By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
Korea moved a step closer to being allowed on the United States visa waiver program (VWP) after an electronic passport revision bill was passed by the National Assembly Tuesday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the new passports feature enhanced security.
The new passports will be issued to diplomats from May and ordinary citizens from the second half of the year.
According to sources, the U.S. is set to grant visa waivers to those who possess electronic passports only, increasing the possibility of Korea joining the program, which would allow them to enter the U.S. for up to 90 days.
Under the revised law, newly issued passports will have integrated chips that contain bio information of the holder, such as photographs and fingerprints.
``The newly issued passports will prevent forgery or falsification since they will contain personal information managed by an IC chip,'' a foreign ministry official said.
According to a research by www.pollever.com, 70 percent of 1,443 respondents said they support the system because of its safeguards against forgery.
The electronic passport was one of the government's most anticipated projects. It established a committee for new passports in 2006 under the guidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organization.
Some lawyers warned that the collection of fingerprints could be unconstitutional and an infringement upon human rights.
While the government said that fingerprinting is already performed in Korea when issuing national identification cards, lawyers pointed out that the collection itself could be contrary to the Constitution.
The National Assembly has delayed fingerprint collection until 2010 due to public outcry but people say it's not enough.
``The two-year-probation period doesn't change anything. The problem with the new passport is that some devices can easily hack into the chip and personal information could be stolen without the passport being taken,'' a Lawyers for a Democratic Society spokesman said. They claimed in many developed countries, the fingerprinting is performed only on people with criminal records.
Among the 38 countries that have adopted electronic passports, Germany, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia contain fingerprints.
bjs@koreatimes.co.kr
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