On April 21 I was gleeful at the work of activist Rob Gilchrist, who outmaneuvered local buffoon and spy-for-hire Gavin Clark. The quickwitted noble activist taking down one of the enemies of democracy! Wicked!
Then, today…
Oh.
Mr Gilchrist just got crossed off my ‘person of the year’ nominee list, it seems.
There’s heaps more to say about this, not least the obvious stuff about why the police feel they need to send informers into ordinary citizens action groups. But I still have a bad case of thesis, so this will have to do from now.
(Also, and yet again: nice work Nicky Hager.)
4 thoughts on “Rob Gilchrist: Disrespect that man”
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Indeed. I read the story in the Sunday Star-Times dead tree edition yesterday.
I didn’t know, but I can’t say I’m either shocked or surprised. Hooray for the story coming out though.
I’ve been kind of out of the activist scene for a few years, and I got really pissed off with it around 2004. Too many stupid kids doing illegal things without a plan, and with no idea of what the dangers might be (to themselves or to others).
I was figuring back in 2001 that the police/SIS/GCSB had to have people in the activism scene – they’d be dumb not to. I would, in their place. I am surprised though that apparently it took them to 2005 to actually set up SIG.
The scenesters can get rowdy at times and it would make sense to have some ‘adult supervision’ to make sure that high-adrenalin protests don’t turn into accidental riots, but I think the police have demonstrated that they haven’t been the adults in this scenario. Being agent provocateurs, deliberately *creating* dangerous circumstances – yeah, that’s real mature. Not. I guess they just like playing James Bond.
Also, man, their security appears to have been pretty much amateur hour.
I recommend Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother – http://craphound.com/littlebrother/download/ – if you haven’t read it.
It was interesting to note that the Police Spyz0r was known for suggesting radical and illegal protest activities.
Why is that such a common meme? The Police agent suggests the illegal activities so the Police can justify their surveillance? It doesn’t fill me with confidence…
And I wonder if the “burning the Private investigators” wasn’t a very good way to improve cred with any doubters in the movement. (although, having been there for 10 years, one assumes it wasn’t necessary at that point) – I wonder if he did that on Police instructions?
Yeah, having a spy in a group you think may be dangerous is one thing; that spy trying to instigate dangerous and/or illegal activities is quite another. And when the infiltration seems to be “just in case” rather than because of any credible reasons for suspicion, it becomes even more alarming.
it’s frikren NZ not Iraq. Dam the police in NZ seem to have taken loads of things lately way to far. And there are a whole bunch of numpties ready to belive that NZ is in danager and justify the police whenthey should be worried what is happening to our slice of paradise.