Frankly, I don’t see what all the fuss is about.
For those of you who plan to travel to Hawaii in the near future you might be interested to know that dozens of surveillance cameras will soon be installed in Waikiki and on various spots on the Big Island. County officials say the new cameras are part of an effort to reduce crimes against tourists.
Good news, right?
Not according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which objects to the cameras over privacy concerns. ACLU attorneys say the cameras divert taxpayer money away from other crime reducing measures such as community policing and hiring more police officers.
“We should not give in to the impulse to blanket our public spaces and streets with government video surveillance and turn our Aloha State into a police state,” ACLU leaders maintain.
Before I discuss where I stand on this issue you should know that on the Big Island (where I was born and raised) the county council voted unanimously in favor of installing cameras in high crime areas that are frequented by visitors. The Hawaii Tourism Authority even agreed to pick up the $500,000 cost. According to county leaders, the cameras will be intermittently monitored with the goal of their presence designed to deter criminals and help authorities gather evidence when crimes occur.
On the Big Island the new security cameras will likely be installed in the Kailua-Kona business district, at various locations around Akaka Falls and in downtown Hilo—-all places where large numbers of tourist gather and police presence is not always adequate.
Meanwhile, on the island of Oahu, Honolulu officials say they plan to add cameras in tourist packed Waikiki where surveillance cameras are already up and operating.
As for the ACLU’s concerns (by the way, the group protested when the first six cameras were installed in Waikiki) regarding privacy concerns, both city leaders and police say they have not received any complaints about privacy violations from anyone in the Waikiki area. However, police records show that prior to the installation of the cameras a number of stabbings, thefts and other crimes against visitors had occurred.
I have to say, during my years as a TV reporter in Honolulu there were numerous times when I covered stories about tourists being attacked in Waikiki. I’m not saying that the area is crime infested, but like many major metropolitan areas around the world, Honolulu and specifically Waikiki is not an oasis of peace and tranquility. This is the real world folks-—crime can happen anywhere at anytime–so why not add a few more cameras to allow police a few more resources available to keep visitors safe?
The ACLU claims one of their concerns with the existing cameras in Waikiki is that they have been monitored by citizen volunteers instead of trained police officers, which means there is the risk that non-professionals could abuse the system by using the cameras to stalk people.
According to police no such activity has ever been reported.
What do you think about the installation of the new cameras? Are you for or against them?
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