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Stolen Blank Passports Aiding Terrorists
EFL LYON, France (AP) - Only 34 countries have agreed to share their data on stolen or missing blank passports, which number in the hundreds of thousands and allow terrorists to breeze across borders, the Interpol secretary general said. All this time the Pakistanis had no need to forge anything. Ronald Noble told The Associated Press that between them, the complying countries - who make up about one-fifth of the agencyâs 181 members - report 80,000 blank missing passports. "This is only whatâs on file," Noble said. "You can imagine the rest. If we donât have a global database with everyone contributing, think of all the terrorists and criminals trading in documents." By multiplying the complying nationsâ lists of stolen blank passports by five, Noble said the global figure could be estimated at about 400,000. Mr. Noble lacks imagination. Although Noble did not single out countries, other Interpol officials said the United States, Britain and Germany were among members that did not share their databases. Didnât know that. Seems like a natural for us to do this, wonder why we arenât? All members are able to consult the list even if they do not contribute information to it. Unless the numbers appear in a worldwide computerized database so that border police can identify them, anyone can use a custom-made blank to move undetected. When Italy recently decided to cooperate, authorities sent Interpol the numbers of 200,000 missing travel documents. Within two days, Noble said, police in other countries had made arrests. "Welcome to our country, âSilvio.â Git yer hands up!" A senior Interpol official said he expected Washington to soon begin supplying data to the list. U.S. Justice Department spokesman Mark Corallo, reached by telephone, had no immediate comment. According to international security specialists, Washingtonâs reluctance to supply data to Interpol reflects a broader problem faced by the worldâs largest cross-border police organization. Some Interpol officials complain bitterly that the United States, among others, accepts all information but refuses to share crucial data in return. U.S. authorities acknowledge a general policy of caution, saying Interpolâs worldwide membership leaves too many potential security gaps. But, Noble argues, that has changed since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in America. "Law enforcement agencies are always going to keep some things from everyone else," he said. "But the U.S. is sending many more Red Notices (fugitive alerts), and they tell us much more than before." Iâd suggest we could do better here. Posted by: Steve White 2004-02-28 |
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