Lead Editorial
those from certain ethnic groups most often
“…he demanded to
attention to the situation in Darfur. He was
linked to terrorist acts, we’d be wise to arrested by the Chadian authorities.
consider how, in terms of discipline, we have
go to London, where
And just how does one get an AK-47 or, for
a great deal to learn from Asia and the that matter, a pistol and five knives onto a
Middle East. Some of the religions and he wished to claim commercial flight? Time will tell what did
associated values from this region have happen and, whilst I have visited Khartoum, I
maintained a disciplined society. For sure,
asylum and attract
am unfamiliar with the domestic screening
some of the means to ensure such
compliance are not always acceptable, but,
international attention
procedures to know whether they could have
been at fault. They could well have been but
in general, the core values and traditions
that Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and many other
to the situation in
bribery and corruption also spring to mind as
definite options. Security personnel and
religions embrace create an environment
Darfur…”
other airport employees are not exactly well
where children respect their elders and paid and, in Sudan and elsewhere on the
citizens respect authority. when he entered the unlocked cockpit of Air African continent, acceptance of monetary
With this in mind, as we scrutinise those West flight 612 operating from the Sudan’s offerings can help an individual to provide
who board our aircraft in our search for capital, Khartoum, to El Fasher, capital of life’s basic necessities. But, let’s not be too
troublemakers, perhaps we should be paying North Darfur, 20 to 30 minutes after takeoff quick to dismiss bribery and corruption as
specific attention to those most likely to act on 24 January 2007. (It should be noted that being merely an African issue; the
like infants. It’s easy to say that the threat of subsequent reports say he was armed with a simultaneous downing of the two Russian
an English lager lout is nothing in pistol and five knives.) airliners departing Moscow Domodedovo in
comparison to that of a suicidal terrorist. Initially demanding that the flight divert to 2004 was effected through bribery and
That’s a given. But we’re not only looking for London, via Rome (possibly due to the recent reports emerging from airports in
terrorists; we’re supposed to identify all presence of an Italian military attaché on Europe, the United States and in Asia have
those who may endanger our aircraft. board), he eventually accepted the Captain’s demonstrated the number of criminal gangs
And, of course, if that individual just very genuine claims that there was insuff- that are active in our nation’s gateways.
happens to be armed with an AK-47, we’d icient fuel and agreed to go to N'Djamena in As we enter 2007, we must address the
certainly hope to prevent them boarding a Chad. Once there he released the 103 threat posed by the suicidal terrorists armed
commercial airline. Only that’s what passengers and crew and repeated his with their box-cutters and liquid devices, but
Mahamat Abdelatif Mahamat, 24, was demanded to go to London, where he wished equally we must face up to the challenges of
initially reported to have been armed with to claim asylum and attract international the past for they too are alive and kicking…
Aviationsecurityinternational February 2007 www.asi-mag.com 3
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