willmore

This article was in the Globe and Mail this morning.....thought people might be interested if they haven't already seen it.

Landed immigrants n Canada who drive to the US will be electronically fingerprinted and digitally photographed at 17 land border crossing starting Dec 31 as part of a controversial program to capture the "biometric" data of all visitors to the US.

The Dept of Homeland Security has listed the Canadian border points for inclusion in the US. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program, which critics have denounced as a violation of privacy rights and civil liberties. The border crossings include 4 in BC, 10 in Ontario, 2 in Quebec and 1 in NB.

The program to capture biometric data from new arrivals was launced at 129 airports and seaports at the begining of the year as part of tightening of border controls following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The 50 busiest land borders are scheduled to be added to the program by year's end.

While Canadian citizens are exempt from the US VISIT program, landed immigrants who live in Canada were required to undergo this program in January. Until now they were screened only when arriving. But by the end of December they will also be photographed and fingerprinted.

iaink

Gee, do you think the terrorists will think to use the countless crossing points that wont be equiped to collecting biometric data?

Toontje

Yep, the terrorists use those points to collect biometric data.

owen

mmmm let me think. 5524 miles of border (including alaska)........17 checkpoints.......... yep, that should stop them nasty damn terrorists!!!

wizzard

PR status is irrelevant anyway because entry requirements are dependant on Citizenship. There are a whole host of nations that require a visa to enter the US who are already required to be fingerprinted and photographed already whether they have PR status in Canada or any other country. There used to be an exception for certain commonwealth nations if they also had Canadian PR, like India I believe, where the visa requirement was waived but that was changed a year or two ago. The US-VISIT program came into effect several months ago but Nations on the Visa Waiver program like the UK and Australia etc. were exempt but that is what is changing. So all nations on the waiver program will be photographed and finger printed. Which kind of sucks, especially if you have no choice but to go to the US on business. When you come from a culture where only criminals and suspected criminals are fingerprinted it is kind of insulting when entering a friendly country to be stopped and fingerprinted etc. I guess it is telling of the state of the modern world.

Canada isn't affected because Canada isn't on the visa waiver program, Canada has a seperate special arrangement with the US and so far hasn't been affected.

Another part of it is the requirement for a) machine readable passports by I think sometime in the next few months otherwise a visa is required and b) the requirement for Passports with biometric data by sometime in 2005 otherwise a visa is required.

Now I believe most UK passports are already machine readable unless for some reason someone has a special one or old one so that's no big deal. However the biometric ones haven't even been released yet. Now it may not effect too many people who live in the UK except for maybe not going to the US for vacation if it means getting a new passport. However for those of us in Canada as PR's who haven't yet obtained Canadian Citizenship and who may be required by work say to go to the US then it is a big deal because if you don't apply for the new UK passport as soon as it is released then you will have to get a Visa to visit the US for work or pleasure etc. Which is a big hassle if you go there a lot.

Drew

Stupid guy

Har ! Har !! Har !! Why do they waste their money in such gimmicks ....???

All they have to do is stop robbing other nation's wealth, like oil for example, meddling in other countries political processes etc etc.

Then the world would be more safer place. aint ??? Simle and it costs nothing