The State Department in the United States must have senior personnel who are literary admirers of George Orwell, for that is the only reasonable explanation for a new proposal from Washington to have visitors turn over all their social media contacts and passwords as one of the prices for obtaining a visitor’s visa. The idea is being proposed and will come into effect in June unless it is dropped — and given the change in culture that has happened in Washington since the new administration took office 15 months’ ago, that is most unlikely to happen.
This new requirement is far broader and all-encompassing than a previous requirement that was voluntary and applied only to a portion of visa applicants identified for extra scrutiny. It is the latest effort in an ongoing campaign to collect as much information as possible by both Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. Indeed, while those officials say it is a necessary step in the interests of US security, the reality is that it is nothing more than intimidation meant to deter people from any country who might have a thought process or social media commentary that runs counter to the thinking of the current administration.
From the very first weeks in power, President Donald Trump has set about trying to impose a ban on visitors from Muslim majority nations. It is a measure that has been held up again and again in the US courts as being inviolate of the US Constitution. This new proposal to force visitors to turn over social media information certainly seems inviolate of that document too, particularly when it comes to the freedoms of speech, assembly and religious beliefs.
