application of court decisions in order to achieve the best means of combating economic crime -, an assessment of the activities carried out in coordination between both sectors were presented.
The Deputy Director of Litigation at the DGD, Controller General Abderrahmane Hamdi, presented the assessment of the solutions proposed and the efforts made between the customs services and the justice sector to resolve customs disputes.
He reported the processing of “11,306 customs conciliation requests during the year 2023, with an increase of 40% compared to the year 2022”. He stressed that these efforts are part of the encouragement and promotion of customs conciliation as an alternative to the settlement of disputes, with a view to increasing the recovery rate, ensuring revenue for the Public Treasury and to resolve pending cases.
Actions aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two departments were presented during this meeting, which took place in the presence of the Minister of Justice, Minister of Justice, Abderrachid Tabi, the Director General of Customs, the Major General Abdelhafid Bakhouche, the first president of the Supreme Court, Tahar Mamouni, executives and representatives of authorities and institutions.
Both sectors are examining the possibility of allowing electronic monitoring of cases involving customs services, notification of summons and delivery of judgments and court decisions online, in addition to the possibility of submitting requests to obtain orders that authorize, among other things, the sale of seized goods, before the president of the court online.