Canada launches terrorist no-fly list today
The U.S. has about 45,000 names on its no-fly list; Canada has about 1,000 on a list launched today; Canadian transportation and security experts question list’s vale
Canada’s no-fly list comes into effect today, while a chorus of transportation experts and privacy advocates warn that checking domestic airline passengers’ names against a list of people deemed to be potential threats could lead to abuses. Fewer than 1,000 names are believed to be on Transport Canada’s Specified Persons list, unlike its U.S. counterpart, which has grown to contain more than 44,000. The list will not be available to the public, which means those on it will only find out when they attempt to travel.
The “dynamic” list will be adjusted as intelligence agencies such as CSIS and RCMP evaluate “reliable and vetted” information, said Allan Kagedan, chief of aviation security policy for Transport Canada. “The numbers will change, so I’m not sure what there’s a real point in identifying a number,” Kagedan told CBC News on Monday.
Barry Prentice, director of the Transport Institute at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, said the list is “sort of a charade” to make people feel like they have greater security. “I don’t think it’s going to help one bit,” Prentice told CBC News. “What terrorist is going to travel with their own name and passport? These people are going to steal or create a forged passport and identification if they’re going to do anything, anyway.”
