Paul Lewis (17)

I was handed this book by someone who found it as they thought I might find it interesting. I hadn't heard of it before but I was familiar with the story as it caused quite a large media scandal in the UK when it emerged.

The first thing that should be pointed out about this book is that it is a work of non-fiction and at times I found the level of 'deep cover' incredible. Undercover police officers were living and working with activists of various persuasions for up to 6 years at a time. They lived in bedsits funded by the police and only when home to their families on a very infrequent basis. The other aspect that makes this level of police investigation startling is that this wasn't aimed a terrorists but animal rights and climate control activists.

Initially I disliked the officers who were undercover. I saw there actions as an abuse of civil rights, especially when they had relationships with members and in some cases had children with them. As I read further however I started to feel sorry for them because I felt that initially they got into the work with the right kind of motives but ended up mental broken by the whole process. Many of the officers involved ended up feeling as though they had become the character they had become to infiltrate the activists and their old self was left behind.

As is often the case when these things happens the people left damaged are the public who were investigated and the officers involved. Senior police officers who ran these units clearly did it with little regard for the mental well being of their officers or the activists involved. This all happened at great expense to the British taxpayer.

Another thing which the book highlights is the purposeful way in which 'terrorism' laws are loosely defined to allow the authorities to spy on the general public. This has become an increasing civil liberties issue the UK especially in the bigger cities. Photographers have had equipment seized and been arrest for merely photographing buildings in London. The buildings in question are not ones which are protect by law and the police are clearly abusing their power in this case.

This is a great book which I think many people would enjoy.… (altro)