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Aviation Security,
Privacy, Data Protection
and Other Human
Rights: Technologies
and Legal Principles
Law, Governance and Technology Series
Volume 37
Series editors
Pompeu Casanovas, Barcelona, Spain
Giovanni Sartor, Florence, Italy
Serge Gutwirth, Brussels, Belgium
Issues in Privacy and Data Protection aims at publishing peer reviewed scientific
manuscripts that focus upon issues that engage into an analysis or reflexion related
to the consequences of scientific and technological developments upon the private
sphere, the personal autonomy and the self-construction of humans with data pro-
tection and privacy as anchor points. The objective is to publish both disciplinary,
multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary works on questions that relate to experiences
and phenomena that can or could be covered by legal concepts stemming from the
law regarding the protection of privacy and/or the processing of personal data. Since
both the development of science and technology, and in particular information tech-
nology (ambient intelligence, robotics, artificial intelligence, knowledge discovery,
data mining, surveillance, etc.), and the law on privacy and data protection are in
constant frenetic mood of change (as is clear from the many legal conflicts and
reforms at hand), we have the ambition to reassemble a series of highly contempo-
rary and forward-looking books, wherein cutting edge issues are analytically, con-
ceptually and prospectively presented
When I was finalizing this work, the worst incident in Russian/Soviet history of
civil aviation occurred. On 31 October 2015, terrorists blew up Airbus A321 during
its flight from Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg, killing 224 persons on board,
mostly Russians. Tragically, I found I needed to update my research with new sad
facts and figures. When people are killed, it hurts. When fellow citizens are killed,
the pain is doubled.
As a participant of a student exchange programme, I was in the USA at the
moment of the 9/11 attack. I flew from New York to Moscow in October 2001 and
experienced the more stringent security measures. A pair of small scissors was con-
fiscated from my hand baggage. I was living in Moscow when the worst terrorist
events occurred there, such as the Dubrovka Theatre siege in 2002 and bombing of
two flights by suicide terrorists in 2004. On 22 July 2011, I was living in Norway
and personally heard the explosion of bombs in government buildings in Oslo. One
of the guests invited to my wedding party a week later was unable to attend; her
close relative had been killed in the bombings of the government quarter in Oslo.
There have been other terrorist-related events in my life.
Turning from the personal to a more general perspective, I must say that although
not all these catastrophic events were aviation-related, almost all of them had some
influence on security regimes, including aviation. Flying from Oslo to Moscow and
back quite frequently, as well as other routes, I could not help but notice direct or
indirect consequences such as restrictions on liquids, having to remove shoes, metal
detectors at the entrance of the airport or body scanners. As a researcher in the field
of aviation security and data privacy, however, I know that these measures are only
the tip of the iceberg. The emerging mass of security-related data and the corre-
sponding impact on individual privacy are only in the beginning stage of
development.
My interest in aviation grew as a result of my work as a lawyer in a business avia-
tion company, Moscow Sky, operating internationally. I worked there during 2005–
2008. I have fond memories of my colleagues and the time I spent there. When I
then took the LLM degree in ICT law at the University of Oslo, I was very fortunate
v
vi Preface
to be able to combine aviation and data protection issues in my master’s thesis. The
topic concerned passenger name record agreements between the EU and the
USA. My master’s thesis was published by the Norwegian Research Center for
Computers and Law (NRCCL). I was privileged to have Professor Jon Bing as my
supervisor. Very sadly, he passed away in 2014.
Inspired by conversations with Jon Bing and the director of NRCCL, Professor
Dag Wiese Schartum, I decided to further develop the topic. The aim was to research
broader issues in civil aviation security versus privacy, data protection and other
human rights and – on a global level – to write a book. I completed the work in
2016.
First of all, I would like to thank Professor Dag Wiese Schartum. He has always
been very supportive, available for help and advice at any time and willing to pro-
vide valuable comments and ideas. I am also very thankful to Professor Lee Andrew
Bygrave, for his invaluable advice and comments, in particular on data privacy
issues.
I would like to thank Peter Burgess from PRIO for his encouragement of my
work at the initial stage, inviting me to relevant seminars and sharing contacts in the
civil aviation field. I would like to thank the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority for
hosting a meeting at which they presented their organization and work. Many thanks
go to the personnel of the Norwegian airport operator Avinor, in particular to senior
security advisor Ole Folkestad, who was especially helpful in providing me with an
of understanding the use of technologies in modern airports. My gratitude also goes
to other relevant entities and persons, in particular from Norway and Russia, who
took the time to answer my questions.
I would also like to thank all colleagues at the NRCCL who have always been
very kind and friendly towards me. Special thanks go to the head of administration
of the Institute of Private Law, Eva Modvar, and then to her successor, Eli Knotten,
for their kindness and help with every practical issue I faced and for always being
available to provide support and advice. I would like to specially thank Tim
Challman for proofreading the final text and for offering valuable comments and
advice regarding the English language.
I am indebted to my family, especially to my mother, my husband Håken and our
children, Maria, Anna and Aleksander. Håken has been very kind and extremely
patient. He has been a willing babysitter and took good care of our small children,
while I was busy with the book and was unable to spend as much time with them as
I wished. This work is dedicated to my family. I love you.
1 Introduction................................................................................................ 1
1.1 Background and Subject Matter........................................................ 1
1.2 Aims of the Research........................................................................ 8
1.3 Approach of the Research................................................................. 9
1.4 Overview of the Structure................................................................. 13
vii
viii Contents
Abbreviations................................................................................................... 423
Annexes............................................................................................................. 425
Annex 1: ICAO PNR Guidelines, PNR Data Elements............................... 425
Annex 2: EU-US PNR Agreement, PNR Data Types.................................. 426
Annex 3: EU PNR Directive, Passenger Name Record Data as Far
as Collected by Air Carriers......................................................................... 427
Annex 4: Russian PNR System, PNR Data Types....................................... 428
xiii
xiv Table of Cases
Liberty and Others v. the United Kingdom, No. 58243/00, 1 July 2008.
Lingens v. Austria, No. 9815/82, 8 July 1986.
Luordo v. Italy, No. 32190/96, 17 Mar 2013.
Malone v. the United Kingdom, No. 8691/79, 2 Aug 1984.
Marper v. the United Kingdom, No. 30562/04 and 30566/04, 4 Dec 2008.
McFeeley v. the United Kingdom, No. 8317/78, 15 May 1980.
Miazdzyk v. Poland, No. 23592/07, 24 Jan 2012.
Ollson v. Sweden, No. 10465/83, 24 May 1988.
Peck v. the United Kingdom, No. 44647/98, 28 Jan 2003.
Prescher v. Bulgaria, No. 6767/04, 7 Jun 2011.
Rangelov v. Germany, No. 5123/07, 22 Mar 2012.
Riener v. Bulgaria, No. 46343/99, 23 May 2006.
S and Marper v. the United Kingdom, No. 30562/04 and 30566/04, 4 Dec 2008.
Sejdić and Finci v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, No. 27996/06 and 34836/06, 22 Dec
2009.
Shimovolos v. Russia, No. 30194/09, 21 Jun 2011.
Soering v. the United Kingdom, No. 14038/88, 7 Jul 1989.
Stamose v. Bulgaria, No. 29713/05, 27 Nov 2012.
Uzun v. Germany, No. 35623/05, 2 Sep 2010.
Paul and Audrey Edwards v. the United Kingdom, No. 46477/99, 14 March 2002.
Bromiley v. the United Kingdom (dec.), No. 33747/96, 23 Nov 1999.
Finogenov and others v. Russia, No. 18299/03 and 27311/03, 20 Dec 2011.
Joined Cases C-92/09 and C-93/09 Volker und Markus Schecke GbR and Hartmut
Eifert v. Land Hessen, 9 November 2010.
Joined Cases C-141/12 and C-372/12, YS v Minister voor Immigratie, Integratie en
Asiel and Minister voor Immigratie, Integratie en Asiel v M and S., 17 July 2014.
USA
UK
Durant v. FSA [2003] EWCA Civ 1746, Court of Appeal (Civil Division) decision
of Lord Justices Auld, Mummery and Buxton (8 December 2003).
R v. Rooney [2006] EWCA Crim 1841 (12 July 2006).
List of Figures
xvii
List of Tables
Table 2.1 Summary of national regulation and other features ������������������������ 62
Table 4.1 Aircraft safety occurrences worldwide (1921–2015)���������������������� 105
Table 4.2 Aviation security and other relevant regulation
in the selected states������������������������������������������������������������������������ 152
Table 6.1 Profiling in relation to selected aviation security measures������������ 258
Table 6.2 Privacy/data protection application for CCTV�������������������������������� 269
Table 6.3 Aviation security measures’ impact on privacy
and data protection�������������������������������������������������������������������������� 303
Table 6.4 Aviation security measures’ impact on human rights���������������������� 304
Table 7.1 Aviation security measures and suitability and necessity���������������� 391
Table 7.2 Relation between aviation security measures
and privacy and data protection principles�������������������������������������� 391
Table 7.3 Relation between aviation security measures
and other human rights�������������������������������������������������������������������� 392
xix
Chapter 1
Introduction
As the title of this work explicitly reflects, the discussion will mainly deal with two
groups of issues: aviation security and privacy, data protection and other human
rights. While aviation security is mainly aimed at preventing acts of unlawful inter-
ference with civil aviation1 and relates to the state’s undertakings to protect persons,
aircraft, airport facilities and other material assets from harm, there are also various
fundamental human rights instruments aimed at protecting not only the right to life,
but also other rights and freedoms of individuals.
“Individuals” or “persons”2 in both cases, within the civil aviation field, mean
people: air passengers, crew, and people on the ground.3 This research concentrates
on air passengers, since this category is the principal concern when it comes to
security screenings, personal data collection and transfer, as well as other methods
that impact on human rights. Although statistically only a small part of the worlds’
1
It is common to differentiate between two types of aviation: civil aviation and state aviation. Civil
aviation mainly refers to commercial and other needs of the citizens and economy. In this research,
civil aviation will mainly imply the commercial aspect and will refer to transportation of
passengers.
2
Used as synonymous.
3
People on the ground (non-passengers) may include different persons: those meeting their rela-
tives or friends at the airport arrival halls (they may be subject to a part of security control such as
metal detectors at the airport entrance, e.g. in Moscow), airport staff (are usually subject to special
control) or just people who can suffer being in the neighbourhood of a terrorist attack (e.g. if the
bomb is put in a car near the airport, or if the exploded airplane falls onto civil buildings, etc.).
Aviation security certainly endeavours to protect all these people as well. As I will explain in Sect.
4.5.3, aviation security covers the airport infrastructure too, thus, it extends to such elements as
airport train stations, taxi areas, etc. However, people on the ground are usually subject to a much
lesser degree of control/surveillance than passengers.
population travels by air, this number is constantly growing,4 thus, aviation security
measures may potentially concern a substantial part of people.
Screenings and other aviation security measures at airports have become a part
of day-to-day life and culture for millions of people all around the world, so that
people seem to accept that there is no other way to keep them safe in the air.5 The
scope of these procedures, their obligatory nature, as well as possible negative con-
sequences in the event of failure to be subject to the security measures are outlined
for instance, in the airlines’ carriage conditions available on the websites:
Passengers and/or their baggage are subject to security screening, including but not limited
to, security profiling, physical pat-downs and inspections, x-ray screening, manual bag
searches, questioning of Passengers, and use of electronic or other detectors or screening or
security devices, in the sole discretion of the government, airport or UA (United Airlines),
and with or without the Passenger‘s presence, consent or knowledge. Neither UA nor its
employees or agents is liable for any damage, loss, delay (including refusal to transport),
confiscation of property, injury or other harm relating to or arising out of security screening
conducted by an agent of the airport or any local, state, or federal agency or a Passenger’s
failure to submit to or comply with such security screening.6
On the one hand, the general public often considers aviation security measures
that are designed to enhance security as positive developments. On the other hand,
it is clear that they have a heavy impact on the processing of passengers at the air-
port. For most travellers screening and other procedures constitute an additional
inconvenience and the most uncomfortable part of their entire journey.7 They are
time-consuming: before 9/11, the average checkpoint processed 350 passengers per
hour; today fewer than 150 per hour are processed,8 in some cases intrusively, with
increasing costs that are ultimately passed on to passengers.
The inconveniences to passengers definitely may include problems connected
with their rights as human beings. This is particularly important for this work: some
aviation security measures, technologies, or methods may have impact on the indi-
viduals’ rights, so that these rights may be interfered with, limited or violated. Civil
rights organizations and advocates cry out against violations of individuals’ liberties
and freedoms in aviation security.9
It should be noted that despite the fact that human rights are under threat in gen-
eral, i.e. this is a concern of all persons, only some individuals will ultimately bear
the full (or any) cost of the violations.10 Clearly, only a small selection of the air
passengers will be subject to additional screening due to profiling techniques or will
4
E.g. 3.3 billion passengers were transported in 2014 worldwide. See Chap. 4.
5
Simmons. Searching for Terrorists: Why “Public Safety” is not a Special Need (2009) p. 912.
6
Rule 20 Screening of passengers and baggage. United Air Lines, Inc. Contract of Carriage
(revised 31 December 2015), https://www.united.com/web/format/pdf/Contract_of_Carriage.pdf.
7
Ghee. Recommendations for airports and airlines to improve baggage, security, immigration,
arrivals and more in 2015 (2015).
8
IATA. Remarks of Tony Tyler at the IATA Ops Conference in Vienna, 15 April 2013. http://www.
iata.org/pressroom/speeches/Pages/2013-04-15-01.aspx.
9
See, e.g. websites of ACLU: http://www.aclu.org and EPIC: http://epic.org.
10
McDonagh. Risk, human rights and the bureacratisation of counter-terrorism (2011) p. 10.
1.1 Background and Subject Matter 3
be prohibited from flying due to their names appearing on a black list. However,
hypothetically, no one can be guaranteed that their name might appear on such a list
by mistake, or they might otherwise be targeted due to technologies’ false positives.
Thus, the fact that the potential rights violation pertains to only a few does not make
the problem of possible violations less important.
The key word for security measures is surveillance, which can be defined as “the
focused, systematic and routine attention to personal details for purposes of influ-
ence, management, protection, or direction”.11 There are multiple forms of surveil-
lance; for aviation security, most common forms include camera surveillance
(CCTV – Closed Circuit Television),12 the use of biometrics, the use of data mining
and profiling.13
At the same time, a dual nature of surveillance can be noted: on the one hand,
surveillance, if properly used, can contribute to security, protection from crimes, but
on the other hand, surveillance itself may present a threat to individuals, communi-
ties and societies because of its ubiquity, intensity and use of personal data; more-
over, it is argued that “broad surveillance is a mark of bad security”.14 Government
surveillance is directed at all of persons, including innocent people, and this is nor-
mally done in secret, with little or no oversight.15 Although there are democratic
procedural constraints, effective oversight and control may be very difficult to
ensure as long as the power is exercised by large companies, state organizations and
intelligence agencies.16
As a result, citizens are often unaware of the most questionable surveillance
methods, such as camera surveillance, creation and storage of different dossiers and
black lists that may affect the ability to fly, require additional screening, etc. In a
state of mass surveillance, personal rights and freedoms are severely limited, as
clearly predicted in Orwell’s book “1984”.
In the public debates, the right to privacy is frequently the first to be mentioned
in this regard. Many security measures and technologies provoke “anxiety, protest,
and resistance”17 specifically in relation to privacy. “Security versus privacy” has
become a common expression. In 2013, the enhanced discussion of privacy, mainly
in connection with PRISM and the Edward Snowden revelations as well as the
removal of “naked” body scanners from American airports and other events, made
Dictionary.com declare “privacy” word of the year.18 However, is it merely a word
11
Lyon. Surveillance studies: An overview (2007a) p. 14.
12
In the literature, “CCTV” is used as generic term camera surveillance. Although CCTV does not
amount to camera surveillance, as explained in Chap. 6, these terms will be used as synonymous
in this research.
13
All these terms will be elaborated in detail in Chap. 6.
14
Wright [et al.] Questioning surveillance. In: Computer Law & Security Review. Vol. 31 (2015)
pp. 281–282, Schneier Schneier on security (2008) pp. 8, 69.
15
ACLU. Surveillance and Privacy. http://www.aclu.org/national-security/surveillance-privacy
16
Wright et al. (2015) p. 282.
17
Nissenbaum. Privacy in context (2010) p. 3.
18
Dictionary.com: http://blog.dictionary.com/author/dictionary-com-blog/. 17 December 2013.
4 1 Introduction
of the year? Schneier calls security versus privacy “the battle of the century:” which
of these values is more important, how much privacy are you willing to give up for
security?19
In this respect, it should be stressed that the rights to privacy and data protection
are interrelated and partly overlap, as shown in Fig. 1.1.
The key words for this research from Lyon’s definition of surveillance are “per-
sonal details”. The point is that personal data have direct relation to the rights of
privacy, which protects, among other things, private information20 pertaining to
individuals, and data protection, which can be seen as one of the dimensions of
privacy or as a separate right.
It is not surprising, then, that the term “data privacy” is commonly used, or the
term “dataveillance” used in reference to the phenomenon of data being used to
monitor and surveil citizens.21 Through extensive data protection regulation, at least
in the EU and some other states, it is quite clear that data – if they satisfy the require-
ments of being personal and being processed22 – should be protected. The term “pri-
vacy”, however, is less clear.
Consequently, a question arises as to what privacy is. Numerous theoretical con-
ceptions have been advanced as definitions for the term, but none of them has
become common or universally accepted. Moreover, persons’ views on this value
do not remain static and can change according to the context, other needs and other
factors. In many books and articles, the death or the end of privacy is predicted,23
mainly due to total surveillance and pervasive databases. Everything depends, of
course, on what one means by the term privacy. Clearly, privacy as total secrecy is
not the most suitable today,24 nor applicable, especially in public places such as
airports. However, privacy nevertheless can be protected, but this should be done
taking the new contexts into account. In the airports, the context – providing a viation
19
Schneier (2008) p. 69.
20
Data and information are used as synonyms in this research.
21
Clarke. Information technology and dataveillance. In: Communications of the ACM. Vol. 31
(1988). p. 498–512.
22
See Chap. 2.
23
E.g. Garfinkel. Database nation: the death of privacy in the 21st century (2000), Rubenfeld. The
End of Privacy. In: Stanford law review (2008). In January 2015, Science dedicated its special
issue to “The end of privacy”.
24
Solove. The end of privacy? In: Scientific American. Vol. 299 (2008b) p. 104.
1.1 Background and Subject Matter 5
25
See Chap. 2.
26
Vermeulen and Bellanova. European ‘smart’surveillance: What’s at stake for data protection,
privacy and non-discrimination? In: Security and Human Rights. Vol. 23 (2013) p. 305.
27
Poullet. Data protection legislation: What is at stake for our society and democracy? In:
Computer Law & Security Review. Vol. 25 (2009) p. 226.
28
Vermeulen and Bellanova (2013) p. 305.
29
Amicelli. Report on Theoretical Frameworks and Previous Empirical Research (2012a) p. 14.
30
See Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (A/CONF.157/23), adopted by the World
Conference on Human Rights, held in Vienna, 14–25 June 1993.
31
Schneier (2008) p. 70.
32
See Lyon. Surveillance after september 11 (2003a).
6 1 Introduction
d erogation. Taking into account the threats of terrorism and the amount of harm that
may cause a successful attack on an aircraft, the right to life may be used as a strong
argument for the enhanced security.
Secondly, aviation security, as defined in legal instruments, involves in general
different measures and human and material resources intended to safeguard civil
aviation against acts of unlawful interference that may jeopardize the security of
civil aviation.33 In the civil aviation sector, the necessity of safeguarding people
from terrorism and crime is obvious. Moreover, this sector has immense importance
to the world economy. Its assets, aircraft, airports and infrastructure, constitute con-
siderable economic value and should be protected as well. At the same time, the
threat of terrorist attacks against civil aviation is deemed to be heightened. Hence,
the connection between the threats and advanced security measures seems to be
clear. The latter is a logical consequence of the former.
The aviation security-privacy dilemma is quite visible here: implementation of
different measures, procedures and methods is designed to protect individuals, but
may have tensions with the individuals’ rights. A clear result is what Lyon calls a
paradox – the side effect that many aviation security measures justified by security
risks and fight against terrorism actually produce risks themselves – in relation to
privacy, data protection and other liberties.34 Compromises to privacy/data protec-
tion/other human rights can be considered as the costs to be paid for a security
decision.
Actual surveillance may start long before you enter the airport, for instance, at
the moment you reserve a plane ticket and fill out various personal data fields.
Different systems collect personal data of passengers, use and share them with other
systems for further checks, data mining, profiling and so on. The opportunities for
surveillance are constantly growing along with technological developments: high-
tech “smart” camera surveillance using biometrics, body scanners, security tunnels
and so on.
What is next? How much security is enough? How far can the states and security
organs go in their attempts to find the most effective measures? To illustrate an
absurd situation, security professionals ironically demonstrate a picture of “security
of the future” showing naked passengers on board the aircraft, i.e. deprived of any
privacy at all. In general, “If passengers are divesting items and holding their arms
up like criminals, then the terrorists have won by fundamentally changing our core
values”.35
A common suggestion is the idea of finding a balance between the privacy and
security values. In other words, we should balance privacy or, broadly stated, liberty
against security using the so-called trade-off model. More details will be elaborated
in Chap. 5, but in general, it is not possible to increase one of the values without
decreasing the other.
33
Article 3 of Regulation No 300/2008.
34
Lyon. Globalizing Surveillance Comparative and Sociological Perspectives. In: International
Sociology. Vol. 19 (2004) p. 137.
35
Sagi-Dolev. Manufacturer Perspectives. In: Aviation Security International. Vol. 19 (2013) p. 26.
1.1 Background and Subject Matter 7
36
Schneier (2008) p. 70.
37
Spencer. Security Versus Privacy: Reframing the Debate. In: Denver University Law Review.
Vol. 79 (2002) p. 519.
38
Aquilina. Public security versus privacy in technology law: A balancing act? In: Computer Law
& Security Review. Vol. 26 (2010) p. 135.
39
Spencer (2002) p. 519.
40
See Chap. 5.
41
See Chap. 5.
42
See Chaps. 3 and 2 respectively.
8 1 Introduction
As a result of existing research, it is quite well known that security measures, includ-
ing those in aviation security, have tensions with human rights in general and with
privacy and data protection specifically. However, the pro-privacy side focuses on
privacy interests rather than aviation security interests. The latter tends to remain in
the “shadows”. In addition, substantial research covers mainly the EU, the USA and
the Western states in general. There is some lack in the research at the international
level and at the national level of non-Western states.
Using existing research extensively, this work analyses different security mea-
sures, methods and technologies in civil aviation from the perspective of their
impact on the rights to privacy and data protection as well as related individuals’
rights, including the right to health, freedom of movement, the right to equal treat-
ment and non-discrimination, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and
rights of the child. In short, the main objective is to discuss what can be considered
proportionate security, taking into account privacy/data protection other human
rights concerns.
The following sub-aims can be indicated.
1. To discuss whether the use of the selected aviation security measures: body scan-
ners, camera surveillance and Passenger Name Record (PNR) systems43
(“selected measures”), in particular their impact on privacy and data protection,
corresponds to legal principles of privacy and data protection. Thus, to some
extent, the research will analyse the situation de lege lata – but subject to limita-
tions and on an illustrative basis.44
2. To describe the selected measures, their background, emergence and contempo-
rary usage. In other words, the situation will be analysed de facto. This is particu-
larly important, since for privacy/liberty-security debate, not only privacy/liberty
interests, but also security interests should be better understood and more
43
Transfer of air passenger data from airlines to state authorities, with further analysis of these data
for security and other purposes. See more details in Chap. 6.
44
See more details below.
1.3 Approach of the Research 9
eaningfully evaluated.45 This is the reason for the fairly detailed analysis of
m
aviation security background, importance of civil aviation, aviation security con-
cepts, effectiveness matters etc. and the specific aviation security measures in
this research.
3. To analyse options for rectification and recommendation – i.e., to discuss legal
policies, how the situation should be – de lege ferenda. Legal principles of pri-
vacy and data protection will be used as the basis. I stress that this aim refers
mainly to general insights rather than to proposing a comprehensive framework
for the reform.
I will also draw attention to specific issues relating to legal, technological and
other developments in aviation security and privacy/data protection which, in my
opinion, present the most controversial and problematic issues relating to aviation
security-privacy dilemma.
This research differs from traditional legal research. While it involves three levels of
regulation (international, regional and national), deep and comprehensive analysis
of legal regulation at all these levels would be unrealistic. Thus, I have chosen to use
legal principles as a basis for analysis, and to use legal regulation to first explain
principles and secondly for their illustrations. In addition, the use of legal principles
has other advantages.
As will be explained in Chap. 5, legal principles can be applied to any jurisdic-
tions considered in this work. Since technological development is rapid and legisla-
tion is not, to evaluate selected aviation security measures, we can apply legal
principles to aviation security measures on a case-to-case basis in an effort to iden-
tify problems and deficiencies, to identify and analyse the options for rectification
and recommendation. Moreover, principles enable an easier exchange of views
across legal regimes and between various professions involved in the aviation
security-privacy debate. Thus, for research like this, which implies various jurisdic-
tions and interests, the analysis of legal principles rather than legal regulation has a
pragmatic goal, and is aimed to suggest an effective model for approaches to the
aviation security-privacy dilemma.
Respective legal regulation, in particular, applicable international and EU instru-
ments, along with relevant case law, will be used as the sources of the legal princi-
ples. For illustration of principles, “regulatory cases” from the EU and some national
regimes: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK), Norway,
the United States of America (USA), and Russian Federation (Russia, RF) (“selected
states”) will be used.
45
Solove. Nothing to hide: The false tradeoff between privacy and security (2011) p. 3.
10 1 Introduction
46
Globalization is a multidimensional phenomenon, which involves a deepening and broadening of
rapid transboundary exchanges due to developments in technology, communications, and media.
Such exchanges create a more interdependent world. See Shelton. Protecting Human Rights in a
Globalized World. In: BC Int’l Comp. L. Rev. Vol. 25 (2002) p. 275.
47
Whenever possible, the research uses English versions of Russian and Norwegian sources or
their official translations into English, with indication of sources. In all other cases, unless speci-
fied otherwise, the translations are the author’s.
1.3 Approach of the Research 11
under development; they may present central future security measures, not only
within civil aviation. These measures are hence central aviation security measures
for this research.
At the same time, there are other security techniques and methods that may serve
a part of the selected measures, or be connected to them directly or indirectly. What
is important is that they may have influence on the aviation security and privacy
dilemma, for instance, by increasing effectiveness or by raising additional concerns,
contributing to the measure’s aggregated impact on passengers’ rights. Hence, they
will be discussed as well, in the amount necessary to understand the technique in
general, focusing on some specific features in the context of the selected measures.
This includes biometrics, profiling, and behaviour analysis. Moreover, more general
trends and approaches in modern aviation security may have additional impact on
the dilemma and will therefore be discussed too.
It should be noted that in contrast to other legal works whereby the legal require-
ments influence and determine the relevance of technological features,48 in this
research, technological descriptions are determined by the technology’s functions
with potential impact on individuals’ rights. In other words, the technology descrip-
tion is first functional, with the primary aim to show the “meeting point” of the
technologies and human beings.
Obviously, for these purposes, not all technical and operative capabilities are
essential, but only those which may have impact on human rights, including techni-
cal safeguards to protect these rights. Hence, only selected relevant features are
chosen and analysed, with subsequent evaluation of the applicability of human
rights and operation of legal principles: how effective is the technology for protec-
tion of the right to life?; which other concerns for human rights arise?; how serious
are they?; are there technical safeguards that are able to protect the rights? etc. The
technology may entail different applications, different safeguards and thereby pro-
duce different impacts. These different variants should also be described.
As a result, the technological and operational description in this research is
broader than is usually found in legal works. This can be considered an advantage,
since details about aviation security technologies are not thoroughly addressed by
legal research. In addition, people in general are unaware of many aviation security
technologies’ capabilities and usage, and not all passengers regularly read Aviation
Security International and similar journals. Thus, this work can contribute to better
awareness, at least for its readers.
At the same time, there is a problem of missing information in respect of aviation
security. An important aspect here is the degree of openness of information in avia-
tion security. This issue will be discussed in more detail in Chap. 5 on the subject of
the principle of legality, but in short, aviation security, which falls within national
security, is characterized by a high amount of restricted information. This can be
understandable, since security must be safeguarded. It is essential for the security
system to keep many of its elements confidential: the more information about the
48
See e.g. Ibid.
12 1 Introduction
security system is made available, the more vulnerable it is. Release may constitute
a threat of security.
As the result of limited information, a legal researcher with specific requirements
to the study faces a problem with description of some facts.49 In the case of this
research, information about many processes and issues in aviation security is miss-
ing, in particular, where exactly some of the discussed technologies are used, the
details about technical and operative characteristics of the measures, criteria of risk
assessment and effectiveness, etc. Indeed, it can be difficult to rely on facts lacking
some essential details or that are unclear or controversial. This leads to a degree of
uncertainty when analysing the proportionality of the regimes in this work.
Another challenge is that aviation security measures as well as technologies and
operational procedures designed to ensure the individual’s rights are subject to
quick and constant changes and further development. Thus, while finalizing this
research, I tried to update references to all legal sources, facts, figures, technological
features, etc. on which the research is built. The presentation of law in this book is
current law as of 5 October 2016. Unless otherwise specified, all cited websites
were last accessed on that date.
However, not all sources could be sufficiently updated. This creates a potential
risk that some facts/numbers used in this research might be outdated. Nevertheless,
this problem can be seen mitigated by a global and general character of this work,
where details are used mainly as illustrations, and the fact that changes in the anal-
ysed spheres are inevitable anyway.
In summary, due to the presented challenges and reasons, the research cannot be
considered an all-encompassing and comprehensive evaluation of the current
regimes capturing all the relevant details and presenting “the ultimate truth”, but
should rather be seen as a contributing perspective, suggesting that further research
is needed.
At the same time, the research is aimed to concentrate on principal issues on
aviation security versus privacy rather than details, thus, can be applicable to future
regimes as well as regimes beyond aviation security field, wherever/whenever the
individual’s rights may be compromised under the motto of security needs/
precautions.
As a matter of contribution to the existing research, a number of features of this
research can be highlighted.
1. This research endeavours to present the aviation security interests more thor-
oughly than is usually done in privacy-security debates. Thus, it is an attempt to
go deeper into aviation security perspectives than is usually done in security-
privacy debates. Civil aviation is a sector in which the risks of terrorism are
highlighted, and with the most advanced and sophisticated security measures if
compared with other transport modes or other public places. For better under-
standing of how the situation became what it is, why this sector requires enhanced
protection, as well as the logic of aviation security decisions (which exactly
49
Andersen. Edb og ansvar. Jurist-og Økonomforbundets Forlag (1988) p. 29.
Another random document with
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gulf of crime. Having resolved on the means to be employed in the
murder, she sent for a quondam servant of her father, Robert Weir,
who lived in the neighbouring city. He came to the place of
Waristoun, to see her; but it appeares her resolution failed, and he
was not admitted. She again sent for him, and he again went. Again
he was not admitted. At length, on his being called a third time, he
was introduced to her presence. Before this time she had found an
accomplice in the nurse of her child. It was then arranged that Weir
should be concealed in a cellar till the dead of night, when he should
come forth, and proceed to destroy the laird as he lay in his chamber.
The bloody tragedy was acted precisely in accordance with this plan.
Weir was brought up at midnight from the cellar to the hall by the
lady herself, and afterwards went forward alone to the laird’s
bedroom. As he proceeded to his bloody work, she retired to her bed,
to wait the intelligence of her husband’s murder. When Weir entered
the chamber, Waristoun awoke with the noise, and leant inquiringly
over the bed. The murderer then leapt upon him. The unhappy man
uttered a great cry. Weir gave him some severe blows on vital parts,
particularly one on the flank vein. But as the laird was still able to cry
out, he at length saw fit to take more effective measures. He seized
him by the throat with both hands, and, compressing that part with
all his force, succeeded, after a few minutes, in depriving him of life.
When the lady heard her husband’s first death-shout, she leapt out
of bed, in an agony of mingled horror and repentance, and
descended to the hall; but she made no effort to countermand her
mission of destruction. She waited patiently till Weir came down to
inform her that all was over. Weir made an immediate escape from
justice, but Lady Waristoun and the nurse were apprehended before
the deed was half-a-day old. Being caught, as the Scottish law terms
it, “red-hand,”—that is, while still bearing unequivocal marks of guilt,
—they were immediately tried by the magistrates of Edinburgh, and
sentenced to be strangled and burnt at the stake.
The lady’s father, the Laird of Dunipace, who was a favourite of
King James VI., made all the interest he could with his Majesty to
procure a pardon; but all that could be obtained from the king was
an order that the unhappy lady should be executed by decapitation,
and that at such an early hour in the morning as to make the affair as
little of a spectacle as possible. The space intervening between her
sentence and her execution was only thirty-seven hours, yet in that
little time Lady Waristoun contrived to become converted from a
blood-stained and unrelenting murderess into a perfect saint on
earth. One of the then ministers of Edinburgh has left an account of
her conversion, which was lately published, and would be extremely
amusing, were it not for the loathing which seizes the mind on
beholding such an instance of perverted religion. She went to the
scaffold with a demeanour which would have graced a martyr. Her
lips were incessant in the utterance of pious exclamations. She
professed herself confident of everlasting happiness. She even
grudged every moment which she spent in this world as so much
taken from that sum of eternal felicity which she was to enjoy in the
next. The people who came to witness the last scene, instead of
having their minds inspired with a salutary horror for her crime,
were engrossed in admiration of her saintly behaviour, and greedily
gathered up every devout word which fell from her tongue. It would
almost appear, from the narrative of the clergyman, that her fate was
rather a matter of envy than of any other feeling. Her execution took
place at four in the morning of the 5th of July, at the Watergate, near
Holyrood-house; and at the same hour her nurse was burned on the
Castlehill. It is some gratification to know that the actual murderer,
Weir, was eventually seized and executed, though not till four years
afterwards.—Chambers’s Edinburgh Journal, 1832.
A TALE OF PENTLAND.
Mr John Haliday having been in hiding on the hills, after the battle
of Pentland, became impatient to hear news concerning the
sufferings of his brethren who had been in arms; and in particular, if
there were any troops scouring the district in which he had found
shelter. Accordingly, he left his hiding-place in the evening, and
travelled towards the valley until about midnight, when, coming to
the house of Gabriel Johnstone, and perceiving a light, he
determined on entering, as he knew him to be a devout man, and one
much concerned about the sufferings of the Church of Scotland.
Mr Haliday, however, approached the house with great caution, for
he rather wondered why there should be a light there at midnight,
while at the same time he neither heard psalms singing nor the
accents of prayer. So, casting off his heavy shoes, for fear of making a
noise, he stole softly up to the little window from whence the light
beamed, and peeped in, where he saw, not Johnstone, but another
man, whom he did not know, in the very act of cutting a soldier’s
throat, while Johnstone’s daughter, a comely girl, about twenty years
of age, was standing deliberately by, and holding the candle to him.
Haliday was seized with an inexpressible terror; for the floor was
all blood, and the man was struggling in the agonies of death, and
from his dress he appeared to have been a cavalier of some
distinction. So completely was the Covenanter overcome with horror,
that he turned and fled from the house with all his might. So much
had Haliday been confounded that he even forgot to lift his shoes,
but fled without them; and he had not run above half a bowshot
before he came upon two men hastening to the house of Gabriel
Johnstone. As soon as they perceived him running towards them
they fled, and he pursued them; for when he saw them so ready to
take alarm, he was sure they were some of the persecuted race, and
tried eagerly to overtake them, exerting his utmost speed, and calling
on them to stop. All this only made them run faster; and when they
came to a feal-dyke they separated, and ran different ways, and he
soon thereafter lost sight of them both.
This house, where Johnstone lived, is said to have been in a lonely
concealed dell, not far from West Linton, in what direction I do not
know, but it was towards that village that Haliday fled, not knowing
whether he went, till he came to the houses. Having no
acquaintances here whom he durst venture to call up, and the
morning having set in frosty, he began to conceive that it was
absolutely necessary for him to return to the house of Gabriel
Johnstone, and try to regain his shoes, as he little knew when or
where it might be in his power to get another pair. Accordingly, he
hasted back by a nearer path, and coming to the place before it was
day, found his shoes. At the same time he heard a fierce contention
within the house, but as there seemed to be a watch he durst not
approach it, but again made his escape.
Having brought some victuals along with him, he did not return to
his hiding-place that day, which was in a wild height, south of Biggar,
but remained in the moss of Craigengaur; and as soon as it drew
dark, descended again into the valley. Again he perceived a light in
the distance, where he thought no light should have been. But he
went towards it, and as he approached he heard the melody of
psalm-singing issuing from the place, and floating far on the still
breeze of the night. He hurried to the spot, and found the reverend
and devout Mr Livingston, in the act of divine worship, in an old void
barn on the lands of Slipperfield, with a great number of serious and
pious people, who were all much affected both by his prayers and
discourse.
After the worship was ended, Haliday made up to the minister,
among many others, to congratulate him on the splendour of his
discourse, and implore “a further supply of the same milk of
redeeming grace, with which they found their souls nourished,
cherished, and exalted.” The good man complied with the request,
and appointed another meeting at the same place on a future night.
Haliday having been formerly well acquainted with the preacher,
convoyed him on his way home, where they condoled with one
another on the hardness of their lots; and Haliday told him of the
scene he had witnessed at the house of Gabriel Johnstone. The heart
of the good minister was wrung with grief, and he deplored the
madness and malice of the people who had committed an act that
would bring down tenfold vengeance on the heads of the whole
persecuted race. At length it was resolved between them that, as soon
as it was day, they would go and reconnoitre, and if they found the
case of the aggravated nature they suspected, they would themselves
be the first to expose it, and give the perpetrators up to justice.
Accordingly, next morning they took another man into the secret,
a William Rankin, one of Mr Livingston’s elders, and the three went
away to Johnstone’s house, to investigate the case of the cavalier’s
murder; but there was a guard of three armed men opposed them,
and neither promises nor threatenings, nor all the minister’s
eloquence, could induce them to give way one inch. The men advised
the intruders to take themselves off, lest a worse thing should befall
them; and as they continued to motion them away, with the most
impatient gestures, the kind divine and his associates thought meet
to retire, and leave the matter as it was; and thus was this mysterious
affair hushed up in silence and darkness for that time, no tongue
having been heard to mention it further than as above recited. The
three armed men were all unknown to the others, but Haliday
observed that one of them was the very youth whom he saw cutting
off the soldier’s head with a knife.
The rage and cruelty of the Popish party seemed to gather new
virulence every day, influencing all the counsels of the king; and the
persecution of the Nonconformists was proportionably severe. One
new act of council was issued after another, all tending to root the
Covenanters out of Scotland, but it had only the effect of making
their tenets still dearer to them. The longed-for night of the meeting
in the old hay-barn at length arrived, and it was attended by a still
greater number than on the night preceding. A more motley group
can hardly be conceived than appeared in the barn that night, and
the lamps being weak and dim rendered the appearance of the
assembly still more striking. It was, however, observed that about the
middle of the service a number of fellows came in with broad slouch
bonnets, and watch-coats or cloaks about them, who placed
themselves in equal divisions at the two doors, and remained without
uncovering their heads, two of them being busily engaged taking
notes. Before Mr Livingston began the last prayer, however, he
desired the men to uncover, which they did, and the service went on
to the end; but no sooner had the minister pronounced the word
Amen, than the group of late comers threw off their cloaks, and
drawing out swords and pistols, their commander, one General
Drummond, charged the whole congregation in the king’s name to
surrender.
A scene of the utmost confusion ensued. The lights being
extinguished, many of the young men burst through the roof of the
old barn in every direction, and though many shots were fired at
them in the dark, great numbers escaped; but Mr Livingston and
other eleven were retained prisoners, and conveyed to Edinburgh,
where they were examined before the council and cast into prison.
Among the prisoners were Mr Haliday and the identical young man
whom he had seen in the act of murdering the cavalier, and who
turned out to be a Mr John Lindsay, from Edinburgh, who had been
at the battle of Pentland, and in hiding afterwards.
Great was the lamentation for the loss of Mr Livingston, who was
so highly esteemed by his hearers. The short extracts from his
sermons in the barn, that were produced against him on his trial,
prove him to have been a man endowed with talents somewhat above
the greater part of his contemporaries. His text that night it appears
had been taken from Genesis:—“And God saw the wickedness of man
that it was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” One of the quoted
passages concludes thus:—
“Let us join together in breaking the bands of the oppressors, and
casting their cords from us. As for myself, as a member of this poor
persecuted Church of Scotland, and an unworthy minister of it, I
hereby call upon you all, in the name of God, to set your faces, your
hearts, and your hands against all such acts, which are or shall be
passed against the covenanted work of reformation in this kingdom;
that we here declare ourselves free of the guilt of them, and pray that
God may put this in record in heaven.”
These words having been sworn to, and Mr Livingston not denying
them, a sharp debate arose in the council what punishment to award.
The king’s advocate urged the utility of sending him forthwith to the
gallows; but some friends in the council got his sentence commuted
to banishment; and he was accordingly banished the kingdom. Six
more, against whom nothing could be proven farther than their
having been present at a conventicle, were sentenced to
imprisonment for two months; among this number, Haliday was one.
The other five were condemned to be executed at the cross of
Edinburgh, on the 14th of December following; and among this last
unhappy number was Mr John Lindsay.
Haliday now tried all the means he could devise to gain an
interview with Lindsay, to have some explanation of the
extraordinary scene he had witnessed in the cottage at midnight, for
it had made a fearful impression upon his mind, and he never could
get rid of it for a moment; having still in his mind’s eye a beautiful
country maiden standing with a pleased face, holding a candle, and
Lindsay in the meantime at his horrid task. His endeavours,
however, were all in vain, for they were in different prisons, and the
jailer paid no attention to his requests. But there was a gentleman in
the privy council that year, whose name, I think, was Gilmour, to
whose candour Haliday conceived that both he and some of his
associates owed their lives. To this gentleman, therefore, he applied
by letter, requesting a private interview with him, as he had a
singular instance of barbarity to communicate, which it would be
well to inquire into while the possibility of doing so remained, for the
access to it would soon be sealed for ever. The gentleman attended
immediately, and Haliday revealed to him the circumstances
previously mentioned, stating that the murderer now lay in the
Tolbooth jail, under sentence of death.
Gilmour appeared much interested, as well as astonished at the
narrative, and taking out a note-book, he looked over some dates,
and then observed—“This date of yours tallies exactly with one of my
own, relating to an incident of the same sort; but the circumstances
narrated are so different, that I must conceive either that you are
mistaken, or that you are trumping up this story to screen some
other guilty person or persons.”
Haliday disclaimed all such motives, and persevered in his
attestations. Gilmour then took him along with him to the Tolbooth
prison, where the two were admitted to a private interview with the
prisoner, and there charged him with the crime of murder in such a
place and on such a night; but he denied the whole with disdain.
Haliday told him that it was in vain for him to deny it, for he beheld
him in the very act of perpetrating the murder with his own eyes,
while Gabriel Johnstone’s daughter stood deliberately and held the
candle to him.
“Hold your tongue, fellow!” said Lindsay, disdainfully, “for you
know not what you are saying. What a cowardly dog you must be by
your own account! If you saw me murdering a gentleman cavalier,
why did you not rush in to his assistance?”
“I could not have saved the gentleman then,” said Haliday, “and I
thought it not meet to intermeddle in such a scene of blood.”
“It was as well for you that you did not,” said Lindsay.
“Then you acknowledge being in the cottage of the dell that night?”
said Gilmour.
“And if I was, what is that to you? Or what is it now to me or any
person? I was there on the night specified; but I am ashamed of the
part I there acted, and am now well requited for it. Yes, requited as I
ought to be, so let it rest; for not one syllable of the transaction shall
any one hear from me.”
Thus they were obliged to leave the prisoner, and forthwith
Gilmour led Haliday up a stair to a lodging in the Parliament Square,
where they found a gentleman lying sick in bed, to whom Mr
Gilmour said, after inquiring after his health, “Brother Robert, I
conceive that we two have found out the young man who saved your
life at the cottage among the mountains.”
“I would give the half that I possess that this were true,” said the
sick gentleman. “Who or where is he?”
“If I am right in my conjecture,” said the privy councillor, “he is
lying in the Tolbooth jail, under sentence of death, and has but a few
days to live. But tell me, brother, could you know him, or have you
any recollection of his appearance?”
“Alas! I have none,” said the other, mournfully, “for I was
insensible, through the loss of blood, the whole time I was under his
protection; and if I ever heard his name I have lost it, the whole of
that period being a total blank in my memory. But he must be a hero
in the first rank; and therefore, oh, my dear brother, save him
whatever his crime may be.”
“His life is justly forfeited to the laws of his country, brother,” said
Gilmour, “and he must die with the rest.”
“He shall not die with the rest if I should die for him,” cried the
sick man, vehemently. “I will move heaven and earth before my
brave deliverer shall die like a felon.”
“Calm yourself, brother, and trust that part to me,” said Gilmour.
“I think my influence saved the life of this gentleman, as well as the
lives of some others, and it was all on account of the feeling of
respect I had for the party, one of whom, or, rather, two of whom,
acted such a noble and distinguished part toward you. But pray,
undeceive this gentleman by narrating the facts to him, in which he
cannot fail to be interested.” The sick man, whose name, if I
remember aright, was Captain Robert Gilmour, of the volunteers,
then proceeded as follows:—
“There having been high rewards offered for the apprehension of
some south-country gentlemen, whose correspondence with Mr
Welch, and some other of the fanatics, had been intercepted, I took
advantage of information I obtained regarding the place of their
retreat, and set out, certain of apprehending two of them at least.
“Accordingly, I went off one morning about the beginning of
November, with only five followers, well armed and mounted. We
left Gilmerton long before it was light, and having a trusty guide,
rode straight to their hiding-place, where we did not arrive till
towards the evening, when we started them. They were seven in
number, and were armed with swords and bludgeons; but, being
apprized of our approach, they fled from us, and took shelter in a
morass, into which it was impossible to follow them on horseback.
But perceiving three more men on another hill, I thought there was
no time to lose, so giving one of my men our horses to hold, the rest
of us advanced into the morass with drawn swords and loaded horse-
pistols. I called to them to surrender, but they stood upon their
guard, determined on resistance; and just when we were involved to
the knees in the mire of the morass, they broke in upon us, pell-mell,
and for about two minutes the engagement was very sharp. There
was an old man struck me a terrible blow with a bludgeon, and was
just about to repeat it, when I brought him down with a shot from my
pistol. A young fellow then ran at me with his sword, and as I still
stuck in the moss, I could not ward the blow, so that he got a fair
stroke at my neck, meaning, without doubt, to cut off my head; and
he would have done it had his sword been sharp. As it was, he cut it
to the bone, and opened one of the jugular veins. I fell; but my men
firing a volley in their faces, at that moment they fled. It seems we
did the same, without loss of time; for I must now take my narrative
from the report of others, as I remember no more that passed. My
men bore me on their arms to our horses, and then mounted and
fled, trying all that they could to stanch the bleeding of my wound.
But perceiving a party coming down a hill, as with the intent of
cutting off their retreat, and losing all hopes of saving my life, they
carried me into a cottage in a wild lonely retreat, commended me to
the care of the inmates; and after telling them my name, and in what
manner I had received my death wound, they thought proper to
provide for their own safety, and so escaped.
“The only inmates of that lonely house, at least at that present
time, were a lover and his mistress, but intercommuned Whigs; and
when my men left me on the floor, the blood, which they had
hitherto restrained in part, burst out afresh and deluged the floor.
The young man said it was best to put me out of my pain, but the girl
wept and prayed him rather to render me some assistance. ‘Oh,
Johnny, man, how can you speak that gate?’ cried she. ‘Suppose he
be our mortal enemy, he is aye ane o’ God’s creatures, an’ has a soul
to be saved as well as either you or me; and a soldier is obliged to do
as he is bidden. Now Johnny, ye ken ye were learned to be a doctor o’
physic; wad ye no rather try to stop the bleeding, and save the young
officer’s life, as either kill him, or let him bleed to death on our floor,
when the blame o’ the murder might fa’ on us!’
“‘Now, the blessing of heaven light on your head, my dear Sally!’
said the lover, ‘for you have spoken the very sentiments of my heart;
and, since it is your desire, though we should both rue it, I here vow
to you that I will not only endeavour to save his life, but I will defend
it against our own party to the last drop of my blood.’
“He then began, and, in spite of my feeble struggles, who knew not
either what I was doing or suffering, sewed up the hideous gash in
my throat and neck, tying every stitch by itself; and the house not
being able to produce a pair of scissors, it seems that he cut off all the
odds and ends of the stitching with a large sharp gully knife, and it
was likely to have been during the operation that this gentleman
chanced to look in at the window. He then bathed the wound for an
hour with cloths dipped in cold water, dressed it with plaster of
wood-betony, and put me to bed, expressing to his sweetheart the
most vivid hopes of my recovery.
“These operations were scarcely finished when the maid’s two
brothers came home from their hiding-place; and it seems they
would have been there much sooner had not this gentleman given
them chase in the contrary direction. They, seeing the floor all
covered with blood, inquired the cause with wild trepidation of
manner. Their sister was the first to inform them of what had
happened, on which both the young men gripped to their weapons,
and the eldest, Samuel, cried out with the vehemence of a maniac,
‘Blessed be the righteous avenger of blood! Hoo! Is it then true that
the Lord hath delivered our greatest enemy into our hands!’ ‘Hold,
hold, dearest brother!’ cried the maid, spreading out her arms before
him. ‘Would you kill a helpless young man, lying in a state of
insensibility! What! although the Almighty hath put his life in your
hand, will He not require the blood of you, shed in such a base and
cowardly way?’
“‘Hold your peace, foolish girl,’ cried he, in the same furious strain.
‘I tell you, if he had a thousand lives I would sacrifice them all this
moment! Wo be to this old rusty and fizenless sword that did not
sever his head from his body when I had a fair chance in the open
field! Nevertheless he shall die; for you do not yet know that he hath,
within these few hours, murdered our father, whose blood is yet
warm around him on the bleak height.’
“‘Oh! merciful heaven! killed our father!’ screamed the girl, and
flinging herself down on the resting-chair, she fainted away. The two
brothers regarded not, but with their bared weapons made towards
the closet, intent on my blood, and both vowing I should die if I had a
thousand lives. The stranger interfered, and thrust himself into the
closet door before them, swearing that, before they committed so
cowardly a murder they should first make their way through his
body.
“Samuel retreated one step to have full sway for his weapon, and
the fury depicted on his countenance proved his determination. But
in a moment his gallant opponent closed with him, and holding up
his wrist with his left hand, he with the right bestowed on him a blow
with such energy that he fell flat on the floor among the soldier’s
blood. The youngest then ran on their antagonist with his sword and
wounded him, but the next moment he was lying beside his brother.
As soon as her brothers came fairly to their senses, the young woman
and her lover began and expostulated with them, at great length, on
the impropriety and unmanliness of the attempt, until they became
all of one mind, and the two brothers agreed to join in the defence of
the wounded gentleman, from all of their own party, until he was
rescued by his friends, which they did. But it was the maid’s simple
eloquence that finally prevailed with the fierce Covenanters.
“When my brothers came at last, with a number of my men, and
took me away, the only thing I remember seeing in the house was the
corpse of the old man whom I had shot, and the beautiful girl
standing weeping over the body; and certainly my heart smote me in
such a manner that I would not experience the same feeling again for
the highest of this world’s benefits. That comely young maiden, and
her brave intrepid lover, it would be the utmost ingratitude in me, or
in any of my family, ever to forget; for it is scarcely possible that a
man can ever be again in the same circumstances as I was, having
been preserved from death in the house of the man whom my hand
had just deprived of life.”
Just as he ended, the sick nurse peeped in, which she had done
several times before, and said, “Will your honour soon be
disengaged, d’ye think? for ye see because there’s a lass wanting till
speak till ye.”
“A lass, nurse? what lass can have any business with me? what is
she like?”
“Oo, ’deed, sir, the lass is weel enough for that part o’t, but she may
be nae better than she should be for a’ that; ye ken, I’se no answer for
that, for ye see because “like is an ill mark”; but she has been aften
up, speiring after ye, an’ gude troth she’s fairly in nettle-earnest now,
for she winna gang awa till she see your honour.”
The nurse being desired to show her in, a comely girl entered, with
a timid step, and seemed ready to faint with trepidation. She had a
mantle on, and a hood that covered much of her face. The privy
councillor spoke to her, desiring her to come forward and say her
errand, on which she said that “she only wanted a preevat word wi’
the captain, if he was that weel as to speak to ane,” He looked over
the bed, and desired her to say on, for that gentleman was his
brother, from whom he kept no secrets. After a hard struggle with
her diffidence, but, on the other hand, prompted by the urgency of
the case, she at last got out, “I’m unco glad to see you sae weel comed
round again, though I daresay ye’ll maybe no ken wha I am. But it
was me that nursed ye, an’ took care o’ ye in our house, when your
head was amaist cuttit off.”
There was not another word required to draw forth the most
ardent expressions of kindness from the two brothers, on which the
poor girl took courage, and, after several showers of tears, she said,
with many bitter sobs, “There’s a poor lad wha, in my humble
opinion, saved your life; an’ wha is just gaun to be hanged the day
after the morn. I wad unco fain beg your honour’s interest to get his
life spared.”
“Say not another word, my dear good girl,” said the councillor; “for
though I hardly know how I can intercede for a rebel who has taken
up arms against the government, yet, for your sake and his, my best
interest shall be exerted.”
“Oh, ye maun just say, sir, that the poor Whigs were driven to
desperation, and that this young man was misled by others in the
fervour and enthusiasm of youth. What else can ye say? But ye’re
good—oh, ye’re very good! and on my knees I beg that ye winna lose
ony time, for indeed there is nae time to lose!”
The councillor lifted her kindly by both hands, and desired her to
stay with his brother’s nurse till his return, on which he went away to
the president, and in half-an-hour returned with a respite for the
convict, John Lindsay, for three days, which he gave to the girl, along
with an order for her admittance to the prisoner. She thanked him
with the tears in her eyes, but added, “Oh, sir, will he and I then be
obliged to part for ever at the end of three days?”
“Keep up your heart, and encourage your lover,” said he, “and
meet me here again, on Thursday, at this same hour, for, till the
council meet, nothing further than this can be obtained.”
It may well be conceived how much the poor forlorn prisoner was
astonished when his own beloved Sally entered to him with a
reprieve in her hand, and how much his whole soul dilated when, on
the Thursday following, she presented him with a free pardon. They
were afterwards married, when the Gilmours took them under their
protection. Lindsay became a highly qualified surgeon, and the
descendants of this intrepid youth occupy respectable situations in
Edinburgh to the present day.
GRAYSTEEL:
A TRADITIONARY STORY OF CAITHNESS.