Waatea News Column: State Spying and a Police who see no spying, hear no spying and speak no spying
John Campbell’s remarkable investigation at the beginning of the week into a Government agency tasked with looking after earthquake survivors using corporate spies to secretly tape those complaining was made more important by the remarkable announcement midweek from the NZ Police that found nothing illegal in the actions of anyone involved.
John details how Southern Response colluded with private security agency Thompson & Clark to spy on angry claimants who were upset by the responsiveness of Southern Response.
When setting up an inquiry into state services using corporate spies to spy on activists and Kiwis, State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes said it was “never acceptable for an agency to undertake targeted surveillance of a person just because they are lawfully exercising their democratic rights, including their right to freedom of expression, association and right to protest”.
“That is an affront to democracy,” he said.
An. Affront. To. Democracy.
So the police investigated (despite originally ‘forgetting’ to start the investigation) and surprise, surprise the Police have found Thompson & Clark didn’t break the law by secretly recording meetings of claimants.
Isn’t that convenient?
This is a private spying firm staffed by former Police Officers who use moonlighting Police Officers for their work and who beyond Southern Response, have worked for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, MSD, Crown Law, the Serious Fraud Office, Inland Revenue, MBIE, Foreign Affairs Ministry, ACC, Department of Internal Affairs, Maritime New Zealand, Ministry of Health, Department of Conservation, Otakaro, Te Papa, Niwa, AgResearch, Plant and Food, Education Ministry, Land Information NZ, the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Agency, Housing NZ and the actual Police themselves.
So if the Police had found a breach of the law, that could trigger a cascade of problems for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, MSD, Crown Law, the Serious Fraud Office, Inland Revenue, MBIE, Foreign Affairs Ministry, ACC, Department of Internal Affairs, Maritime New Zealand, Ministry of Health, Department of Conservation, Otakaro, Te Papa, Niwa, AgResearch, Plant and Food, Education Ministry, Land Information NZ, the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Agency, Housing NZ and of course, the actual Police themselves.
Again, isn’t that fantastically coincidental and serendipitously lucky for the corporate spies and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, MSD, Crown Law, the Serious Fraud Office, Inland Revenue, MBIE, Foreign Affairs Ministry, ACC, Department of Internal Affairs, Maritime New Zealand, Ministry of Health, Department of Conservation, Otakaro, Te Papa, Niwa, AgResearch, Plant and Food, Education Ministry, Land Information NZ, the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Agency, Housing NZ and as I have mentioned twice before, the actual Police themselves?
First published on Waatea News.
It is illegal in this country to secretly record a conversation between two people and then use it as evidence in court. Any recorded convocation must have the consent of both party’s.
This is why so many company’s use the disclaimer ‘ this conversation will be recorded and will be used for training purposes’. It has nothing to do with ‘training’ at all.
Stills says nothing about the National Party’s attempts to blackmail Christchurch earthquake victims into taking botched repaire work.
Otago Daily Times asked the question has New Zealand become more corrupt way back in January 2016.
Different Government but nothing cleaned up, nothing changed. Well, yeah nah, the brothers wear red tie or blue tie, dance together across the black and white tiles, buzz around the hive, seem to be working positively for the people, only winners though being other brothers. Well, what’s the point of being in the Club if you not a winner. And shh … our brothers are running the inquiry so don’t worry bro.
https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/has-new-zealand-become-more-corrupt
Perhaps the light these bros seek is a little too muted to reveal the truth. Quiet revolution anyone?
I await the transformational, compassionate and open gummint (going forwid).
There’s probably about 6 months left for them to start showing us their nickers whereupon come the next election – it’ll be theirs to lose.
(And I’ve got a lot riding on it all. It’ll amount – or not – as to whether a sibling is actually that bright, or merely driven by ideology, a “I’ve paid my dues” attitude, and whether or not there’ll be another opportunity for a selfie)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cyt0ViDtJ_w
Police will be happy to come to your house in force if you legally (if unthoughtfully) purchased a semi automatic firearm immediately after the shooting, and they will point a gun in your 12 year old daughters face:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/christchurch-shooting/112634121/police-seize-gun-collectors-firearms-in-over-the-top-raid
When you called for certain gun owners to be police investigated because they spoke out about firearms, you are calling for this abuse of power. Being a bit thick doesn’t warrant police aggression.
Interesting current rumours around the internet that the shooter was on a mental health watch list in Australia.
NZ has had a long history of corruption within the State Departments I have a copy of a letter to my great grandfather who was in Government at the turn of last Century warning him of this type of corruption.
Coupled with the ability to censor the internet,
who can say authoritarian…
There should be an Independent Commission of Inquiry into the Thompson and Clark spying on ordinary New Zealanders
….no good having the police investigate their own former police and now corporate spies working for Thompson and Clark
( please less about Jacinda and her baby and her engagement and her marriage proposals to her parents ….and her censoring the internet.
…and more about Real Inquiries about the corruption that went on under the John Key nine year reign of the National Party
….and more about the Labour coalition initiatives to build real State Housing rentals for the New Zealand homeless
… and a real NZ Census on which to base Real NZ public policy for New Zealanders
The Police have shown themselves to be unable to investigation this issue and their “nothing to see here” smacks of an outright cover-up (and I usually don’t subscribe to cover up conspirscy theories)
Nothing less than a full Commission of Inquiry by a non-NZ judge will do
If the police have been shown to deliberately botch this investigation, senior heads will have to roll
This is untenable
This is an attack on the veneer of democracy we have in this country God knows its superficial enough
Commission of Enquiry.
Now.