Canada will start issuing new more tamper-proof passports next April as part
of a campaign to boost security in the wake of the September 11 attacks.
The passport office said in a statement that it would also check background
references more rigorously in future, introduce a more detailed application
form and immediately hire more staff.
The new passports will have the bearer's photo digitally printed on a secure
page, replacing the current system whereby a normal photo is laminated to
the page. The passport will also contain special holograms.
The issue of passports is a sensitive one for Ottawa, which was embarrassed
by the ease with which Algerian-born Ahmed Ressam, arrested in 1999 while
trying to cross into the United States with a car full of explosives, evaded
a deportation order and obtained a Canadian passport in a false name.
Children will have to have their own passports rather than being added to
those of their parents.
- nriol.com report
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