Story Highlights:
·The no-fly list, based on the U.S.-model, was compiled by CSIS and RCMP.
·The number on the list remains a secret, but some reports said there are at most 1,000.
·Pro-liberties and human rights groups say it may trigger legal disputes.
The Canadian no-fly list, designed to keep terror suspects off commercial flights in this country, takes effect on Monday, local newspapers reported.
The no-fly list, based on the US-model, was compiled by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
The criteria to determine that a person is forbidden from flying is one who is or has been involved in a terrorist group, a person who has been convicted of life-threatening crimes against aviation, or a person who has been convicted of one or more serious offences who may attack an air carrier.
The number of the names on the list remains a secret, but some reports said there are at most 1,000, compared to 100,000 names on the U.S. list.
To implement the list, passengers over the age of 18 must carry one piece of government-issue photo ID or two pieces of non-photo ID. Starting Sept. 18, anyone who is older than 12 must carry ID.
Some security experts have questioned the effectiveness of the measure while pro-liberties and human rights groups say it may trigger legal disputes.
"There is no quantifiable evidence to show a link between having this list and ensuring the safety of air travelers or air safety," said Ayman al-Yassini of the Canadian Foundation for Race Relations.
The information will be shared with foreign agencies and governments, which invades people's privacy, security consultant Juneau-Katsuya said.
"I think it will be very easy for any lawyers to probably dismantle this in court because basically what we're facing is an administrative sentence that has been passed by bureaucrats on people we suspect might be sort of problematic or we suspect may cause some trouble. That goes against our (justice) system," said the consultant.
(Xinhua News Agency June 19, 2007)