Is Full Body Scanning at Airports Illegal?
Body scanners currently in use in many airports, particularly in Britain, have come a under a great deal of flak for various reasons. These scanners offer a complete body scan, more than many people would like. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has said that using these scanners could break the privacy, race relations and discrimination laws in UK.
There is a real danger that people may be selected at random to go through the body scanners, based on race, nationality, destination or dress codes. EHRC chair Trevor Phillips, in a letter to the secretary of state for transport, Lord Adonis, pointed out that the laws which full body scanners could violate were the Race Relations Act 1976, the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 as well as the right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
In a rebuttal, the Department for Transport said that it was ‘committed to ensuring that all security measures are used in a way which is legal, proportionate and non-discriminatory’. People were actually checked randomly and not due to any personal characteristics.
However, after Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to blow up a flight to Detroit on 25 December, 2009 – though only his trousers caught fire since the explosive was carried in his underwear – the use of the scanners has gained more credence.
Meanwhile the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA) has issued a fatwa against going through the body scanner, saying that it was un-Islamic for a Muslim man or woman to be seen naked by anybody else, as Islam emphasizes modesty. It has advised Muslims to opt for pat-down searches instead.
Via: ZDNet
Unfortunately the pat-down is not an option in the UK