Following the incident, Gun struggled to find work that she loved, and her husband had grown disillusioned with Britain. She then went on to get a Masters degree in Global Ethics. Shes just wearing her jeans and jumpers, you know, to work. This U.K. Whistleblower Almost Stopped the Iraq Invasion of 2003 The diplomats were due to vote on a second United Nations resolution on the prospective 2003 invasion of Iraq. Read More: Is Official Secrets a True Story? How did she go about rebuilding her life? And I dont know how authentic it appeared to the person interviewing me, but I just felt terrible. KATHARINE GUN: No, I felt a huge sense of relief after I had, you know, confessed. GAVIN HOOD: Theres an outrage. AMY GOODMAN: So you just thought this was routine. Kay Griggs, Former Marine Colonel's Wife Talks Again - WHALE After they charged me, thats when they tried to deport my husband. And, he says to me, she explained that Goldsmiths positionif I called for those documents, I would find out that he had been consistently saying that war without a U.N. resolution would be illegal. And the other way is the good, old-fashioned self-defense. The Case Against Mary Katherine Higdon 43:11. And so, a lot, a lot later. The legal case against Gun was eventually dropped by the British government in 2004, after her lawyer, Ben Emmerson QC (played in the film with fabulous charisma by Ralph Fiennes), threatened to use disclosure to put the legal basis of the war itself on trial. whistleblower and former specialist for Britains Government Communications Headquarters. The film, Official Secrets, comes out officially at the end of August. It was very difficult initially. That was in this moment, moment by moment, as the story evolves, what would it feel like if you were in her shoes. 'Official Secrets' sheds light on the story of U.K. whistleblower That whole period undermined the judicial process, it undermined the parliamentary process, and it undermined the media and press and the intelligence service. We are all of us living, she believes, with the consequences of that. KATHARINE GUN: And also, Im justwell, whether its natural inclination or whether its what was kind of drummed into us at GCHQ, but it was, you know, this the sense of being private and not trusting journalists or people who are trying to ferret out information from you. So I was in a dreadful state. But he certainly was suggesting that people would know. You work for the British government, her interrogator said, with a sneer. The country, at the time, was being drummed into war by the Blair government, desperate to achieve the United Nations sanction for the imminent American-led invasion of Iraq. KATHARINE GUN: I was waiting outside in the police station, yes. Yeah, I mean, they knew, in fact, GCHQ, I think, because theres this system whereby, you know, before the news goes to print, the government and various organizations get the front pages, so they know whatslike, before it goes to press. KATHARINE GUN: Oh, no. As soon as I opened the door and he saw me coming in, and he could see something was wrong, and thenand I said, Theyve taken him. And he went, The bastards! So, anyway, I was on the phone. The biggest story was: Who cares why were in the war? [4], After spending her childhood in Taiwan, where she attended Morrison Academy until the age of 16, Katharine returned to Britain to study for her A-levels at Moira House School, a girls' boarding school in Eastbourne. We still dont know who Frank Koza is, or hes still not given a public interview about about what went on. KATHARINE GUN: Actually, time-wise, I was bailed for eight months. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. And she hadnt said why she had resigned. AMY GOODMAN: Shes then arrested. Katharine Gun was a young specialist working for Britains Government Communications Headquarters when she exposed a highly confidential memo that revealed the United States was working with the United Kingdom to collect sensitive information on United Nations Security Council members in order to pressure them into supporting the Iraq invasion. Fox News' Kat Timpf Marries Cameron Friscia: See the Photos - People He left the Observer not long after the events it describes and now runs the Creative Society, a charity that helps widen access to jobs in the media and the arts to candidates with non-traditional backgrounds. AMY GOODMAN: And a story that could have saved so many lives, except. We have sort of, you know, I want to take my country back from all those Portuguese nurses and Polish plumbers, that we really must get rid of, and sort of whats best for Britain. You know, we dont have an opposition in our country, whereas you do in yours, thank god. So, of course, I was a little bit sort of reserved. Youre breaking the speed limit. What was he telling Blair until the 11th hour, where he changed his mind, it seems, at the 11th hour, and said, 'Oh, well, you can justify on the basis of Resolution 678 from 1991,' this fringe idea that no decent international lawyerand Im an ex-lawyerbelieves to be even remotely sensible?. Was she immediately frightened of the consequences? Congratulations are in order for Fox News personality Kat Timpf and her beau Cameron Friscia! Her act of whistleblowing cost her a career as a translator at the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), made her stand in a highly publicized trial for violating the Official Secrets Act, and reduced her chances of getting another job due to being an internationally recognized whistleblower. Truth has a habit of finding a voice, however. The film -- quite plausibly -- depicts the charges being dropped against Gun for the simple reason that the British government feared . AMY GOODMAN: And the U.S. is still in Iraq. Naturally, people are curious to know more about this courageous linguist who stood her ground even as political heavyweights descended upon her. Much of the news desk was opposed. So, 600,000 Iraqi people died. And so, we went down together to internal security, and they called Scotland Yard. [12] A government spokesman said that the decision to drop the case had been made before the defence's demands had been submitted. It was shown in the Castro Theatre. I think our problem now, and I think this applies on both sides of the Atlantic, is that we have populist politicians for whom that doesnt matter. I was teaching Mandarin in the local college in Cheltenham. I could not get it in. Theres no doubt. GAVIN HOOD: This amazing lawyer, with great dignityElizabeth Wilmshurst, whos in the movie, Ralph Fiennes playing Ben Emmersonhas the cup of tea with her. The author advocates anonymity. You dont know who the GCHQ person is. This is, sadly, a story of failure. Gun was asked by Special Branch officers why she had chosen to act as she had. Among them were Reverend Jesse Jackson, Daniel Ellsberg (the US government official who leaked the Pentagon Papers), and Congressman Dennis Kucinich. GAVIN HOOD: So, we meet the first day, and after a few hours I think we warmed to each other. The Observer team in a scene from the film, with Matt Smith, front, as home affairs editor Martin Bright. And when he didnt come out, I was panicking, you know, and I ran inside. But deep inside me, I didnt feel guilty. I met her in August in Durham, when she was on a brief visit to see her father. Her father had studied Chinese at Durham University and now teaches at Tunghai University in the city of Taichung, central Taiwan. I mean, my initial encounter with him at the Faith Foundation was extremely concerning, in fact, because he said that what he wanted me to do was develop a heat map, you know, an interactive map of all the madrassas, you know, Islamic schools, around the world, with my tiny team of two or three interns, showingand he looked me in the eye, and he said, I want you to be ableI want people who are looking on our website to be able to see how radical those madrassas are, by color coding.. I wanted to go to the making of the filmKeira Knightley, did you meet with her?and also ask you, Gavin, about Keira taking on this role. But it is tempting to believe that is the case with Katharine Gun. And looking back, its easy to be nostalgic about how things were with Bush and Blair, because it looks like these people were easier to hold to account. I was very exercised about what was happening. And yeah, it was absolutely terrifying. [6] Gun had previously been unaware of GCHQ, later saying that "I didn't have much idea about what they didI was going into it pretty much blind. Megan (Knightley) is having a quarter-life crisis after her boyfriend proposes, so she escapes for a week to her new friend, a 16-year-old named Annika's ( Chlo Grace Moretz) house . Mary Katherine Higdon of Griffin, Georgia, was arrested for the murder of her live-in boyfriend, Steven Freeman. Her whistleblowing was not enough to change the path of history, of course, and her last-gasp act of courage was all but forgotten in the brutal shock and awe of war. But lets go back to the moment. You know, banks of civil servants couldnt do that. Maybe there will be sympathy.. And also, I didnt want to even risk having a criminal record. Ellsberg has called Katharine Guns action the most important and courageous leak I have ever seen. In this episode of Schenck Talks Bonhoeffer, TDBI Founder and President, Rev. [6] She left teaching in 1999, and after some temporary jobs, finding it difficult to find work as a linguist, Gun applied to GCHQ in 2001, after reading a newspaper advertisement for the organisation. Consider donating here. Please do your part today. She urged "those in a position to do so to disclose information which relates to this planned aggression; legal advice, meetings between the White House and other intelligence agencies, assessments of Iran's threat level (or better yet, evidence that assessments have been altered), troop deployments and army notifications. Gun thinks she might speak out more considering the current state of political affairs and massive citizen involvement in sociopolitical issues. When he didnt come out, I was panicking, you know, and I ran inside. Democracy Now! Something like. She was arrested and charged with breach of the Official Secrets Act. KATHARINE GUN: I dont know. I wanted to stop bombs dropping on Iraq., The consequences have been damaging not just for Guns career. MARTIN BRIGHT: We didI tell you what, though, we did feel that we had failed. I mean, this has been going on for a number of years, and it always sort of ended up kind of petering out, so, GAVIN HOOD: Other people had approached you before. Gun owned up to the leak a few days later to save her GCHQ colleagues from a witch-hunt. But jokes aside, the reason she said to methe reason I constantly find myself going. Lets find out! ED VULLIAMY: Yes. 15 Years Later: How U.K. Whistleblower Katharine Gun Risked Everything But I wasnt thinking about myself really. But, I mean, I ended up being a whistleblower myself within that organization. We pay respect by giving voice to social justice, acknowledging our shared history and valuing the cultures of First Nations. But, you know, it. So, no, I mean, I didnt want to say I was guilty when I didnt feel guilty. We met in London. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. MARTIN BRIGHT: Well, they didnt even say why. In an interview with Democracy Now!, Gun explained, After they charged me, thats when they tried to deport my husband. But I felt this information was explosive, it needed to get out. It was with the help of MP Nigel Jones that Gun finally managed to free Yasar, reasserting his right to stay in the UK. And nor did the story end. KATHARINE GUN: Devastation. And he says, Well, I called Elizabeth Wilmshurst, who is the assistant attorney general, who had resigned. Theyre going to send him back to Turkey. is katharine gun still married to yasar. Of course I did, yes. You know, these things happen. "[12], Two years after her trial, Gun wrote an article titled "Iran: Time to Leak",[22] which asked whistleblowers to make public any information about plans for a potential war against Iran. Gun was outraged after she learned - as part of her job with GCHQ - that the United States wanted . A film, Official Secrets, has been made of her story. Iraq war whistleblower Katharine Gun: Truth always matters. Katharine Gun outside the Old Bailey after charges had been dropped against her, 2004. No need for weapons of mass destruction arguments. Don't worry, we won't share or sell your information. On the one hand I was relieved because my life wouldnt have to be scrutinised in court. And I justI just determined to deny it. I ask her first if it is gratifying to finally have it out there? Interview: Whistleblower Katharine Gun. And they had already taken him down into the custody suite, which is, by the way, where I had been before. We speak with a British whistleblower whose attempts to expose lies about the Iraq invasion was called "the most important and courageous leak" in history by. KATHARINE GUN: to police custody, yes, and kept overnight in a police cell. So a very big story got crushed very quickly. Hes repackaged himself as sort of the European. The official editorial line, led by the then editor Roger Alton (now an executive editor at the Daily Mail) and political editor Kamal Ahmed (now editorial director of BBC News) was in close support of the Blair governments position on the invasion. [2] In 2003, she leaked top-secret information to The Observer, concerning a request by the United States for compromising intelligence on diplomats from member states of the 2003 Security Council.

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