asked the Minister for Communications if he is aware that the United Kingdom postal authorities have intercepted correspondence in particular on 27 October 1985, addressed to the Irish Republic from India; the circumstances under which the label DE 22 was placed on a letter posted in India and addressed direct to the Irish Republic— if this is usual; if correspondence from India cannot come direct to the Irish Republic without being interrupted by British authorities opened, read, noted, and reposted to addresses in this country; if this is to continue and if so, under what arrangements it takes place; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Postal Communications.
84.
The modes of despatch of mail to Ireland from other countries, including the means of transport and the route employed, are matters for the foreign postal administrations concerned, in this case the postal administration of India. Letters addressed to persons in this country from India remain, under the terms of the Universal Postal Convention, the property of the sender until delivered in Ireland. Freedom of transit for letter post is guaranteed under Article 1 of the Constitution of the Universal Postal Union and under Article 1 of the convention. The principle of freedom of transit implies the inviolability of correspondence in the country of transit. An Post have advised that mail for this country, from some parts of India such as Calcutta, arrives, via Britain, in the form of closed despatches which are addressed direct to An Post and treated as transit mail by the UK Post Office. However, some individual items of mail from India are sent, à dècouvert (that is amalgamated with other mail) to the British post office for onward despatch to Dublin. Such items would be included in direct closed despatches from India to Britain where they would be rehandled and included in direct despatches from Britain to Ireland. The label attached to the correspondence supplied by the Deputy acknowledges that the correspondence mentioned was opened by the British Post Office for the purpose of customs and currency examination. An Post have had no complaints that mail in transit to this country via Britain is being interfered with and the violation which occurred in the present case would appear to have arisen accidentally. In view of this and of the position, already mentioned, about ownership of the letter, it would be for the sender and the Indian postal authorities in the first instance to pursue the question of any irregularity with the British post office.