Database Interpol for border protection

September 03, 2008 11:41 AM

In order to protect the Antillean borders, government officials from now on have access to the worldwide database of Interpol in stolen and lost travel documents.

Minister of Justice David Dick (PAR) has recently visited the headquarters in Lyon, where he announced that from the beginning of 2009, the travel documents of all arriving travellers will be run through this system.  The database contains more than 16 million names from 137 countries.  “Not only does it mean extra protection for the Antilles, but also for the more than a million and a half visitors that come to the Antilles every year”, said Dick.  The decision to link into the Interpol database was made after it was already applied during the Cricket World Cup that took place in Trinidad last year.  At this moment, 33 member states of Interpol are connected to the database.  50 million search actions were completed worldwide this year, resulting in the detection of more than 9000 travelers travelling with a lost or stolen passport.  

(Source: National Newspaper Amigoe)

2 September, 2008