October 31st 2023.
No-one could doubt Moira Williamson's devotion to the late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. So much so that she even has a large tattoo of him inked on her right bicep. So when the contents of Mercury's estate were auctioned off by Sotheby's in London last month, the self-confessed "mad" fan jumped at the chance to own a trinket that once belonged to her idol.
Williamson set her sights on a Russian-style wooden doll she recognised from photos taken in Mercury's kitchen - after personally scoping out items set to go under the hammer during a visit to London in August. Back in Australia, Williamson placed the winning bid in an intensely competitive online auction, securing the doll for £6900 last month.
But when the highly-anticipated item arrived in Australia via shipping company DHL on September 24, Williamson said she received a nasty and expensive shock. She was told that she would have to pay an extra tax of about $4550 because the doll was from Russia, in addition to a GST and import duty charge of $2075.
"I said, 'I'm sorry, what?' That is almost as much as what I paid for it," Williamson said. The tariff was introduced by the Australian government last April, when war broke out with Ukraine. The tariff, which has been extended until October 2024, is part of a range of sanctions and trade measures taken against Russia and its "immoral" war, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said.
Williamson said imposing the Russian import tariff on Freddie Mercury's doll was pure "craziness". "I really can't afford to pay this ridiculous duty," she said. "I'm just a nurse and I don't have lots of money. I bought the Freddie Mercury doll with my entire rainy day savings fund," she said. Williamson said the doll had a sticker on its base stating it was made in the USSR, but that did not necessarily mean it was produced in Russia.
"The USSR was a conglomerate of several countries. So it could have actually been made in Ukraine," she said. Williamson said the doll was almost 40 years old and was given to Mercury as a Christmas present in 1986. After she posted about winning the doll, Williamson was contacted by Queen's photographer who told her that he bought Freddie and the other band members each this doll from a store in Soho, London. Freddie loved it so much he kept it on display.
Williamson said none of the auction's proceeds were going to Russia, making any possible link with the country even more tenuous. The Sotheby's auction items were sold by Mercury's longtime friend Mary Austin, who inherited his London home and many of his belongings. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Mercury Phoenix Trust and the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
"The money I paid went to Mary Austin and Sotheby's. I am not supporting the war," Williamson said. "I totally understand the additional tax based on the Russian conflict, but this is so unfair." The Australian Border Force enforces the Russian import tariff of behalf of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
A spokesperson for the Australian Border Force said the duty applied to all goods produced or manufactured in Russia. 9news.com.au understands the tariff is applied regardless of where the goods were imported from or when they were made, and there is no discretion within the customs tariff legislation to provide exemptions.
"The customs documentation provided for this shipment by the supplier suggests that the origin of manufacture of the goods is Russia," a spokesperson for DHL said. "Due to the dissolution of the USSR, the ABF does not allow this as a country of origin on a customs declaration."
Williamson said she was deeply disappointed by the additional charges she had to pay, and felt as though she was bearing the brunt of the Russian conflict. She said she had no intention of supporting the war and that the money she paid for the doll was going to Mary Austin and Sotheby’s. In the end, Williamson paid the additional charges and received her doll, but she said she will never forget this costly reminder of the Russian conflict.
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