Experts say Ukrainian biometric law doesn’t meet European standards

A law in the Ukraine that pertains to the state demographic register and identity documents will have to be revised because it doesn’t meet European standards of human rights protection, according to a report by Kyivpost.com.

The law on a united state demographic register and identity documents went into effect in the Ukraine on December 6 in order to introduce electronic passports with electronic chips with biometric information for traveling abroad.

As reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, the new law mandates that passports are to be issued to all individuals from birth regardless of age, for a period of ten years, although Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych added a revision allowing those who refuse to enter their personal chip due to religious beliefs to do so. It has been difficult to pass this law since Ukraine’s human rights commissioner called on Yanukovych to veto the law in October, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees claims the legislation doesn’t fully comply with international standards.

“The law establishes certain legislative acts for the production of biometric passports for travel abroad, but at the same time, it violates the previously undertaken obligations in the sphere of the protection of personal data,” Scientific Director at the Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation Oleksandr Sushko told Kyivpost.com.

Sushko wants to see the law thrown out, or amendments made to the current law as it stands. For example, Sushko believes the article on the Map of the Migrant should be removed completely because “migrant status is not envisaged by Ukrainian legislation.”

Experts believe that the larger issue behind the law is there is no clear purpose of the law, and the exact purpose of the united state demographic register is unclear.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  border control  |  electronic passports  |  ePassports  |  government  |  identification