Kiwi woman watched by security services for most of her life
Spy movies are one thing, but state surveillance for this Kiwi activist has been all too real.
The file on Maire Leadbeater was opened by the security services before she was even a teenager. Now, the veteran activist has written about the history of state surveillance in Aotearoa — and on her own family connections — in her new book The Enemy Within.
“It is time for the state to stop spying on society’s critics,” she told Q+A. “I’m coming down with the conclusion that there are other ways in which we can approach those issues other than secretive, unaccountable security services and intelligence agencies.”
Leadbeater has been prominent in New Zealand’s peace movement for decades.
A key figure in the campaign for nuclear disarmament, she’s highlighted human rights issues in South East Asia and the Pacific. Leadbeater is the daughter of communist parents, Jack and Elsie Locke and sister of former Green MP Keith Locke.
Maire Leadbeater’s Security Intelligence Service (SIS) file is a hefty 90 pages.
The State have spied on Marie and her brother Kieth since they were 10 years old.
Maire is one of the most lovely and kind individuals I have ever had the privilege of knowing, and she blogs her occasionally on TDB.
Kieth was one of the best human beings I have ever met, he lived around the corner from me and we had a very long friendship.
Both are the kind of people we want in a society, intelligent and compassionate critics who put human rights before brutal national interest.
The idea that the SIS and GCSB have been spying on them both since they were children is a grotesque Orwellian thought crime that demands accountability and scrutiny.
When human beings as fine as Maire Leadbeater and Keith Locke are the enemy, how can there be truth?
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.
This is like reading Communists in 1917 complaining about the Okhrana. You’d think they’d never do such a thing when in power and then, voila, say hello to the Cheka, who are orders of magnitude worse. But yeah. Can the GCSB, they’re useless.
you’re always so desperate to pretend the current world order is the best there could be, anything else would be much worse.
You’re really a terrified little fellow, aren’t you.
Well communism would certainly be much, much worse, but I realise that’s a minority opinion here at TDB. Still, good to see you’re hiding behind the ambiguity of “the best there could be” rather than telling everybody how great communism is. Baby steps.
You’re reasoning expressed does not match your apparent superior opinion of yourself Xenophon. No political and economic system is proof against your approach occurring, which seems a sure thing in human systems.
Why do you believe you can read Xenophon’s mind and what he is really thinking?
Is this a secret ability given only to progressives because they are the special enlightened people?
When you’ve seen one crackhead mumbling on about muh communism bad you’ve seen them all.
Yes Ada it’s hard to read an empty chasm. Are you two related?
We have the biggest enemy within in our lifetime in the guise of a puppet prime minister doing the heavy lifting for Mr. 8% and grumpy old 6 %. Things are happening so fast in the name of democracy that we are powerless to stop it. History will show that the media colluded with this government in power and in opposition and it will take us beyond the point of no return .
I agree with you to a point @ Not my government. However, We’re not powerless and there never is a point of no return. Any and all points can be returned from. Changing heart and changing the mind are good things.
Voting must be made compulsory. That’s the first thing. Then MMP needs to be dumped. It’s a fuck up that seemed like a good idea to the voter at the time but the only ones to benefit from mmp are the ones who hold sway over us today, largely thanks to mmp. Sexy, ad free, free to air msm entities. Radio, website and tv.
Let’s spend $484,200.00 plus expenses PA on a good and accountable reporter, not fucking useless luxon who admitted he fakes it until he makes it. What kind of PM would say that!?
Survivors are people who, when presented with worst case scenarios think, be open to receiving ideas then act as required. Not shrivel. We’re simply beginning to understand that we have serious problems within our politic so it’s natural to swoon and feint but we must also act. In my opinion we need Crown intervention while we take a breather and regroup. We need to make a plan of action but first we need breathing space to come to understand exactly what it is that’s happened to place us at suck risk. AO/NZ = just under 3 million working age people. AO/NZ also = 14 multi-billionaires, 3118 multi-millionaires each with a post tax minimum of $50 million and then there’s the banks. Four *once were AO/NZ banks but now Australian owned which take the highest profits in the world second only to Canada @ $180.00 a second net 24/7/365.
That’s not coincidence, that’s not whoopsie, sorry. That’s a crime statistic. We Kiwis really need to dig into that stat.
I think the collective [we] should crowd-source funding for a team of independent forensic accountants to go through our books like a fucking dose of salts if the Crown won’t help.
@ TDB. For Gods sake dump ASB. It’s the enemy!
For the last time!
We brought in STRIPE so that you specifically could finally donate and you are STILL bitching!
https://buy.stripe.com/9AQfZz3Fnf4AbXqdQQ
China a communist country and has lifted 400 million people and counting out of poverty, It has one of the highest standards of living on planet earth and hasn’t genocided anyone to date.
Actually it’s 800 million people lifted out of poverty but that’s only since 1980 when they dumped commie economics and went capitalist (to the screams of commies everywhere). Before that they genocided 60 million people, but that was their own so nobody – especially communists – care.
They embraced capitalism which pulled more people out of poverty in history not confined only to China but many parts of the world including Eastern Europe and Russia.
Meanwhile in Cuba and North Korea poverty and broken infrastructure prevails.
Listening to podcast on communism which I’ve never thought about since yesterday of Joti Brar made some sense witnessing what this government is doing with massive unemployment and empowering big businesses at the behest of the masses it made sense!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wROd_inJiVs&pp=ygULZ2FybGFuIG5peG4%3D
https://thecommunists.org/author?q=joti+Brar
It’s Keith not Kieth.
You call them litmus test people — whoever opposes them is a baddie automatically, just by their unimpeachable integrity. I knew 2 here in Gisborne.
A rather strange thing is these moral grandees among us attract enemies like steel to a magnet. One got an ‘orrible mother-in-law always on her case, the other, her neighbours sent her to Coventry after she complained about their ever-barking dog. And the Lockes got the SIS!
The true enemies of the state are those who would change it, not for their own gain, but for the benefit of all. They are the ones the state truly fears.