'File 22/16 II (A66) Gwadur' [‎21r] (46/380)

16.
contract tennimiDi-• tomrds tho close of thd year 1930, thon
is no doT?"bt that the Muscat Govepnrrent win fulfil the
promise of keeping the contra ct open to the Gwadur merchants
tbrouch tlie proper ana the recognised channel of the British
% ency t (^dnr, as also ^ -ro in not the leaslr doubt that the
Gwadur merchants of standing -ill then he prepared to mitit:at<
their present, troubles "by undertnlcii^ to work at comparetivelj
lo^rer rates than the present ones ^'hich they consider as
exorbitant.
(?) The second ^n' hy far the most important
grievance of G^adur merchants is about the recent stoppage
of transhipment to an^ fro® the neighbouring minor norts of
Qnm, Jiwni anl G-mttur. kccorMmto the authentic records
and Commercial Treaty of 1^91, 'botnreea the ^ritish Government
and His Highness the Sultan of liuscat the transhipment in
question is to "be allowed free of any duty. The Owadur
taerchnnts, accordingly, enjoyed this concession ever since the
time of their advent into this country till middle of 1927
^iien luscat Customs Depirtraent. ordered the stoppage of this
transhi rient. From the perusal of letter No. 1^3/19-A,,
d^ted the ^Oth July 19? 7^ troia t:iO l i/nncial minister of
..uscat State an" 5 addressed to the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Muscat
"(coir of Miich wan received through I.P.C. hy the British
■V* ent, epwadur), it would ar^ear that the ahove order was
"based on fne fo:.-Tailas stated below within brackets: a
( 1. Tiiat most of the fish transhiened was
either from canss and Jl" r ni -"hich ere ports of liritish iiekran
or from Gwattur e nelghhourinr Persian Port and furthermore
as t-^o leading merchants of ^-/xadur had taken the Customs
Contract of the aforesaid two Jekran Ports in their own hands
in 19P7, they usually transhipped their own fish from the
ahove two r-orts and the practice naturally resulted in the
evasion and consequent loss of Uultania Customs# Hence the
free transhipment was stopped.
?. That if there had lean proper Customs
Officials at Jiwni anl tan^ etc., with a view to acknowledge
landings and ??hip ings of transhi '-ed cargo, the transhipment
w ou3 have "bean allowed free of luty but as the present Custoi
Officials »t and Jiwni were Gwadur contractors who also
acted as trarshij o«rs of fish of their o-«n an.I also of their
kinsmen, the free transhipment was therefore stopped.)
_ ct
Quotation ro, 1 ahove was further substanfiatec
in the above letter ty the Quotations of actual Customs