Wednesday, March 24, 2004 Australia warns Pacific neighbours to tighten airport security or face bans Channel News Asia, Singapore SYDNEY - Australia warned its Pacific island neighbours it may refuse landing rights to aircraft from countries with lax airport security amid fears they could be the next launching pad for terrorist attack. "We can't dictate to them what standards they must impose but we do clearly reserve the right to simply refuse access to Australia if we do not believe that their security arrangements are in place and are of adequate depth and breadth to secure our safety," Transport Minister John Anderson said. "If it is not, then Australia will have no choice and we won't hesitate to take this action to say that you can't fly out of New Guinea to Australia." Anderson's warning followed a string of recent lapses which have exposed what the government sees as major security flaws. A man carrying a handgun was recently allowed to board an Air Nuigini flight to Singapore at Port Moresby airport by security guards who assumed blaring metal detector alarms were triggered by coins or keys, airport authorities admitted. Businessman Wai Kitts handed the weapon to cabin crew after discovering his innocent mistake minutes before the flight landed in Singapore. In another case, testers for Australian carrier Qantas smuggled fake bombs and firearms through airport security in the Papua New Guinea capital, where Qantas passengers fly on Air Niugini flights under a code-sharing agreement. In an effort to boost security, Australia has sent four high-tech screening devices to Papua New Guinea and is spending millions of dollars on airport security. An Australian aid delegation is also touring the South Pacific to see which other airports need upgrades. Anderson told reporters the work of the delegation was critically important and it was essential to ensure security procedures were up to scratch and that the screening devices were properly set up and operated. He said the incident in which a businessman took a firearm aboard a flight showed terrorists could take advantage of lax security to launch an attack on Australia. PNG Foreign Minister Rabbie Namaliu admitted he was embarrassed by the incident which he said was of major concern and "extremely disappointing." Australia was aware of problems last year when it sent a 2,000-strong security force to restore order in the crime-ravaged Solomon islands, fearing it was on the verge of becoming a failed state that could be exploited by "drug dealers and terrorists". Canberra has also agreed to send police to Papua New Guinea under an aid program designed to counter its spiralling crime wave. Qantas is also now working closely with Air Niugini to boost airport security, although Qantas crisis planning manager Karl Sullivan said the Australian airline may be forced to use financial leverage to achieve improvements. Intelligence experts say the incidents highlight a potentially fatal flaw in aviation security which could be widespread in the South Pacific. Opposition transport spokesman Martin Ferguson said airport security is lacking throughout the region. "You only have to go to these Pacific nations to actually experience it first hand," he said. "Vanuatu to Fiji to Solomon Islands, everyone knows where there are problems in the Pacific." Attached Photo: An air traffic controller stands outside the Bonriki International Airport control tower
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