The long-running and often delayed inquiry into the activities of the secret undercover political police who infiltrated pretty much everyone except the far right is right now in one of its active phases. Exposed by the work of activists, the state-sanctioned counter-democracy operation is finally getting the disinfectant of sunlight.
“Tranche 2” of the inquiry deals with the years (1983-1992). With the Judge in charge, John Mitting, having effectively summed up Tranche 1 (1968-1982) by concluding that the undercover unit – the Special Demonstration Squad – should have been shut down a few months after launch, this time around it’s the cops who are on the back foot.
The inquiry is halfway through taking evidence for this year, but some notable bombshells already dropped are of even more women deceived into sexual relationships, including another child fathered by an undercover cop, and the admitting of gathering personal private information in order to blackmail people into becoming informers.
Plus we’ve heard about some of the three rarest of Special Branch animals such as: an undercover woman, recruited to spy on the Greenham women – but who infiltrated a women’s group in Lambeth instead so she didn’t get her sleeping bag damp; An officer who infiltrated the BNP, but legged it a few months in, convinced they were going to “beat the shit out of me”; And as we go to press a black undercover officer who spied on anti-racist groups.
- For updates and acerbic commentary follow the redoubtable @tombfowler on Twitter, live and direct from the Inquiry at the IDRC Centre in London.
- See also policespiesoutoflives.org.uk
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