Schengen treaty eliminates border formalities between Finland and Estonia
Passports still checked at airports
Travel between Finland and Estonia was speeded up by a factor of several minutes at midnight Thursday when Estonia and eight other new European Union member states became part of the Schengen Treaty. Routine passport inspections ended for travel between Estonia and other signatories at all ports of entry except airports.
The treaty will extend to air travel in the new member states in March. The Schengen zone is based on the idea that external borders of the EU are closely monitored, but that there is free travel from one member state to another. Travellers are nevertheless expected to have a passport or other identification document with them. The Schengen zone also includes the non-EU members Norway and Iceland.
The Finnish Border Guard says that a few problems are likely to be caused by the end of routine border inspections. For instance, in 2006 nearly 1,500 people wanted by police were stopped at the border, and about as many drink drivers and others in violation of vehicle or traffic legislation.
"In the future most of these will not be caught", notes Deputy Commander Marko Tuominen of the Border Guard. "It might no longer be possible to maintain the image of internal security that we have. But we must accept that price if we want free movement within the European Union."
Most of the wanted persons stopped at the border were Finnish petty criminals. Most of them had either unpaid fines, or had a bailiff looking for them.
"Nearly nine million people a year pass through the harbour. If a booth were set up at Helsinki's Railway station where people's papers were inspected, we would get the same result", Tuominen says.
Police, Customs, and Border Guard officials will seek to get intelligence of plans by criminals to cross borders by working together and exchanging information with the other Schengen countries.
Robin Lardot, Chief Inspector of Police at the Ministry of the Interior, insists that there is no cause for concern.
"Estonia has been a member of the EU for a few years, and fighting crime has been arranged there as it has been in other EU countries. In addition, the Schengen Treaty includes measures for cross-border monitoring operations, for instance, and common databases", Lardot says. "Finnish law enforcement officials have worked together with Estonian officials for years. We have very good experiences from this cooperation."
For ordinary Finns, who are not on the run from police or process servers, the main impact of Estonia's Schengen membership is easier travel, says Leena Lahdenperä, head of public relations for the Tallink passenger shipping line. Passport inspections at both harbours have at times taken up to half an hour.
She feels that the expansion of the Schengen zone could bring Estonia more tourists from outside the EU.
Travellers from certain countries outside the EU arriving in Finland have had to get a separate visa if they have wanted to take a day cruise to Estonia. Now a Schengen visa covers the whole zone.
Links:
Schengen Agreement (Wikipedia)
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 21.12.2007 - TODAY |
Schengen treaty eliminates border formalities between Finland and Estonia
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