Airport Security - Letter to Editor

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Abbas Ali
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Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by Abbas Ali »

Letter to Editor in November 8, 2009 edition of English daily 'DAWN - ePaper'

Airport security

I WOULD like to share this experience keeping in mind security measures in our country. This summer as I was travelling overseas, a lady standing in front of me in the immigration line at Karachi airport was fully covered in a burqa showing her passport.

The immigration officer was a female; she looked at the lady’s passport and did not ask her to show her face. Using the camera on her counter, she took a picture of her with her face covered.

I was shocked at this sight. It could be anyone behind the veil. The female staff at the immigration should at least check female faces in burqa. What’s the point of taking a picture when the face cannot be seen?

Security should not be relaxed for anyone and no exceptions should be made, especially nowadays when burqa is being so misused.

A CONCERNED CITIZEN Via email
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Abbas Ali
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by Abbas Ali »

Women observing purdah/burqah and wearing veil deserve respect and they should have full right to observe purdah and wear veil but at the same time authorities have to be careful so that a terrorist may not get chance to misuse burqah or veil to harm general public.

What should security authorities do in case a veiled woman does not want to show her face or does not want her face photographed by camera at immigration desk? Maybe finger print identification/matching technology should also be introduced for passports and at immigration desks.

Veil is also worn by majority of women in countries like Saudi Arabia and it will be interesting to know what technology is used by them for recording identity of veiled passengers using their airports.

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bhs75
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by bhs75 »

With current ongoing situation in Pakistan, I think security measures at the airports needs to be stepped up. if a woman is under veil, verfication can done at the booth before they go to immigration.

I would also suggest that the customs people must not show any courtesy to any pessenger (who is travelling) and is associated with airline/airport field. The security protocol for them should be same as any other pessenger.
Moin
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by Moin »

Yes if she is covered from head to foot, take her inside a curtained booth alongwith her PP and ask her to lift her veil for identification purposes.
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KZ
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by KZ »

OR have separate curtain enclosed counters for face id...not that difficult job, i would say
innervoid
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by innervoid »

Say a burqa woman is traveling to a destination in the UK. She would have to unveil her face regardless of a curtain counter present or not. Not like the staff at the immigration office is going to use a photograph of her for their own pleasures. Bounded by code of ethics. These relaxations or I would say security loops should cease to exist. It should not be an exemption for anyone, especially the burqa women, now that it is being mis-used so much.
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by yousaf465 »

What I remember is that two sisters were traveling with their father Saudi I think. They were also veiled head to toe, the woman officer just took the camera inside their burqa and took the pic of their face. I think this arrangement is much better than asking them to remove the burqa.
pk757
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by pk757 »

relax u guys....the picture is an eye scan verification, a vital part of biometric identification......the picture scans the eye lens of the person .
nonetheless there could be a special booth for these "naik damans".Oh but who would let them go into that room without their "Mehrams" hahahaha !
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Abbas Ali
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by Abbas Ali »

According to writer of letter to DAWN editor, the lady passenger had her face fully covered and I think a retinal scanner becomes useless if the eyes of a person are hidden behind a piece of cloth.

Abbas
lady standing in front of me in the immigration line at Karachi airport was fully covered in a burqa showing her passport.

The immigration officer was a female; she looked at the lady’s passport and did not ask her to show her face.
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yousaf465
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by yousaf465 »

Abbas Ali wrote:According to writer of letter to DAWN editor, the lady passenger had her face fully covered and I think a retinal scanner becomes useless if the eyes of a person are hidden behind a piece of cloth.

Abbas
lady standing in front of me in the immigration line at Karachi airport was fully covered in a burqa showing her passport.

The immigration officer was a female; she looked at the lady’s passport and did not ask her to show her face.
Fully covered here might mean eyes not covered. Just like a European far right activist think that if Mosques are allowed to build Minars, woman will start to wear burqa!
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by Nasir »

Fully covered also *might* mean "fully covered". Just because we might this and might that, doesn't mean we were there to witness it and so we have to defer to the eye witness- who in this case is the letter writer.
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yousaf465
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Re: Airport Security - Letter to Editor

Post by yousaf465 »

Ok we accept that