By Yasmin Anwar
Advertiser Editorial Writer

Last Sunday, I shamelessly used this space to describe the chilling experience of being added to the double-secret federal no-fly watch list.

And some readers e-mailed me to let me know I should not be surprised, given my dubious name and status.

"If you are not a citizen, then you do not have the same rights of citizenship as a U.S. citizen no matter how long you have resided here (one assumes legally). Why are you complaining?" one woman asked.

"It's not dark and mysterious out there ... a name like Anwar throws up a red light and they double check it. Simple and reassuring for the rest of us," another man wrote.

OK, so don't feel sorry for me. But what about K. Kobayashi of Mililani, a U.S. citizen and retired federal employee who lies awake at night wondering how the heck HE got on the no-fly list?

For years, Mr. Kobayashi has regularly flown to Las Vegas for the same reason tens of thousands of other Islanders travel to "Sin City" — fun.

But on Jan. 31 at the check-in counter at Honolulu International Airport, he says, a security agent took his ID and disappeared with it into an office for a half-hour before he was issued a boarding pass.

Then at the gate, his name was called, and for another half-hour his ID was scrutinized again. When he asked what the problem was, no one would tell him.

"It was embarrassing," Kobayashi said. "Everybody was watching me."

The same happened on the return journey, and he almost missed his flight. Finally he was told he was on the no-fly list. He has since filled out the no-fly clearance forms and sent certified copies of his birth certificate and other identification to the Department of Homeland Security ombudsman. But there's no guarantee he'll get off the list.

"I don't have a police record.

I worked for the federal government for 44 years. And now they treat me like this," he said. "It's scary."

If it can happen to Mr. Kobayashi, presumably it can happen to Mrs. Macadangdang, Mr. Lee, Ms. Park, Mrs. Gouveia, Mr. Robinson and Ms. Akana.

Of course, we all want a security system that catches terrorists. But this no-fly list appears to be a dragnet that does better at torturing innocent travelers than catching the bad guys. According to one news investigation, the FBI cannot cite a terrorist who has been captured because of the no-fly list.

The trouble is, the list relies on name-searching software based on an antiquated indexing system that checks for exact matches, similar spellings and aliases. That means anyone called, say, Loden or Lyden, which is similar to Laden, is likely to get flagged by the reservation computer.

Once that happens, the computer terminal automatically locks up, requiring the ticket agent to contact local police or FBI to clear the traveler.

Meanwhile, authorities are constantly updating the no-fly list. And the newest addition could be you. But don't bother asking why, because it's a secret.

Yasmin Anwar is an editorial writer at The Honolulu Advertiser. You can reach her through yanwar@honoluluadvertiser.com.