Authorities to crack down on shopkeepers breaching sale of liquor laws |28 July 2014

Shopkeepers who are still selling alcohol outside the hours set by laws will be dealt with severely, the authorities have warned.

The Seychelles Police and the Seychelles Licensing Authority (SLA) have reported that even though certain shopkeepers have been found guilty of not respecting the law with regard to the sale of alcohol, reports of non-adherence to the law are still coming in.

The law that came into force in March last year stipulates that from Monday to Thursday sale of alcohol should be restricted to between 11.30am and 9pm, on Friday between 11.30am and 11 pm, on Saturday from 8.30am to 11pm, while on Sunday from 8.30am until 9pm.

For the purpose of these legislations, all public holidays shall be treated as Sundays, except on consecutive public holidays where the hours of sale on the day preceding the last public holiday shall be 8:30am to 11.00pm.

The Seychelles Police and SLA have met and discussed new strategies to contain such situation and they have said they will enhance their approach through a Joint Task Force (JTF) who will carry out compliance checks on shopkeepers.
 
The JTF said that any licensee caught selling alcohol and anyone caught with alcoholic beverage in any shop before or after the restricted sale time limit, legal action will be taken against them in conjunction with the license holder, who can be presumed to have sold the alcoholic beverage.

Sanctions against the licensee will include appropriate fines and possibly a  revocation of license, this after review by the SLA.

The JTF, besides monitoring shops to ensure their compliance, has noted that persons consuming alcoholic beverage on the shop premises will also be liable to prosecution.

The Seychelles Police and the SLA are therfore appealing to both retailers and consumers to respect the sale of alcohol regulations.