Body scanners strip 'dignity,' Pope says

Pontiff speaks out against airport security devices

Nick Pisa, The Daily Telegraph, with files from Scott Deveau, National Post
Published: Monday, February 22, 2010


Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out against airport body scanners, insisting that "human dignity must be preserved."

Although the pontiff did not use the words "body scanner" during the audience with airport workers, it was clear what he meant as he said: "It is above all essential to protect and value the human person in their integrity."

Acknowledging that airports were in the forefront of the terrorist threat and suffering economically, he added: "Even in this situation, one must never forget that respecting the primacy of the human person and attention to his or her needs does not make the service less efficient nor penalize economic management."

In his speech to 1,200 airport workers at the Vatican, Pope Benedict, who travels exclusively on Italian carrier Alitalia using a special plane dubbed Shepherd One, added: "The skies represent a motorway of modern travel and as a consequence airports have become crossroads of a global village.

"For you this reality represents an ever more task of complex organisation and it is a labour that if often discreet and barely known, not always noted but which does not escape the eyes of God, who sees all of Man's works even those that are hidden."

The use of scanners has caused controversy because the equipment makes people appear naked. They have been introduced at several international airports, and will be introduced at some Canadian airports including Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Halifax.

Some security experts have questioned the efficacy of security measures, such as full-body scanners, implemented at airports in the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001. They argue that the bulk of the tactics adopted by governments simply clog security lines, infringe upon civil liberties and do very little to guard against future threats.

Bruce Schneier, a Minnesotabased security expert and author, and other critics say many of the measures, including the most recent ones implemented after the failed Christmas Day bombing attempt on a Northwest Airlines flight bound for Detroit, are simply adopted to create a sense of security that something is being done in response to these new threats, but actually do very little to enhance safety.

"This is a stupid game and we should stop doing it," Mr. Schneier said.

Even airlines are beginning to question whether such things as full-body scanners are necessary, and whether older techniques, such as removing shoes and banning liquids in the cabins of airplanes are actually making it any safer to fly.

"We just keep adding on these procedures and devices.... Running out and buying a new tool and just adding it on the existing process doesn't improve security and leads to longer lines and passenger hassle," said Steve Lott, a spokesman for the International Air Transport Association, which represents 240 of the world's largest airlines, including Air Canada.

"We need to take the existing model, turn it upside down and do a redesign of how we screen passengers."

The chaos created at airports in the aftermath of the botched bombing attempt on Christmas Day lends further evidence to the system's shortcomings.

In the hours following the bombing attempt, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration issued a directive that every passenger bound for the U.S. would be subject to a pat down and have their luggage physically inspected. This caused mass confusion as security officials struggled to implement the measures at a time when they were already dealing with peak volume.

Transport Canada limited the number of bags people could carry on board to one. When that failed to unclog the lines, they banned carry-on bags altogether, and limited items passengers could bring on board to essentials, such as medication, laptops and walkers.