Body Scanners at British Airports Could Violate Trans Privacy Rights
January 20, 2010
Following the botched bombing attempt on Christmas day of an airliner en route to the United States, full body scanners at British airports have been introduced, and rights groups fear the privacy of transgender people may be compromised.
Equality and Human Rights Commission head Trevor Phillips raised the concern in a letter to Home Secretary Alan Johnson, citing concerns of the scanners invasive and intimate nature in essentially revealing naked bodies. Phillips has asked for a more detailed justification for the scanners use.
The scanners are on schedule to be introduced by the end of the month at London Heathrow before being installed at other airports.
The EHRC is also concerned that other groups could be unfairly singled out because of their ethnicity or religion. The rights of children were also raised.
A spokesman for the EHRC said that profiling was “discriminatory, contrary to domestic legislation and international standards, and is harmful to community relations.
“Scanners have a negative impact on people’s right to privacy, particularly the disabled, older people and children. Transsexuals and transgender people would be particularly vulnerable.
“We are talking about very intimate pictures. To be blunt, one could imagine a bunch of loutish security guards seeing some attractive women in the queue and all rushing into the office saying, ‘Let’s have a look’.”
Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, another human rights group, said, “It is incredibly important that any security regime meets tests of efficacy, proportionality and equal treatment.
“There may be some who would like to see red and green passenger channels replaced with black and white ones.
“However, a number of white convert bombers all over the world demonstrate that such an approach offends common sense as well as common decency.”
John Wadham, legal director at the EHRC said, "The commission fully accepts the government's responsibility to protect the safety and security of air travelers. The right to life is the ultimate human right and we support the government reviewing security in the light of recent alleged terrorist activity.
"However, the government needs to ensure that measures to protect this right also take into account the need to be proportionate in its counter-terrorism proposals and ensure that they are justified by evidence and effectiveness."
The scanners were used two years ago at Amsterdam’s Schiphol but were disabled after authorities received complaints from the European Union over human rights violations.
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