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Elaine Yau

Security measures may be keeping us safe while infringing our civil rights ; This week's issue Public secuirty vs the right to privacy
With surveillance cameras, spying software and virtual police pervading our everyday lives, the nightmarish vision of a 'Big Brother' state conceived in the 40s by late English author George Orwell seems to have become a reality.
Since September 11, 2001, the Bush administration has  focused intensely on their search for potential terrorists.
Their efforts led to  legislation  being amended to make civilians' personal data easily accessible to law enforcement agencies like the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.
As a consequence, American citizens are increasingly concerned about their civil liberties.
With good reason, especially as they are subject to government-sanctioned intrusive surveillance like phone tapping and interception of online correspondence.
Last year, a federal judge in a US court ruled that the Bush administration's domestic eavesdropping programme is unconstitutional and unlawful.
The government was accused of conducting warrantless wiretaps of telephone and internet communications and violating free speech and privacy laws.
Last month, the administration was embroiled in a new controversy  after announcing a plan  to allow law enforcement agencies greater access to sophisticated satellite images.
The justification for this act was an attempt to strengthen the nation's defences against terrorism.
Surveillance officials monitoring the activities of an unwitting public via high-resolution satellite photographs conjures up the unnerving image of a 'Big Brother in the sky'. Heightened security at airports, ports and mass transit systems may be in our best interests but has caused chaos worldwide.
And, although people may be willing to understand that the measures are for their protection, there is widespread impatience with inconsistencies in regulations between countries.
With the Bush administration  intent on unmasking all 'sleeper' terrorists,  civilians of Middle Eastern heritage have been subject to rights abuses.
Last month, a new US airport security policy allowing arbitrary searches of turbans  sparked an outcry.
Turbans are considered a sacred religious symbol by Muslims and allowing airport screeners to single out people based on their religion is seen as tarring all Muslims with the same brush.
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom is becoming known as a 'police state'.
With an estimated 4.2 million closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed across the country,  British citizens are the most watched in the world.
As if putting every 14 people under the gaze of a prying camera was not enough, there is a plan to install 'talking' CCTV cameras.
Outfitted with loudspeakers to allow security personnel to berate  litter bugs, vandals or thugs, the cameras are intended to act as a deterrent by causing public humiliation.
In spite of the possible positive benefits on crime prevention, the cameras have been criticised by civil rights groups for infringing on the lives of ordinary people.
In 2002, Hong Kong police installed cameras in Lan Kwai Fong in an effort to 'enhance public safety and crowd control'.
While paranoid governments intent on controlling aspects of  their citizens' lives are the main culprits behind the creation of a 'Big Brother' society,  the public's  lack of vigilance on privacy infringement is also to blame.
The internet is a minefield of potential identity theft and other invasions of privacy.
With social networking sites like Facebook rapidly growing in popularity, people are less vigilant about the private information they post in a very public forum.
While they hob-nob with strangers on the Web, users cannot rule out the possibility of their  information being  abused by fraudsters.
With both the real and virtual worlds under the watchful glare of governments,  the Orwellian nightmare of a 'Big Brother' watching your every move  may soon become a reality.
There are about 4,200,000 security cameras installed across the UK, making Britain the most watched nation in the world
20,000 street cameras equipped with face-recognition software are set to be installed in Shenzhen
Mainland security sparks concern
Chinese citizens, living under the Communist government, don't fare any better than their western counterparts.
According to a recent report in The New York Times, 20,000 CCTV cameras equipped with face-recognition software will be installed in Shenzhen.
The city has also launched a scheme to issue resident cards.
Equipped with powerful computer chips, the cards  will store personal information such as the holder's address, work history, educational background, religion, ethnicity, criminal record, medical insurance status and landlord's phone number.
To aid the central government in their implementation of their one-child policy, the holder's reproductive history will also be included.
While security firms say the scheme has been introduced to aid social stability and national security, critics have accused the Chinese government of using it as an excuse to tighten its grip on people.
Comprehension
Word power
1 unwitting
2 arbitrary
3 berate
4 paranoid
5 culprits
6 hob-nob
a) scold sharply
b) offender; person who has done something wrong
c) spend time (with somebody) in a friendly way
d) not knowing or aware
e) subjective; without considering others; dictatorial
f) easily alarmed or frightened
Fill in the blanks with the words you have learned:
7 It's only a minor  illness, you don't have cancer. Don't be so _______!
8 She likes to ________ with the rich and famous.
9 Cars and coal-burning factories are the main _______ behind air pollution.
10 The _______ way in which the government rammed through the legislation despite vehement opposition was criticised by the public.
11 His mother _______ him for messing up the kitchen.
12 Those who agree to carry goods for strangers at airports can become ________  smugglers.
The use of idioms
An idiom consists of a set of words whose combined meaning is different from the meaning of the individual words. However, for some idioms, their meaning can be deduced from the literal meaning of the words.
Below is an example from the passage:
Allowing screeners to single out travellers on the basis of their religion, the government is blamed for tarring all Muslims with the same brush.
(Note: People tarred with the same brush sport the same colour. So the idiom means wrongly presuming someone or something has the
same bad qualities as someone or something that is similar.)
Try to deduce the meaning of the following idioms
Example: I wouldn't touch him/it with a barge-pole.
(Note: A barge-pole is a long stick used to guide a ship. Imagine someone you don't want to touch even with a long stick. The idiom means not having
any contact or association with sb/sth you dislike very much.)
1  She wears her heart on her sleeve.
___________________________________________________________________________
2 I prefer to keep them at arm's length.
___________________________________________________________________________
3 He keeps his cards close to his chest.
___________________________________________________________________________
Think about it
1) Are there CCTV cameras in your school or neighbourhood?
2)  How would you feel if your activities were watched and conversations recorded?
3) Do you think you live in a 'Big Brother' society?
4) Are you a member of any social networking sites? Do you think posting your personal information is dangerous?
Answers
1. d, 2. e, 3. a, 4. f, 5. b, 6. c, 7. paranoid, 8. hob-nob, 9. culprits, 10. arbitrary, 11. berated, 12. unwitting
Idioms
1. Someone who shows their emotions very openly. Not always a positive quality.
2. Keeping someone at arm's length means you do not want to get too close to them, either physically or mentally.
3. Someone who does not reveal very much about themselves or their thoughts.



Be careful - Big Brother is watching you