Posted on 01/14/2004 4:37:17 PM PST by Dallas59
SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) - An American Airlines pilot was arrested at Sao Paulo International Airport on Wednesday after making an obscene gesture while being photographed by Brazilian (news - web sites) immigration officers, police said.
The pilot, identified as Dale Robin Hirsch, raised his middle finger at police to protest new Brazilian security measures that require U.S. citizens to be fingerprinted and photographed upon entering the South American country.
Brazil implemented the policy on Jan. 1 in retaliation for a similar U.S. program that requires those foreign visitors who need visas to have their fingerprints and pictures taken on arrival in the United States.
"He made an internationally known obscene gesture when he was being photographed by the Federal Police," Federal Police agent Wagner Castilho told Reuters. He said the other crew members were denied entry after refusing to cooperate with security officials.
The incident came just one day after Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva personally appealed to President Bush (news - web sites) to suspend visa requirements for each other's nationals and thus fingerprint checks.
Lula's request was expected to fall on deaf ears in Washington. Brazilians are among the top groups of illegal immigrants detained in the United States.
Castilho said the pilot will be charged with disobeying authority. A judge will decide whether Hirsch, 52, will be deported or tried in Brazil, Castilho added.
The remaining 11 members of the Miami-based crew were expected to be returned to the United States.
A spokesman in Sao Paulo for American Airlines said the carrier "respects the laws of the countries in which it operates," but declined further comment.
U.S. citizens have been subject to long lines at Brazilian airports since the new security measures were implemented, prompting Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites) to complain that Americans were being discriminated against.
Eager to speed up the process, Brazil on Wednesday rushed to gather digital fingerprint readers from police stations across the country. Officials said they will be ready by Thursday to register U.S. visitors in "30 seconds" rather than the hours it takes with an inkpad.
With Rio de Janeiro's famous Carnival coming in February, the city is worried about the impact on tourism. It has taken to handing out roses and "Rio Loves You" T-shirts to U.S. visitors and on Wednesday laid on hip-wriggling Samba dancers at its airport arrival gate.
I sincerely doubt that any of that exist yet in Brazil. What they appear to have instead, is just a meaningless program of retaliatory harassment, likely done with ink and paper.
This pilot, having likely already taken off his wristwatch, wedding ring and anything else of value, since he's all too aware of the lack of public safety in Brazil, is now PO'd because he's lining up for a totally bogus harassment session.
And the idea, floated by the hard left president of Brazil, that Brazilian nationals should be allowed visa-free travel to the USA is laughable. The illegal immigration wave would be enormous, Brazil is far too poor to come anywhere near close enought to qualifying for the Waiver Program. Even their wealthier neighbor, Argentina, was in fact booted out of the program a couple years ago in the wake of a severe economic downturn.
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