Controversy Surrounding Identification Cards in the Age of Terrorism

Introduction The issue of identification cards is currently a subject of heated debate. The matter is further complicated by the advent of terrorism and the specific terrorism threats, which continue to target Britain and its interests locally and abroad. Proponents of the ID debate support the use of Ids as a security measure aimed at improving the verification of authentic citizens in Britain while opponents of the introduction of the identification cards see it as an infringement of civil liberties (LSE, 2005.

89-134).

Introduction of IDs has been necessitated by the realization that, a lot of immigrants have been able to infiltrate the immigration and police departments and gained entry into the UK without undergoing the necessary verification process. This is worrying considering the fact that, verification not only minimizes the risk of terrorism but also prevents other illegal immigrants to UK such as child sex workers as well as illegal workers. The introduction of IDs is also aimed at preventing other forms of violence such as violent crime.

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According to (LSE, 2005.89-134) lack of stringent and effective identification process has been found to encourage crime in that people are more likely to engage in crime on realization that it is hard to be caught. Identification cards are important in that they enable the government to plan more effectively. Accuracy in census can only be achieved if proper identification measures are put into place. For instance cases of ethnic discrimination have been blamed on poor census processes, which never come up with the actual number of ethnic minorities such as the blacks in a given community.

This calls for issuance of identification cards, which will see the government precisely account for all its population. This will make sure that budget allocated to support marginalised communities is sufficient. In addition, proper accounting for citizens is important in that it curbs and prevents corruption. For example government officials may be tempted to engage in corrupt activities such as exaggerating budgets to cover for imaginary population which the corrupt officials later use for their own benefits.

The sensitivity of the issue of issuance of the national identification cards in Britain can be evidenced in the way it took long for the parliament to agree on the issue. The introduction of identification cards in Britain for all citizens 16 years old and over is long overdue. The introduction of identity cards alongside passports will see the government increase effectiveness in the control of movement into and out of the country. It has been evident that, passport as an identification document had some clear disadvantages compared to a national identity card.

While passports are regarded by most people as a travelling document, the identification card will be regarded as solely meant for identification purposes with the UK. Identification cards will bear more details compared to the current passports something which signifies a greater role in accurate identification of the identity card holders. The introduction of the identity cards is also aimed at minimizing the widespread faking of passports. It is estimated that in Britain more than 50,000 passports are in possession of illegal holders.

The identification cards due in 2009 have improved security marks, which make it very hard for criminals and fraudsters to fake. If faked, from the look of the new identity cards, it will be easy to differentiate between fake and genuine identity cards. The mode of introduction is voluntary atleast upto the year 2010. This serves to accommodate the concerns of the opponents of the introduction of national identity cards who argue that, requirement to hold both a passport and a national identity card is an infringement of human rights as well as fundamental freedoms for the citizens.

National identity cards are important in that, they make the work of immigration officials easy both at the local and international level. It is easier to prove identity with a specialized document such as an identity card than it is, to prove authencity with a passport, which as mentioned earlier is easily available, and has been tampered with and faked by criminals with commendable success in the past.

Since the national identification cards will contain important biographical details of citizens, it will be easier to track people with the use of identification cards which are well detailed than tracing people using passports which do not provide much information about an individual. Therefore it is forecasted that the introduction of natural identification cards will boost the security of Britons by 15% (Beck and Broadhurst, 1998. 373-428).

Given the fact that, positive identification of criminals has been in the past found to impede investigations especially towards serious crimes, an improvement in the identification of criminals is highly welcome. As mentioned earlier, the identity cards have enhanced features which make it very hard to be faked and therefore chances that the new identification cards will solve the prevailing problem of mistaken identities are very high. Incidences of mistaken identities occasioned by ineffective identification documents and the over-reliance on passports have seen many people prosecuted for wrongs or crimes they never committed.

This is something which has caused a lot of suffering to victims of false identification as well as a lot of suffering to the ethnic minorities who are the worst affected. Poor identification methods continue to cost the Britain tax payer a lot in terms of money used to prove cases in which evidence of guilty is hard to prove as a result of poor identification or wrong identification of offenders’ altogether. It becomes hard for the prosecutor and government lawyers to prosecute cases.

Therefore it becomes easy for offenders to escape and get away with claims or allegations of having been victims of faulty identification. Therefore, there is a need for proper identification cards, which can serve to authenticate claims of involvement of citizens in crime. Effective identification will see a downward surge of illegal immigration into the UK (Thomas, 2005. 12-68). Due to the faulty identification process used in the past many illegal immigrants have gained entry into UK and have not only settled here but they have also acquired jobs meant for Britons.

This can possibly be a cause for the high rates of unemployment given the fact that immigrants are a source of cheap labour and employees who get the opportunity may prefer to employ illegal immigrants as opposed to locals whose wages and salaries are usually higher than those of the immigrants. Conclusion The idea about introduction of national identity cards is a noble one given the fact that the government has taken all possible measures to make sure that the identification cards will only be used for the benefit of the citizens but not as a source of discriminatory treatment based on ethnicity, color, race, religion or social status.

To ensure that citizens do not become vulnerable to discrimination as a result of information contained in the national identity cards, several measures have been put in place. For instance the national identity cards will not display sensitive information such as religious background, race details, political affiliation, health status as well as past criminal history of the identity card holder. There is a need for all sectors to support the reintroduction of IDs.

References

Beck and Broadhurst (1998. 373-428) Policing the community: the impact of national identity cards in the European Union, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Vol. 24 (3). LSE (2005. 89-134) The Identity Project: An Assessment of the UK Identity Card Bill & its implications, Interim Report. http://www. privacyinternational. org/issues/identitycard/uk/identity-terrorism. pdf Accessed on 15/03/2007. Thomas, R (2005. 12-68) Biometrics, Migrants, and Human Rights. Migration Policy Institute.