Date: Sun, 16 Dec 2001 20:59:33 EST
From: freemanaz@aol.com
Subject: [azpeace] U.N. Considers Fingerprinting, Registering Every Human On Earth
To: azpeace@yahoogroups.com
Cc: azpeace@home.com
Reply-To: azpeace@yahoogroups.com


http://www.smh.com.au/breaking/2001/12/14/FFX058CU6VC.html

Refugees meeting hears proposal to register every human 

GENEVA, Dec 13 AAP|Published: Friday December 14, 7:18 AM

Every person in the world would be fingerprinted and registered under a 
universal identification scheme to fight illegal immigration and people 
smuggling outlined at a United Nations meeting today.

The plan was put forward by Pascal Smet, the head of Belgium's independent 
asylum review board, at a roundtable meeting with ministers including 
Australian Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock this afternoon.

Mr Smet said the European Union was already considering a Europe-wide system, 
using either fingerprints or eye scanning technology, to identify citizens. 

But he said the plan could be extended worldwide.

"There are no technical problems. It is only a question of will and 
investment," he said.

"If you look to our societies, we are already registered from birth until 
death. Our governments know who we are and what we are. But one of the basic 
problems is the numbers of people in the world who are not registered, who do 
not have a set identity, and when these people move with real or fake 
passports, you cannot identify them.

"It's a basic rule of management that if you want to manage something, you 
measure it. It's the same with human beings and migration.

"But instead of measuring it, you have to register them."

Mr Smet said the scheme would give people dignity by giving them an identity 
if their papers had been lost or destroyed.

And he said it would allow countries to open their borders to genuine 
travellers or asylum seekers, because they would be able to prove the 
identity of any over-stayers and deport them without argument from their home 
country.

Mr Ruddock appeared unconvinced by the merits ofthe plan.

"In principle we would be supportive of a system which would crack down on 
multiple asylum claims, but a universal identification system would be taking 
it too far," he said through a spokeswoman.

By Maria Hawthorne

Copyright  2001 John Fairfax Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved. 


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