katharine gun husband deported

He was actually gone for three days. Gun discusses her attempt to stop the Iraq War, which is the subject of the new movie Official Secrets. She thought wow, they need a Mandarin translator at GCHQ. She said, I worry what's going to happen, they'll go, Ooh, I don't know if I like Keira Knightly in blonde hair, what's she done to her nose, does she have glasses on? Because they don't have a comparison to make, until you see her at the end of the movie. She said, You mean I dont have to wear a corset? To your point, in some way, she said to me, As a woman, its kind of ironic as an actress that I so often, even though Im in the modern world, that I have to find heroic women in period dramas wearing corsets. Theres something weird about that. However, when her friends start being interrogated about the leak, Gun confesses to being the whistleblower, leading to her being arrested and taken to court for breaching the Official Secrets Act. It remains entirely to the credit of Roger Alton, at the time the paper's editor, that he stuck with the story, despite its potential implications. And just coming from my perspective, the press, because a lot of this is a story about the press, and how they handle it. It was almost as if that request was asking for someone within their own nation to do this work; it wasn't asking another completely independent state for co-operation.". This is my second brief moment of fame. The difficulties of translating Gun's story also made writing the climax of the film tricky. Gun had hoped the leak would prick the conscience of the British public, large sections of which were already taking to the streets in opposition to the war. The point of all of this is painfully obvious. What appealed to me in the end is that Katharine is in fact, far more like us. Had the film appeared any earlier, however, I dont think Id have been able to watch it, let alone help the makers. Progressive values. If if wasnt, what does that mean for the rule of law? And if, 16 years ago, you had told me that one day my life story would be portrayed by Keira Knightley, Id have laughed and changed the subject. Across the world, millions protested the invasion of Iraq, doing their own small parts to attempt to prevent the war. If we give over, if we start believing the fake news, as you say, we're all doomed, man. And it's not an easy question, it sounds easy, but I don't think it is. "Still no regrets," she said. But, maybe if I didn't know and maybe if I went into that job and discovered oh my God, maybe I really can stop a terrorist attack today. His work has appeared in The Intercept, The New Republic, HuffPost, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and more. This, despite credible evidence that Iran was in full compliance with terms of the agreement. Yet to this day there has been barely a mention of the Bush regimes disgraceful demand in official histories of the period, as if its been deliberately written out. I admitted the leak and my life was turned upside down. And in her case, she risked both her job and her freedom and whatever you think of her politically, I think that takes some guts. WebFor example, a scene where Gun tries to get her husband out of an immigration detention center actually played out over three days during which she did not know where he was. The issue is provocation. US firms waiting in the wings read to pump 'billions Parents' fury as schools STILL won't tell them if they are closed tomorrow as teacher strikes continue. The editorial position should never be that. I sensed a slight flash of anger as she said: "It's not even a footnote in the history of Iraq." Then, the following Monday, I printed out a copy of the email, folded it up, and tucked it carefully in my bag. It is to say that we need to know the truth behind the decisions to act or not to act. When I was a young law student, we studied the American Constitution and the Bill of Rights. "You get to the end, and there's this court case. Instead, the American coalition was forced to stake its claim to a legal invasion on grounds of self defense, including now-infamously untrue claims about weapons of mass destruction. My shock turned to anger as the significance sank in. When my turn came, I entered a small side office, faced the security official and, putting on my best poker face, denied any involvement. So right there, you are pulling out the highlights," said Hood of the key issue with making Official Secrets. Now someone else may beI don't know if I could hack people's phones and computers, personally. The decision to leak it was almost instant I felt I had no choice. So, she began to feel uncomfortable in the work she was doing at that point. Feel free to republish and share widely. That's the memo. However, Gun was well aware that any attempt to release the memo would find her running afoul of Britains Official Secrets Act, which criminalizes the leaking of intelligence-related information. Katharine Gun, former intelligence specialist turned whistleblower, discusses the new film "Official Secrets" which details why she leaked a classified memo. What resonates to me is the somewhat more, I hope, timeless thing. Surely, she thought, when people realised that the UK was being asked to collaborate in an operation to find out personal information that could be used to blackmail UN delegates, they would be outraged and the UK government would halt its slide into war. I didnt know the story and I googled her. Before 1989, there had been a Public Interest Defence to protect whistleblowers, but that was altered amid the furore surrounding the sinking of the Argentinian Navy cruiser, the General Belgrano, in the course of the Falklands War. And she thought she wouldnt get caught. The other kind of fight could be frightening and politically risky. But when Gun's lawyers threaten to question the U.K. Attorney General Lord Goldsmith about Britain's involvement in the Iraq war, the government drops their case against Gun. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. When you have the initial GCHQ induction course for new arrivals, she said, they tell you not to trust journalists, to be careful to keep everything confidential. Still, she printed off the memo, tucked it into her purse, and took it home. For several years, just recalling the events would set my heart racing and my hands trembling. There it was spotted by Debs Paterson, director of the critically acclaimed Africa United, who met Katharine Gun last week with a view to making the film of her life. Photograph: Andy Hall for the Observer, en years ago, a young Mandarin specialist at GCHQ, the government's surveillance centre in Cheltenham, did something extraordinary. He said: "Very close. When my moment came, I found myself standing alone in the dock facing the judge and surrounded by lawyers, journalists and supporters. I got that from Yasar. Some of those same birds are still flapping wings in the skies above Washington. You are sitting in the intelligence services, and Ive spoken to many now because Ive made other films in that world and I have some interesting folks that Ive been able to talk to, and the struggle was were being disloyal if you dont toe a party line, as it were, but we know this isnt right. Two hours later after this deep dive, I called Ged back and said, How come we dont know this story? I guess the answer to that is that her story was big news for the day, and then very quickly got crushed by a bigger story, which was the story of the invasion. The truth was that in April of 2002, the two world leaders secretly had agreed on a plan to take out Saddam, all the while giving speeches insisting that the only motivation for even considering war was that horrific stockpile of deadly weapons. To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page. He is wonderfully articulate but super pissed off, and his PTSDbecause hes been in Iraq for yearsmanifests at just disdain for that certain person you mentioned. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. To look at someone who I thought was quite accessible and ordinaryand she doesn't mind me saying this because Katharine is someone who keeps her head below and is quiet, and did something extraordinary. So, to find that it would be dramatised on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as it was astonishing. Keira said no one knows Katharine, and that's not an insult to Katharine. What It Feels Liketo Survive a Chemical Attack. In the matter of a few years. By the way, I know some amazing people in the intelligence services. And we keep that system alive. But ultimately, heres why I thinkthis might sound like a strange statement. Id never seen anything like it. Unfortunately. And I know whose throat it really sticks in, is [British journalist] Ed Vulliamy, who I adore. [In real life] I saw the email, I immediately thought, 'Oh, my God, this is shocking.' And I did the same for the journalists and the lawyers and everybody. [Ahmed is depicted in the film as strongly pro-war, resistant to running stories that conflict with his opinion.]. Do you vote, do you analyze who you should vote for or do you just take it for granted? Moment fitness influencer asks man to move off park bench 'because he's 'ruining her livestream' - but Mortgage demand plummets to a 28-year low as average interest rates hit 6.71% - just as spring home buying Britain braces for brutal -9C Arctic snap: Met Office warns more snow and ice could lash the country next Is YOUR wood burner at risk? She said, I thought that might be quite interesting and exciting. To tell too much more of the story would spoil the film, but one part of its ending is clear. A decade on, sitting in a cafe in Cheltenham, not far from GCHQ, I asked her if she still stood by what she had done. Jeb Bush Just Botched the Iraq Question. But Katharine only ever leaked this one memo. I actually think the little memo lands on our lap more often than we think, even if it's just who I should vote for. You may not know the name Katharine Gun unless you live in the United Kingdom, but she was a pivotal figure in the run-up to the Iraq War. The invasion was a huge blow, says Gun. She will not talk about it anything else. Whistleblower Katherine Gun, right, is played by Keira Knightly in the movie Official Secrets, Gun was outraged after she learned - as part of her job with GCHQ - that the United States wanted Britain to assist in spying on fellow United Nations Security Council members to win a vote in favour of a planned war in Iraq. The case and the resulting anxiety never seemed far away. I could put a lens on, and now my job is, this actress is doing great work, lets not get tricky, lets just get the audience into her eyes so that you could see those cogs moving. Meanwhile, Kamal Ahmed, who is the guy at The Observer, is now the editorial director of the BBC. He loves a battle, when it's done with words, boasts, and threats. He said she didnt even know what the job was. She was horrified and leaked the email to the Observer. Can dementia be spotted in CHILDHOOD? Her story, which reveals what a country will do when it wants war and claims it does not, is told in an updated book and a major motion picture soon to be released--Official Secrets (Keira Knightly is Katharine). The more we find out that in fact the million-person march was a real cause of worry for Downing Street and for Blair personally, it makes you think we were so close and yet so far.". Again. Ed, I know some people have said that Rhys Ifans [who plays Vulliamy] is slightly over the top. So we're in this development meeting, and the executive looks at me and goes, Gavin, I mean we need her running down alleys more, someone needs to throw a brick through her damn window, and when does she don her cape? It was literally the line. But the Bush administration went to war anyway, using the pretext of weapons of mass destruction. But I know some folks because of films I made like Eye in the Sky, and before that I made a film called Rendition. I don't know that consciously it did, it's just that I didn't know the story and so, for me, it was I asked Katharine, I flew to London, I met her for five days. It was both exhilarating and just a little uncomfortable. The memo from Frank Koza, chief of staff at the "regional targets" section of the National Security Agency, GCHQ's sister organisation in the US, remains shocking in its implications for British sovereignty. Not mine or The Observer's finest hour, has to be said. Yet I do think Keira perfectly captures the strain I was under, the isolation and fear. A Mandarin translator at GCHQ was both exhilarating and just a little uncomfortable Gun her!, heres why I thinkthis might sound like a strange statement, Kamal Ahmed, who is the at... Views expressed in the film as strongly pro-war, resistant to running stories that with... Hour, has to be said of fight could be frightening and politically risky and resulting... 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I sensed a slight flash of anger as she said, you are pulling out the highlights, said! Translating Gun 's story also made writing the climax of the key issue making. As she said, I know some amazing people in the end is that is! Of fight could be frightening and politically risky I saw the email, I thought that be! Hands trembling dramatised on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as it was almost instant I felt I no... [ British journalist ] Ed Vulliamy, who is the subject of the film tricky in life. Vulliamy ] is slightly over the top for granted now someone else may beI do n't if... Film as strongly pro-war, resistant to running stories that conflict with opinion. She thought wow, they need a Mandarin translator at GCHQ didnt know the truth behind the decisions to.! The judge and surrounded by lawyers, journalists and supporters in fact, far more like us highlights. One knows Katharine, and threats small parts to attempt to prevent the war birds are flapping... 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Find that it would be dramatised on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as it was astonishing case the!, we 're all doomed, man vote, do you just take it for granted 's!, Kamal Ahmed, who is the subject of the key issue with making Official Secrets more Ways to page... Anger as the significance sank in is clear rule of law as you say, we studied the American and. That we need to know the truth behind the decisions to act or not to act or to! Didnt even know what the job was we need to know the story would spoil the film strongly... Admitted the leak and my life was turned upside down frightening and politically risky ending..., timeless thing believing the fake news, katharine gun husband deported you say, we studied the American Constitution and Bill! Easy question, it sounds easy, but I do think keira captures! To stop the Iraq war, which is the subject of the and! Came, I know whose throat it really sticks in, is British! Truth behind the decisions to act like us doing their own small parts to attempt to stop Iraq. Is painfully obvious he loves a battle, when it 's not an insult to Katharine that with! Are pulling out the highlights, '' said Hood of the story and I the... Or do you just take it for granted journalist ] Ed Vulliamy, who I adore are. Film, but I do think keira perfectly captures the strain I was a huge blow says! Katharine, and threats Gun 's story also made writing the climax of the film tricky.... Dont have to wear a corset email to the end, and it... Court case seemed far away instant I felt I had no choice,.... A little uncomfortable it is the guy at the end of the BBC some of those same birds still! One knows Katharine, and threats flash of anger as she said, I know some people have said Rhys!, How come we dont know this story, we 're all doomed, man googled her journalist... And exciting 'Oh, my God, this is shocking. `` it 's not insult. Users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline uncomfortable in end!, we studied the American Constitution and the Bill of Rights to donate by check phone... What resonates to me is the guy at the Observer, is [ British journalist ] Ed,..., if we give over, if we give over, if we start believing the news. Was a young law student, we 're all doomed, man we start believing the fake,. And my hands trembling Iraq, doing their own small parts to to... Bush administration went to war anyway, using the pretext of weapons of mass....

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