Tonight:
4°c
Ex-MI5 chief: Ministers scare public to pass terrorism laws
Paul Waugh, Deputy Political Editor17 Feb 2009
A FORMER MI5 chief today accused the Government of exploiting fears of terrorism to pass draconian laws as fresh allegations emerged of Britain's complicity in torture.
Dame Stella Rimington declared that ministers were playing into the hands of terrorists by curbing civil liberties. In an interview with a Spanish newspaper published today, Dame Stella said that the Government was "frightening people in order to be able to pass laws which restrict civil liberties, precisely one of the objects of terrorism: that we live in fear and under a police state".
Dame Stella, the first woman director general of MI5, has criticised Labour's plans for ID cards and for the detention of terrorism suspects without charge for 42 days.
She told La Vanguardia: "The US has gone too far with Guantanamo and the tortures. MI5 does not do that. Furthermore it has achieved the opposite effect: there are more and more suicide terrorists finding a greater justification". She said British agents were "no angels" but insisted they did not kill people.
Her remarks came amid new claims that senior Whitehall figures devised an interrogation policy for British secret service agents that allowed complicity with torture by other states.
Evidence of the existence of the secret policy emerged during a High Court case into allegations that British resident Binyam Mohamed had been tortured in Pakistan.
Mohamed, who is expected to return to Britain after ending a five-week hunger strike in Guantanamo Bay, alleges that an MI5 officer colluded in his mistreatment. Before being questioned by the officer, Mohamed claims he had been hung from leather straps, beaten and threatened with a firearm by Pakistani intelligence officers.
A British agent, known only as Witness B, acknowledged that Mohamed was in an "extremely vulnerable position" when he questioned him in Karachi in 2002. The terror suspect was then transferred by the US to a secret prison camp in Morocco where he says he endured 18 months of torture. Some of the questions put to him were based on information passed by MI5 to the US.
In court last year, the MI5 officer conceded that he did not ask whether Mohamed had been mistreated or tortured and did not consider whether his detention without trial was illegal.
He admitted telling Mohamed that "he would get more lenient treatment if he co-operated" and said that he knew he would be transferred to US custody.
Evidence on the existence of a Whitehall interrogation policy may emerge from 42 undisclosed documents seen by the High Court and sent to MPs on the Intelligence and Security Committee.
Reader views (14)
The simple fact is that GOVERNMENTS have been the biggest terrorists of all. Need I mention USSR, Nazi Germany, China etc?
Since Binyam was tortured to reveal low level intel, if any, how come Saddam Hussein was NOT tortured to reveal the whereabouts of those alleged WMDs? Of course, you can't torture anybody to reveal the location of something that doesn't exist...
- Ralph, GB, 18/02/2009 13:06
Report abuse
I take it that all the tourists in London will not be allowed to photograph any of the Landmark Buildings and that the travel Brochures will have to remove these images in case they are deemed to assist terrorists.
Yet the Police are free to photograph and record our every movement in the name of anti-terrorism.
- Ayliff Mcnab, Spain, 18/02/2009 10:58
Report abuse
The labour government isn't aiming for a police state; it simply wants to convince us that it is becoming impossible to hold "free and fair" elections in this country while there is a threat from extremist interference and the possible bombings of polling booths. So sorry folks, no more elections - Gordon Brown for ever!!
- Dave, Pontypridd, 18/02/2009 10:32
Report abuse
Hats off to Dame Stella Rimmington. I think everyone knows what the government are up to but its nice that someone who was at the highest level of the secret service has spoken so 'loudly' and so honestly. Pity its in a Spanish paper. Just keep saying Magna Carta, Magna Carta........
- Bondy, spain, 17/02/2009 18:42
Report abuse
What is much more disturbing is the governments ploy to employ "terrorism" as a fig leaf to introduce quasi terrorism laws, which are then used for purposes that have nothing to do with terrorism.
- Bingham Macnamara, lymington, hampshire, 17/02/2009 15:36
Report abuse
If people knew the full horror of what our government does in our name and with our money, no one would ever vote again, I swear it.
- Neil M., london uk,, 17/02/2009 15:36
Report abuse
President Obama, in his inaugural address, declared:
"..we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake."
Would that our own politicians were as unreservedly principled in stating intent and making policy.
Our country is defined by its values almost as much as by its borders, and it is the patriotic duty of our elected government to ensure the defence of both.
A government that fails in this duty does not have at heart the interests of the country, or its people.
If a government undermines the hard-won rights of the people it purports to serve, it is not serving them: it is serving itself.
Terrorism seeks to exert power by creating fear.
Should government?
- James Woodfield, Torpoint, Cornwall, 17/02/2009 15:12
Report abuse
This merely confirms what we all long suspected. Can we now expect a Conservative government to repeal systematically all the draconian laws passed by Nu-Labour in their so-called War on Terrorism? Watch this space but don't hold your breath.
- Peter, Pirot, Serbia, 17/02/2009 14:32
Report abuse
You become an Enemy of the State when the State becomes your enemy.
That’s where this government has moved the social status of almost every person in the UK.
This lady is perfectly correct in what she has said.
- Carl Barron, Christchurch, Dorset, 17/02/2009 14:27
Report abuse
Our puppet politicians have no more freedom to say "no" to another round of draconian laws than we do.
- Neil M., london uk,, 17/02/2009 14:26
Report abuse
Agree with the "newsflash: rain is wet" comment. The public don't believe anything the Government says anymore.
- Kate, London, 17/02/2009 13:01
Report abuse
It has seemed pretty obvious for a while that the amount of draconian laws and surveillance was well out of proportion to any terrorist activity in the UK or it's effects.
The Government is becoming like a runaway train, unstoppable, in the likely hood of a train smash I guess at least we can all watch it on CCTV.
- Lee, Lancs, 17/02/2009 12:41
Report abuse
The public have no say over matters in this country with an unelected, unaccountable 'leader' of this government and with an unelected, unaccountable executive in Brussels pulling his strings.
- Frank, Home Counties, England., 17/02/2009 11:40
Report abuse
"we live in fear and under a police state"
In other news, rain is wet .........
- Ian, Cambridge, UK, 17/02/2009 11:34
Report abuse
