South Korea To Step Up Safety Checks At Major Airports

SEOUL, Jan 27 (Bernama) — South Korea said Wednesday that it will intensify airport safety checks by establishing high-tech detectors that can more effectively screen passengers at major international airports this year, Yonhap news agency said.

Liquid bomb detectors and whole-body screeners will be installed at the nation’s main gateways including Incheon International Airport during the first half of this year, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.

The move is aimed at stepping up safety checks amid fears that local airports could also be vulnerable to terror threats after a bomb attempt was reported last month at a U.S. airport, the ministry said.

The measures are also intended to tighten safety precautions ahead of the planned of the Group of 20 summit in November when heads of states from the world’s major advanced and emerging economies gather here, it added.

Liquid detectors will help scan for liquid-based bombs more effectively while whole-body imaging devices will allow airport staff to detect bombs or other weapons made of non-metallic materials without touching passenger’s bodies.

The stepped-up safety checks have become a source of some controversy, however, as critics claim the whole-body scans violate individual privacy, and could amount to virtual strip searches and “naked” pictures of passengers.

Reflecting such concerns, the ministry said that it will strictly prohibit body images from being stored, printed or transferred, while the face and other parts of a passenger’s body will be blurred to protect privacy, it added.