Reality show Border Security cancelled due to privacy issues

The BC Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) has announced that the Canadian reality television show “Border Security” has been cancelled because it violates people’s privacy.

The federal Privacy Commissioner issued its decision on the show last week after investigating a privacy complaint launched by the BCCLA. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has agreed to end its involvement in the show.

“The Privacy Commissioner called on CBSA to end its involvement in the reality TV show that films vulnerable migrants and citizens being interrogated, detained and deported. The Commissioner found that CBSA broke the law by participating in the show’s production, violating key provisions of the Privacy Act,” said the BCCLA in a statement.

The show which aired for three seasons will now come to an end because of the decision. The privacy complaint was brought by the BCCLA as part of the Cancel Border Security Campaign on behalf of Oscar Mata Duran, who was removed to Mexico following a CBSA raid of his workplace in 2013.

“I feel happy that my complaint proceeded and was successful after three years. I am grateful to everyone who fought for the rights of people like me. I am hopeful that Canada will be more accepting of migrants and refugees. I would love to be back. We are people seeking better and safer lives and should not be treated as illegal,” said Mata Duran.

In his decision, the commissioner found that the consent used by the CBSA was insufficient.

“[I]n large part due to the context in which filming occurs, individuals are not providing full and informed consent to the disclosure of their personal information, as would be required by the Act,” he wrote. “[I]ndividuals from countries with different legal systems may feel that they have to comply with uniformed individuals and have no choice but to sign documents presented to them. Moreover, individuals being detained or facing the prospect of deportation may not be in the best frame of mind to provide informed and free consent.”

According to the BCCLA, Mata Duran was not asked for his consent until after filming had taken place, he was scared and confused and signed the consent form without reading it first.

“CBSA needs independent public oversight now, not tomorrow. The TV show producers should be ashamed. Both CBSA and the producers need to publically apologize for their conduct,” said Zool Suleman, legal council for Mata Duran.

The show has come under scrutiny over the years, most notably when seven men at a construction site were non-consensually filmed and deported following the raid.

"This is actually difficult news for us to hear given all the hardship our family suffered,” said Diana Thompson, an Indigenous mother whose husband Tulio Renan Hernandez was filmed and deported to Honduras after the raid. “CBSA should never have been involved with a show that exploits families’ pain in the first place. We are grateful for all our supporters that stood with us for three years.”

Thompson launched a petition that garnered more than 25,000 signatures and forced the episode featuring the raid off the air. She was joined by 90 human rights groups including Amnesty International, Idle No More, Canadian Labour Congress and the Canadian Bar Association asserting that deportation is not entertainment.