Air Canada To Divulge Files On Profiling Complainants
Tom Korski, www.blacklocks.ca
Air Canada To Divulge Files On Profiling Complainants
Air Canada in a landmark ruling is being ordered to divulge confidential records on security complaints by travellers who allege racial profiling. The order is the first public glimpse into secretive federal security blacklists enacted after 9/11. It follows an appeal by a Halifax man who complained he was repeatedly badgered by airline staff and employees of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority.
“This is not only for me, it is for all Canadians,” said Mohamed Yaffa, a diversity coordinator at Nova Scotia’s Capital Health authority. “I’m on some kind of list and I don’t know why.”
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ordered the airline to disclose all complaints from passengers since 2007 who alleged profiling due to the “application of government-imposed security lists.” Air Canada declined an interview: “We have no comment on this matter as the case is ongoing,” a spokesperson said.
Yaffa in a human rights complaint alleged that six times in a three-month period he was subject to “enhanced security” screening and questioning while traveling with Air Canada, including domestic flights. “They stopped me once, then twice, then again and again: I’m always harassed at the airport,” said Yaffa, who noted he was never denied boarding as a security risk.
“I am a citizen,” he said. “If you are a criminal in our country you should be charged; if you are not a criminal you should be left alone, and allowed your dignity. I don’t know why they are doing this.”
At a human rights hearing on disclosure of documents into Yaffa’s complaint, a tribunal officer ordered the airline to detail how many similar complaints Air Canada has received over the past seven years to determine if profiling occurred: “I agree that past complaints against the respondent that raise the same or similar allegations as the present case, including their outcomes, are arguably relevant to the issue of systemic discrimination,” concluded tribunal member David Thomas.
Yaffa noted he was never blacklisted under Transport Canada’s confidential “no-fly list” currently the subject of a federal lawsuit by the Office of the Information Commissioner. Under a program enacted in 2007 all airlines must run passengers’ names through a security database prior to boarding any aircraft.
“There Has Never Been Any Real Disclosure”
The information commissioner in a Federal Court application in Montréal has asked that a judge compel Transport Canada to release data about its blacklist, including the total number of names and how many are Canadian citizens. The department refused to date claiming the information would be “injurious to the conduct of our international affairs”.
Advocates including the B.C. Civil Liberties Association have appealed to the Commons transport committee for greater scrutiny of the Specified Persons List, noting passengers may be mistakenly blacklisted or denied travel for arbitrary reasons without appeal.
“There is the technical no-fly list where passengers denied boarding will at least receive a notice of the fact, though the list historically has not been made public,” said Carmen Cheung, association senior counsel. “What we don’t know about is all these other lists that may single out passengers for extra screening based on suspicion. That is a problem.”
“These practices continue to cause delay and distress,” Cheung said. “The challenge is to prove that profiling happens. We have a fair amount of anecdotal evidence, but there has never been any real disclosure. Mr. Yaffa’s case has the potential to work towards that.”
The human rights tribunal also ordered Air Canada to disclose all manuals and directives issued to staff regarding “human rights and sensitivity training”; and how to handle customer complaints of profiling: “The information is arguably relevant to the allegations of systemic discrimination.”
Air Canada did not specify whether it has such manuals, or whether airport staff have ever been instructed on dealings with visible minorities.
Yaffa, who is Muslim of African descent, said all Canadians must be informed on transportation policies. “There has been secrecy on this matter for a very long time,” he said. “Air Canada should be brought to task.”