Waihopai spybase - it's not all bad
The spy base at Waihopai has certainly generated its fair share of controversy over the years. About 30km outside Blenheim on the Waihopai Valley Road, the base, with its two white globes, has stood in the Waihopai Valley since 1989, writes The Marlborough Express in an editorial.
The Waihopai spy base is operated by New Zealand's Government Communications Security Bureau. Exactly what goes on at the base is not 100 percent clear but its two satellite interception dishes (shielded from public view by giant domes) are said to intercept a huge volume of telexes, faxes, emails and computer data communications. Opponents of the base believe it is part of Echelon, the worldwide network of signals interception facilities run by the American and British intelligence agencies.
They do not want New Zealand to be part of Uncle Sam's spy network, and were particularly fired up by revelations found in former prime minister David Lange's papers that this country spied on friendly countries in the 1980s.
Anti-base campaigners say the base's existence makes New Zealand complicit in America's wars. Some say it is the key contribution New Zealand makes to any American war anywhere in the world, and leaves New Zealand with blood on its hands. It also places an unreasonable burden on New Zealand taxpayers, who have paid about half a billion dollars in the last 20 years.
The spy base has been the site of protests over many years. Every year it is the venue for an annual protest that sees a group of protesters stand around outside its gates with placards, yelling slogans and generally just expressing their displeasure at the base.
The base attracted international attention on April 30 when three sickle-wielding protesters broke on to the site and deflated one of the large inflatable domes covering a radar dish. The men were members of Ploughshares, a London-based movement which delivers its disarmament message by attempting to disable warplanes and other military equipment.
The group describes itself as "people committed to peace and disarmament and who nonviolently, safely, openly and accountably disable a war machine or system so that it can no longer harm people". Whether the Waihopai spy base can truly be called a "war machine" or whether it really "harms people" is debatable.
The Waihopai Satellite Communications Station is part of a signals intelligence alliance between New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. It plays a vital role for New Zealand in being a part of that international network, which directly benefits New Zealand. Experience over the past few years shows that it is better to be forewarned than forearmed. Intelligence gathering plays a significant role in tracking extremists and has been proved worthwhile internationally.
The spy base employs local people, it does not emit any poisonous gases or spill pollutants into the soil or rivers. If it were not for the annual protests most people would not really give a hoot about it. There are valid concerns that privacy could be invaded by the base's interception of communications. But if that interception of communications was responsible for saving a life then having two oversized golf balls in our backyard is a small price to pay.
Showing posts with label waihopai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label waihopai. Show all posts
Deposition Hearing for the Waihopai Domebusters
Support Waihopai Ploughshares
17-18 September 2008
This page has the details of how you can support Waihopai Ploughshares around their depositions hearing which will be held at Blenheim District Court on Thursday, 18 September. There are four sections below: what's happening in Blenheim on 17 and 18 September, supporting events in Wellington and Auckland on 18 September, and other ways you can support Ploughshares.
"On 30 April, Christian activists Sam, Peter and Adi deflated the protective dome covering a satellite dish at the Waihopai spy base near Blenheim. This Christian non-violent direct action was to protest against NZ's involvement in America's war in Iraq. On the 18th of September, they will be in court for their depositions hearing where they will enter a plea in relation to the two criminal charges they are facing. Your prayers and support are appreciated."
Blenheim, 17 and 18 September
On Wednesday, 17 September
* 6pm - evening meal at St Mary's Presbytery, 61 Maxwell Road
* 7.30pm - 'Swords into ploughshares: defence bases and idolatry' discussion forum, Saint Mary's Church foyer. Overnight accommodation at St Mary's Parish Hall (mattresses only provided)
On Thursday, 18 September
* 10am - depositions hearing, Courtroom No 1, Blenheim District Court, 58 Alfred Street
* 1pm to 2pm - sausage sizzle and cake stall to raise money for the reconstruction of Iraq (target:USD$800,000,000,000) at the Blenheim War Memorial, opposite the court house.
A printable poster with the Blenheim events is available here, for more information contact Adi, tel 06 364 8966 or email.
Wellington, Thursday 18 September
From 1pm to 2.30pm - peaceful presence at the GCSB HQ, Freyberg Building, corner Aitken Street and Mulgrave Street (opposite Archives NZ), with music, and more! All welcome, come along and support Ploughshares non-violent / faith-based kaupapa; for more information contact the Wellington Ploughshares Support Group.
Auckland, Thursday 18 September
From 12.30pm to 2pm - peaceful presence outside the US Consulate, Citibank Building, 23 Customs Street East (corner of Commerce Street). All welcome! come along and support Ploughshares non-violent / faith-based kaupapa, for more information contact the Auckland Ploughshares Support Group.
Other ways you can support Ploughshares
Prayer, advocacy and money are all important ways that supporters can participate in the witness of Ploughshares. Ploughshares support information - including a request for prayers / karakia, how to post messages of support or join the Ploughshares mailing list, and suggestions for questions you can ask the Prime Minister about Waihopai - are available on the Ploughshares web site or by email.
Help get the message out - print and distribute this flyer.
If you can help with financial support, donations can be made * by bank transfer: WestPac, Account Name: Te Wairua Maranga Trust, Account Number: 03-1703-0036346-04 - donations are not tax-deductible * by cheque: please send your cheque payable to 'Peace Movement Aotearoa - Special Projects', with a note saying it is for Waihopai Ploughshares, and your name and address (if you'd like a receipt) to Peace Movement Aotearoa, PO Box 9314, Wellington 6141. Thank you
17-18 September 2008
This page has the details of how you can support Waihopai Ploughshares around their depositions hearing which will be held at Blenheim District Court on Thursday, 18 September. There are four sections below: what's happening in Blenheim on 17 and 18 September, supporting events in Wellington and Auckland on 18 September, and other ways you can support Ploughshares.
"On 30 April, Christian activists Sam, Peter and Adi deflated the protective dome covering a satellite dish at the Waihopai spy base near Blenheim. This Christian non-violent direct action was to protest against NZ's involvement in America's war in Iraq. On the 18th of September, they will be in court for their depositions hearing where they will enter a plea in relation to the two criminal charges they are facing. Your prayers and support are appreciated."
Blenheim, 17 and 18 September
On Wednesday, 17 September
* 6pm - evening meal at St Mary's Presbytery, 61 Maxwell Road
* 7.30pm - 'Swords into ploughshares: defence bases and idolatry' discussion forum, Saint Mary's Church foyer. Overnight accommodation at St Mary's Parish Hall (mattresses only provided)
On Thursday, 18 September
* 10am - depositions hearing, Courtroom No 1, Blenheim District Court, 58 Alfred Street
* 1pm to 2pm - sausage sizzle and cake stall to raise money for the reconstruction of Iraq (target:USD$800,000,000,000) at the Blenheim War Memorial, opposite the court house.
A printable poster with the Blenheim events is available here, for more information contact Adi, tel 06 364 8966 or email.
Wellington, Thursday 18 September
From 1pm to 2.30pm - peaceful presence at the GCSB HQ, Freyberg Building, corner Aitken Street and Mulgrave Street (opposite Archives NZ), with music, and more! All welcome, come along and support Ploughshares non-violent / faith-based kaupapa; for more information contact the Wellington Ploughshares Support Group.
Auckland, Thursday 18 September
From 12.30pm to 2pm - peaceful presence outside the US Consulate, Citibank Building, 23 Customs Street East (corner of Commerce Street). All welcome! come along and support Ploughshares non-violent / faith-based kaupapa, for more information contact the Auckland Ploughshares Support Group.
Other ways you can support Ploughshares
Prayer, advocacy and money are all important ways that supporters can participate in the witness of Ploughshares. Ploughshares support information - including a request for prayers / karakia, how to post messages of support or join the Ploughshares mailing list, and suggestions for questions you can ask the Prime Minister about Waihopai - are available on the Ploughshares web site or by email.
Help get the message out - print and distribute this flyer.
If you can help with financial support, donations can be made * by bank transfer: WestPac, Account Name: Te Wairua Maranga Trust, Account Number: 03-1703-0036346-04 - donations are not tax-deductible * by cheque: please send your cheque payable to 'Peace Movement Aotearoa - Special Projects', with a note saying it is for Waihopai Ploughshares, and your name and address (if you'd like a receipt) to Peace Movement Aotearoa, PO Box 9314, Wellington 6141. Thank you
Metro Article on Father Peter Murnane
follow this link to find a great article written about one of the Waihopai Domebusters, Father Peter Murnane.
http://www.metrolive.co.nz/metro-archives/metro-archives-article/6610/articleid.aspx
http://www.metrolive.co.nz/metro-archives/metro-archives-article/6610/articleid.aspx
More on the Waihopai Anzac Ploughshares
the following article appeared in Tui Motu (Independent Catholic Monthly Magazine)
GOOD ON THE WAIHOPAI DOMEBUSTERS
- Murray Horton
Murray Horton is the Organiser and spokesperson for the Anti-Bases Campaign.
Peter Murnane, in the May issue, did an excellent job of establishing that the Waihopai spy base in Marlborough is a terrorist base. Of course, Peter and two other members of the Anzac Ploughshares group have since turned words into action, symbolically closing the base by deflating one of its two domes, leaving the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) and the Government with egg on their faces.
The Anti-Bases Campaign has been calling for Waihopai’s closure for the 21 years since it was first announced. In the first decade we adopted similar tactics, with dozens of arrests, although without such a spectacular result (the closest we got was splattering a dome as the target of a bullshit throwing contest. The raw material was freely available locally - the winner is now a Protestant clergyman). For the past decade we have opted for non-arrestable actions, which are still high on visual impact and which get excellent public support and media coverage.
The Ploughshares action propelled the top secret base into the spotlight. There was predictable hysteria from the powers that be and utter nonsense from the spy agency and some “experts”. Take two examples – we were told that the only purpose of the domes is to keep the satellite dishes weatherproof. Then why doesn’t the multitude of Sky TV dishes on houses up and down the country each need a little dome to stop them getting rusty? The purpose of the domes is to conceal which direction the dish is pointing and thus conceal which satellites they are spying on. The other one was that Waihopai is under full NZ control and only spies for “us”. Read Nicky Hager’s 1996 “Secret Power”, which remains the seminal book on what Waihopai does and for whom (Nicky has written much more recently, in the Sunday Star Times of May 11, about Waihopai’s role as a cog in the US “War On Terror”). The head of the GCSB has no doubts about where his loyalties lie – as soon as he learned of the April 30 attack he rushed to warn NZ’s Big Brothers in the global intelligence gathering UKUSA Agreement (US, UK, Australia and Canada) in case there was a global plan to attack their bases. Why would he do that if Waihopai is an independent NZ operation?
There is an Australian precedent for what the Ploughshares group did and let’s hope that the outcome is the same. In 2005 four members of Christians Against All Terrorism got into the heavily guarded and top secret US warfighting spybase at Pine Gap, near Alice Springs, despite having warned the State about what they planned to do and when. They didn’t damage anything, simply trespassed. The furious State made them the first people ever charged under a draconian Cold War law. But in 2007 a judge fined them, rather than imprisoning them. Both sides appealed and this year they were acquitted, on the grounds that they had been denied a central plank of their defence, namely the right to introduce evidence as what Pine Gap does (it is the most important American spybase outside the US). It will be interesting to see how far the Ploughshares defendants are allowed to go in court about Waihopai’s functions.
To find out more about Waihopai and the other two bases in NZ – the US military base at Christchurch Airport and the GCSB’s Tangimoana spybase in the lower North Island - contact the Anti-Bases Campaign, Box 2258, Christchurch, cafca@chch.planet.org.nz www.converge.org.nz/abc
GOOD ON THE WAIHOPAI DOMEBUSTERS
- Murray Horton
Murray Horton is the Organiser and spokesperson for the Anti-Bases Campaign.
Peter Murnane, in the May issue, did an excellent job of establishing that the Waihopai spy base in Marlborough is a terrorist base. Of course, Peter and two other members of the Anzac Ploughshares group have since turned words into action, symbolically closing the base by deflating one of its two domes, leaving the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) and the Government with egg on their faces.
The Anti-Bases Campaign has been calling for Waihopai’s closure for the 21 years since it was first announced. In the first decade we adopted similar tactics, with dozens of arrests, although without such a spectacular result (the closest we got was splattering a dome as the target of a bullshit throwing contest. The raw material was freely available locally - the winner is now a Protestant clergyman). For the past decade we have opted for non-arrestable actions, which are still high on visual impact and which get excellent public support and media coverage.
The Ploughshares action propelled the top secret base into the spotlight. There was predictable hysteria from the powers that be and utter nonsense from the spy agency and some “experts”. Take two examples – we were told that the only purpose of the domes is to keep the satellite dishes weatherproof. Then why doesn’t the multitude of Sky TV dishes on houses up and down the country each need a little dome to stop them getting rusty? The purpose of the domes is to conceal which direction the dish is pointing and thus conceal which satellites they are spying on. The other one was that Waihopai is under full NZ control and only spies for “us”. Read Nicky Hager’s 1996 “Secret Power”, which remains the seminal book on what Waihopai does and for whom (Nicky has written much more recently, in the Sunday Star Times of May 11, about Waihopai’s role as a cog in the US “War On Terror”). The head of the GCSB has no doubts about where his loyalties lie – as soon as he learned of the April 30 attack he rushed to warn NZ’s Big Brothers in the global intelligence gathering UKUSA Agreement (US, UK, Australia and Canada) in case there was a global plan to attack their bases. Why would he do that if Waihopai is an independent NZ operation?
There is an Australian precedent for what the Ploughshares group did and let’s hope that the outcome is the same. In 2005 four members of Christians Against All Terrorism got into the heavily guarded and top secret US warfighting spybase at Pine Gap, near Alice Springs, despite having warned the State about what they planned to do and when. They didn’t damage anything, simply trespassed. The furious State made them the first people ever charged under a draconian Cold War law. But in 2007 a judge fined them, rather than imprisoning them. Both sides appealed and this year they were acquitted, on the grounds that they had been denied a central plank of their defence, namely the right to introduce evidence as what Pine Gap does (it is the most important American spybase outside the US). It will be interesting to see how far the Ploughshares defendants are allowed to go in court about Waihopai’s functions.
To find out more about Waihopai and the other two bases in NZ – the US military base at Christchurch Airport and the GCSB’s Tangimoana spybase in the lower North Island - contact the Anti-Bases Campaign, Box 2258, Christchurch, cafca@chch.planet.org.nz www.converge.org.nz/abc
Nicky Hager on Waihopai Ploughshares Action
Waihopai: our role in international spying
When three Christian protesters deflated a radome at the Waihopai intelligence base 12 days ago, citing the base's support for the US War on Terror, a chorus of voices ridiculed the suggestion.
Waihopai is entirely a New Zealand operation, not part of the War on Terror, they said. It is, in the words of one newspaper, just to "keep New Zealand competitive in diplomatic, political and trade negotiations".
They are completely wrong. New information, prised out by former Chief Ombudsman John Belgrave and from intelligence insiders, makes it clear that Waihopai, and the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) that runs it, have been heavily focused on supporting the US War on Terror since September 11, 2001.
It's understandable if people are ignorant about the GCSB. It is New Zealand's largest but least understood intelligence agency. Whereas the SIS spies within New Zealand, the GCSB and its predecessor have worked within an extremely secret five-nation alliance since the late 1940s, eavesdropping on other countries' radio communications and, nowadays, emails and phone calls.
The first signs of the GCSB's War on Terror role came thanks to the efforts of Belgrave, who sadly died late last year. The GCSB had refused an Official Information Act request for information on its post-September 11 activities, but Belgrave was unconvinced by the GCSB's claim of needing total secrecy.
The papers he ordered released show immediate changes inside the GCSB in the early days of the War on Terror. A June 2002 annual report declared that "the 2001-2002 Financial Year has been a defining year for the Bureau". It said "the events of 11 September led to a major shift in focus for the Bureau and defined its operations for most of the year".
It noted in particular that the "SIGINT" operations (signals intelligence), which include the spying on satellite communications from the Waihopai station, "were defined by [the Bureau's] response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 ... and the consequent heightened demands for those services".
This heightened demand for spying services quickly led to requests for extra resources. Both funding and staff numbers have nearly doubled (to $42 million and 370 staff) in the six years since. Insiders say the first changes in early 2002 included a new analysis section devoted to terrorism-related intelligence, named the Transnational Issues Reporting Team and located in the headquarters' SIGINT Production Unit. Their job is to process "raw" intercepted emails and other messages intercepted at Waihopai and elsewhere: translating them and producing standardised intelligence reports to send to New Zealand and overseas intelligence "end users".
Most GCSB spying occurs at Waihopai. However, inside sources say another major New Zealand contribution to US war-on-terror activities has been covert GCSB-directed electronic eavesdropping teams. The GCSB began using specially trained New Zealand military personnel for overseas spying missions in the late 1980s, first using Navy staff and later Army and Air Force staff. Insiders say that immediately after the September 11 attacks these GCSB-trained personnel were sent to serve with US forces in Afghanistan and elsewhere.
In 2003 the GCSB began openly publishing annual reports. They show a continued priority on the War on Terror. "The ongoing war against terrorism was a major focus of the Bureau's signals intelligence (SIGINT) operations," director Warren Tucker wrote. This was achieved "through an increase in the numbers of analytic and processing staff, and ongoing work to enhance technical collection and processing capability."
BY THEN the War on Terror had changed. Osama bin Laden was all but forgotten and the United States was primarily focused on Iraq. Intelligence justifying the Iraq invasion had been discredited and photos were appearing from the Abu Ghraib prison. But the GCSB was set on its new path and there was no sign of reconsidering the War on Terror role.
In the 2004 annual report, Tucker wrote: "Throughout the year, the Bureau has continued to play its full part in the international partnership. Collaboration and co-operation, particularly on counter-terrorism, is extremely strong, as demonstrated by the record number of visitors to GCSB (including several major conferences)." The War on Terror had become a welcome means for New Zealand intelligence and military staff to achieve closer relations with United States intelligence and military agencies.
It was also a great way to get more resources. Tucker wrote in the 2004 report that "the Bureau was successful during the year in obtaining significant additional funding for a range of capability enhancements" including "further development on both collection stations" (such as a new 7.3m antennae at Waihopai) and a further increase in the number of intelligence analysts. (A fourth Waihopai dish was added in 2007.)
Within the GCSB, some staff were not so sure about the direction. One confided privately that "many people [in the Bureau] feel it's worthwhile watching out for terrorism in our region but it doesn't mean they support George Bush's approach, rushing into wars and all."
They could see how closely the GCSB's terrorism work was aligned to US foreign policy. That year's annual report mentions that the GCSB had made "a considerable effort... during the year to provide enhanced language training for our intelligence analysts" and that "preparation of a strategy for long-term language capability development is now well advanced".
This was written when "fighting terrorism" in the Middle East was looking more like fomenting terrorism and many countries were urgently re-evaluating their role in the War on Terror. The GCSB report didn't say what language capabilities were being increased in the long-term strategy, but the answer is they were digging in to continue supporting the George Bush approach.
The enhanced language training was overseen, like various other major GCSB developments, by a British intelligence officer posted to Wellington for the purpose. According to GCSB staff, the officer, a polite man in his 40s, was a language specialist from the British sister agency, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). Staff throughout the Wellington headquarters knew he was a GCHQ Middle Eastern languages specialist, speaking four or more Arabic languages, and that his job during 2004 was to reorient the New Zealand analysis sections towards Middle Eastern language intelligence.
And so it went on. The 2005 annual report shows a further 30% rise in budget for the year, including more analysts and "continued enhancements to the Bureau's two collection stations at Tangimoana and Waihopai". It says "counter-terrorism and regional issues continue to be the major focuses of the Bureau's intelligence efforts". Each subsequent annual report uses the same words. In late 2007 GCSB director Bruce Ferguson was privately seeking linguists competent in Farsi/Persian (the main language of Iran and part of Afghanistan) to recruit as intelligence analysts.
Throughout this, the mood does not sound like one of dreadful responsibility to stop terrorism, but more of welcome opportunity to build up the spy agency. Even in the first months after the September 11 attacks, amid public fear and uncertainty, Tucker wrote in a non-public annual report that "the internal atmosphere of the Bureau [had] changed during the year, with a much greater sense of optimism at the end of the year, brought about by certainty of funding and a sharpened sense of mission and purpose."
All of this makes it clear that, whatever you think of the Christian protest at Waihopai, they were correct when they described it as an important part of the Bush adminstration's War on Terror. But the GCSB is generally so secret that it's easy for people to sound off in uninformed ways.
Peter Cozens, head of the Centre for Strategic Studies, for instance, said the base is used strictly to collect and analyse information, often of "a political, trade and diplomatic nature", for the New Zealand government. He told the New Zealand Herald that Waihopai is "entirely, totally cosa nostra New Zealand. It is New Zealand's mafia, if you like. It's our thing. It's got nothing to do with the Americans".
Incorrect. The Waihopai station, like the GCSB itself, is staffed and funded by New Zealanders. It is not a US base in the sense of US personnel being stationed on New Zealand soil. But it has everything to do with the Americans. The station is part of a network of similar stations set up at US prompting by allies around the world. The same equipment, manuals, codewords and communication systems are found in each station.
This US intelligence system, codenamed "Echelon" in the 1990s, was the subject of a 2000-2001 European parliament inquiry that confirmed and added extra detail to the descriptions of Echelon provided by GCSB staff for my 1996 book about the agency. It uses computers codenamed Dictionaries to sift intelligence from the millions of satellite communications intercepted at the various facilities. The key to the system is that each station does not just collect intelligence for the home nation. Waihopai, like the others, has separate US, British and Australian search lists (keywords, email addresses etc) that are used to identify and collect intelligence for the US, British and Australian electronic spying agencies. Thus at the same time as Waihopai collects intelligence on the South Pacific and other subjects for the GCSB, it also functions in effect as a foreign base collecting intelligence for the intelligence allies.
The intercepted messages collected for the New Zealand agency go by an encrypted link across Cook Strait to the Freyberg Building headquarters in Aitken St, Wellington. They are stored in a computer database inside a large vault room 12.11 on the GCSB's 12th floor until processed by the intelligence analysts. But the messages collected at Waihopai for the other allies, which mostly means the United States, are routed straight from the 14th floor GCSB information centre to Washington DC and allied agencies.
The early (non-public) GCSB annual reports acknowledged the agency's role assisting the overseas intelligence allies. "New Zealand's international intelligence links are strengthened by a reliable contribution to allied intelligence community efforts," the 2000 report said.
However, subsequent publicly available annual reports removed this statement and said only that "the mission of the GCSB is to contribute to the national security of New Zealand through... providing foreign signals intelligence to support and inform government decision-making".
The GCSB's role in the US-led network is well known to its own staff. When they arrive at headquarters each day, they walk along corridors displaying framed pictures of the signals intelligence bases that are the foundation of their work: photos of Waihopai and its US and allied sister stations dotted around the globe. There is no good reason why other New Zealanders should not also be allowed to know the basic facts of these intelligence ties, and whose foreign policies they are supporting.
When three Christian protesters deflated a radome at the Waihopai intelligence base 12 days ago, citing the base's support for the US War on Terror, a chorus of voices ridiculed the suggestion.
Waihopai is entirely a New Zealand operation, not part of the War on Terror, they said. It is, in the words of one newspaper, just to "keep New Zealand competitive in diplomatic, political and trade negotiations".
They are completely wrong. New information, prised out by former Chief Ombudsman John Belgrave and from intelligence insiders, makes it clear that Waihopai, and the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) that runs it, have been heavily focused on supporting the US War on Terror since September 11, 2001.
It's understandable if people are ignorant about the GCSB. It is New Zealand's largest but least understood intelligence agency. Whereas the SIS spies within New Zealand, the GCSB and its predecessor have worked within an extremely secret five-nation alliance since the late 1940s, eavesdropping on other countries' radio communications and, nowadays, emails and phone calls.
The first signs of the GCSB's War on Terror role came thanks to the efforts of Belgrave, who sadly died late last year. The GCSB had refused an Official Information Act request for information on its post-September 11 activities, but Belgrave was unconvinced by the GCSB's claim of needing total secrecy.
The papers he ordered released show immediate changes inside the GCSB in the early days of the War on Terror. A June 2002 annual report declared that "the 2001-2002 Financial Year has been a defining year for the Bureau". It said "the events of 11 September led to a major shift in focus for the Bureau and defined its operations for most of the year".
It noted in particular that the "SIGINT" operations (signals intelligence), which include the spying on satellite communications from the Waihopai station, "were defined by [the Bureau's] response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 ... and the consequent heightened demands for those services".
This heightened demand for spying services quickly led to requests for extra resources. Both funding and staff numbers have nearly doubled (to $42 million and 370 staff) in the six years since. Insiders say the first changes in early 2002 included a new analysis section devoted to terrorism-related intelligence, named the Transnational Issues Reporting Team and located in the headquarters' SIGINT Production Unit. Their job is to process "raw" intercepted emails and other messages intercepted at Waihopai and elsewhere: translating them and producing standardised intelligence reports to send to New Zealand and overseas intelligence "end users".
Most GCSB spying occurs at Waihopai. However, inside sources say another major New Zealand contribution to US war-on-terror activities has been covert GCSB-directed electronic eavesdropping teams. The GCSB began using specially trained New Zealand military personnel for overseas spying missions in the late 1980s, first using Navy staff and later Army and Air Force staff. Insiders say that immediately after the September 11 attacks these GCSB-trained personnel were sent to serve with US forces in Afghanistan and elsewhere.
In 2003 the GCSB began openly publishing annual reports. They show a continued priority on the War on Terror. "The ongoing war against terrorism was a major focus of the Bureau's signals intelligence (SIGINT) operations," director Warren Tucker wrote. This was achieved "through an increase in the numbers of analytic and processing staff, and ongoing work to enhance technical collection and processing capability."
BY THEN the War on Terror had changed. Osama bin Laden was all but forgotten and the United States was primarily focused on Iraq. Intelligence justifying the Iraq invasion had been discredited and photos were appearing from the Abu Ghraib prison. But the GCSB was set on its new path and there was no sign of reconsidering the War on Terror role.
In the 2004 annual report, Tucker wrote: "Throughout the year, the Bureau has continued to play its full part in the international partnership. Collaboration and co-operation, particularly on counter-terrorism, is extremely strong, as demonstrated by the record number of visitors to GCSB (including several major conferences)." The War on Terror had become a welcome means for New Zealand intelligence and military staff to achieve closer relations with United States intelligence and military agencies.
It was also a great way to get more resources. Tucker wrote in the 2004 report that "the Bureau was successful during the year in obtaining significant additional funding for a range of capability enhancements" including "further development on both collection stations" (such as a new 7.3m antennae at Waihopai) and a further increase in the number of intelligence analysts. (A fourth Waihopai dish was added in 2007.)
Within the GCSB, some staff were not so sure about the direction. One confided privately that "many people [in the Bureau] feel it's worthwhile watching out for terrorism in our region but it doesn't mean they support George Bush's approach, rushing into wars and all."
They could see how closely the GCSB's terrorism work was aligned to US foreign policy. That year's annual report mentions that the GCSB had made "a considerable effort... during the year to provide enhanced language training for our intelligence analysts" and that "preparation of a strategy for long-term language capability development is now well advanced".
This was written when "fighting terrorism" in the Middle East was looking more like fomenting terrorism and many countries were urgently re-evaluating their role in the War on Terror. The GCSB report didn't say what language capabilities were being increased in the long-term strategy, but the answer is they were digging in to continue supporting the George Bush approach.
The enhanced language training was overseen, like various other major GCSB developments, by a British intelligence officer posted to Wellington for the purpose. According to GCSB staff, the officer, a polite man in his 40s, was a language specialist from the British sister agency, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). Staff throughout the Wellington headquarters knew he was a GCHQ Middle Eastern languages specialist, speaking four or more Arabic languages, and that his job during 2004 was to reorient the New Zealand analysis sections towards Middle Eastern language intelligence.
And so it went on. The 2005 annual report shows a further 30% rise in budget for the year, including more analysts and "continued enhancements to the Bureau's two collection stations at Tangimoana and Waihopai". It says "counter-terrorism and regional issues continue to be the major focuses of the Bureau's intelligence efforts". Each subsequent annual report uses the same words. In late 2007 GCSB director Bruce Ferguson was privately seeking linguists competent in Farsi/Persian (the main language of Iran and part of Afghanistan) to recruit as intelligence analysts.
Throughout this, the mood does not sound like one of dreadful responsibility to stop terrorism, but more of welcome opportunity to build up the spy agency. Even in the first months after the September 11 attacks, amid public fear and uncertainty, Tucker wrote in a non-public annual report that "the internal atmosphere of the Bureau [had] changed during the year, with a much greater sense of optimism at the end of the year, brought about by certainty of funding and a sharpened sense of mission and purpose."
All of this makes it clear that, whatever you think of the Christian protest at Waihopai, they were correct when they described it as an important part of the Bush adminstration's War on Terror. But the GCSB is generally so secret that it's easy for people to sound off in uninformed ways.
Peter Cozens, head of the Centre for Strategic Studies, for instance, said the base is used strictly to collect and analyse information, often of "a political, trade and diplomatic nature", for the New Zealand government. He told the New Zealand Herald that Waihopai is "entirely, totally cosa nostra New Zealand. It is New Zealand's mafia, if you like. It's our thing. It's got nothing to do with the Americans".
Incorrect. The Waihopai station, like the GCSB itself, is staffed and funded by New Zealanders. It is not a US base in the sense of US personnel being stationed on New Zealand soil. But it has everything to do with the Americans. The station is part of a network of similar stations set up at US prompting by allies around the world. The same equipment, manuals, codewords and communication systems are found in each station.
This US intelligence system, codenamed "Echelon" in the 1990s, was the subject of a 2000-2001 European parliament inquiry that confirmed and added extra detail to the descriptions of Echelon provided by GCSB staff for my 1996 book about the agency. It uses computers codenamed Dictionaries to sift intelligence from the millions of satellite communications intercepted at the various facilities. The key to the system is that each station does not just collect intelligence for the home nation. Waihopai, like the others, has separate US, British and Australian search lists (keywords, email addresses etc) that are used to identify and collect intelligence for the US, British and Australian electronic spying agencies. Thus at the same time as Waihopai collects intelligence on the South Pacific and other subjects for the GCSB, it also functions in effect as a foreign base collecting intelligence for the intelligence allies.
The intercepted messages collected for the New Zealand agency go by an encrypted link across Cook Strait to the Freyberg Building headquarters in Aitken St, Wellington. They are stored in a computer database inside a large vault room 12.11 on the GCSB's 12th floor until processed by the intelligence analysts. But the messages collected at Waihopai for the other allies, which mostly means the United States, are routed straight from the 14th floor GCSB information centre to Washington DC and allied agencies.
The early (non-public) GCSB annual reports acknowledged the agency's role assisting the overseas intelligence allies. "New Zealand's international intelligence links are strengthened by a reliable contribution to allied intelligence community efforts," the 2000 report said.
However, subsequent publicly available annual reports removed this statement and said only that "the mission of the GCSB is to contribute to the national security of New Zealand through... providing foreign signals intelligence to support and inform government decision-making".
The GCSB's role in the US-led network is well known to its own staff. When they arrive at headquarters each day, they walk along corridors displaying framed pictures of the signals intelligence bases that are the foundation of their work: photos of Waihopai and its US and allied sister stations dotted around the globe. There is no good reason why other New Zealanders should not also be allowed to know the basic facts of these intelligence ties, and whose foreign policies they are supporting.
WAIHOPAI ANZAC PLOUGHSHARES SOLIDARITY
Those arrested during the action on Wednesday morning will be appearing in Blenheim court on Monday 5th May. It is important that these activists receive loads of support. A solidarity vigil is organised for outside of court on Monday. It would be great if as many people as possible could make it down/up/across.
We all aim to meet at Seymour Square at 9:00am
It would be great to see as many people there as possible.
We all aim to meet at Seymour Square at 9:00am
It would be great to see as many people there as possible.
WAIHOPAI SPY BASE
Wednesday morning when i did my perusal of the stuff website to my delight I found an article headed - 'Protesters Deflate Waihopai Dome'. I went on to read about the brave effort of the Waihopai Anzac Ploughshares activists.
This was an amazing act and the the images of the deflated dome are incredible. You can see images of the action at both www.indymedia.org.nz and http:// ploughshares.org.nz/
I think that this might be the first ploughshares action ever in New Zealand. It certainly has got the attention of the media. It is incredibly important that New Zealanders are reminded of the Spy Bases hosted on New Zealand soil. The bases are created and maintained at the expense of the New Zealand worker. We pay our taxes and these taxes are spent on spy bases we know absolutely nothing about - except that they are aiding the American war machine. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people have died at the hand of America, yet we as a country continue to aid them in their efforts. As the ploughshares activists point out in their statement below there is a huge descrepency between New Zealand not sending troops to iraq, when we are playing a direct hand in the war by allowing these bases on New Zealand soil.
New Zealanders need to stand up and oppose these bases. It is wrong that they are here. We have blood on our hands as long as we tolerate their existence. If you are interested in learning more about the bases and opposition to them then visit http://www.converge.org.nz/abc
The Anti Bases Campaign (ABC) is a Christchurch-based group with links and members all over Aotearoa/New Zealand. We concentrate on the foreign military and intelligence installations in New Zealand. There are three - the US "Deep Freeze" military base at Harewood (Christchurch Airport); and the "NZ" intelligence gathering installations at Tangimoana (Manawatu) and Waihopai (Marlborough), which are simply outposts of American Intelligence. We have specific demands on all three – that Harewood be demilitarised; and the others closed ASAP. We demand the abolition of the NZ Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), which operates Waihopai and Tangimoana. We have built up information on the whole gamut of the ongoing US-NZ military and intelligence relationship.
ABC puts out a regular publication - Peace Researcher. If you would let to join ABC and receive Peace Researcher email cafca@chch.planet.org.nz
The statement below was released by the activists on the morning of their action.
STATEMENT OF THE WAIHOPAI ANZAC PLOUGHSHARES
They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift sword against nation; and there shall be no more training for war. Isaiah 2:4
Waihopai Spy Base Penetrated
This morning, 30 April 2008, we entered the Waihopai Spy Base near Blenheim.
Our group, including a Dominican Priest, temporarily closed the base by padlocking the gates and proceeded to deflate one of the large domes covering two satellite dishes.
At 6am we cut through three security fences surrounding the domes - these are armed with razor wire, infrared motion sensors and a high voltage electrified fence.
Once inside we used sickles to cut one of the two 30-metre white domes, built a shrine and knelt in prayer to remember the people killed by United States military activity.
We have financed our activities through personal savings, additional part-time employment and a small interest-free loan from one of our supporters.
We are responding to the Bush administration’s admission that intelligence gathering is the most important tool in the so-called War on Terror. This war will have no end until citizens of the world refuse to let it continue. The ECHELON spy network including Waihopai, is an important part of the US government’s global spy network and we have come in the name of the Prince of Peace to close it down.
The base is funded by New Zealand tax payers and located on New Zealand soil which makes New Zealand a target through our association with the UKUSA intelligence cooperation agreement.
Five years ago the Clark government opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq. Yet at the same time the Bush administration was using the National Security Agency’s ECHELON system, of which Waihopai is an integral component, to spy on UN Security Council members so it could more easily swing them in favour of an invasion.
There have been over 100 Ploughshares actions over the last twenty years around the world. Ploughshares direct actions are linked through the common factors of: entry to locations connected to military activity, Christian prayers and most involve some form of property destruction.
- - - - -
About Waihopai & ECHELON
Green MP Keith Locke quoting the Anti-Bases Campaign claims the base has cost New Zealand up to NZ$500million since 1989. The base intercepts electronic communications throughout the Pacific region including New Zealand and is often staffed by personnel from US agencies.
In 1996 researcher Nicky Hager published an expose on Waihopai and New Zealand’s strong links to the USA-led ECHELON network of six similar spy stations around the world. The United Nations launched an investigation in 2003 to claims that ECHELON had been used by the US government to eavesdrop on UN diplomats and Security Council members. A report published in 2000 showed that ECHELON had also been used by the US to gain commercial advantage for US corporations.
Information gathered at Waihopai is transferred to the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) in Wellington and fed unseen directly to Washington DC.
Contents
Contacts
Messages of Support
Updates & Original Statement
Ploughshares F.A.Q.
Profiles
Resources
Support
This was an amazing act and the the images of the deflated dome are incredible. You can see images of the action at both www.indymedia.org.nz and http:// ploughshares.org.nz/
I think that this might be the first ploughshares action ever in New Zealand. It certainly has got the attention of the media. It is incredibly important that New Zealanders are reminded of the Spy Bases hosted on New Zealand soil. The bases are created and maintained at the expense of the New Zealand worker. We pay our taxes and these taxes are spent on spy bases we know absolutely nothing about - except that they are aiding the American war machine. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people have died at the hand of America, yet we as a country continue to aid them in their efforts. As the ploughshares activists point out in their statement below there is a huge descrepency between New Zealand not sending troops to iraq, when we are playing a direct hand in the war by allowing these bases on New Zealand soil.
New Zealanders need to stand up and oppose these bases. It is wrong that they are here. We have blood on our hands as long as we tolerate their existence. If you are interested in learning more about the bases and opposition to them then visit http://www.converge.org.nz/abc
The Anti Bases Campaign (ABC) is a Christchurch-based group with links and members all over Aotearoa/New Zealand. We concentrate on the foreign military and intelligence installations in New Zealand. There are three - the US "Deep Freeze" military base at Harewood (Christchurch Airport); and the "NZ" intelligence gathering installations at Tangimoana (Manawatu) and Waihopai (Marlborough), which are simply outposts of American Intelligence. We have specific demands on all three – that Harewood be demilitarised; and the others closed ASAP. We demand the abolition of the NZ Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), which operates Waihopai and Tangimoana. We have built up information on the whole gamut of the ongoing US-NZ military and intelligence relationship.
ABC puts out a regular publication - Peace Researcher. If you would let to join ABC and receive Peace Researcher email cafca@chch.planet.org.nz
The statement below was released by the activists on the morning of their action.
STATEMENT OF THE WAIHOPAI ANZAC PLOUGHSHARES
They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift sword against nation; and there shall be no more training for war. Isaiah 2:4
Waihopai Spy Base Penetrated
This morning, 30 April 2008, we entered the Waihopai Spy Base near Blenheim.
Our group, including a Dominican Priest, temporarily closed the base by padlocking the gates and proceeded to deflate one of the large domes covering two satellite dishes.
At 6am we cut through three security fences surrounding the domes - these are armed with razor wire, infrared motion sensors and a high voltage electrified fence.
Once inside we used sickles to cut one of the two 30-metre white domes, built a shrine and knelt in prayer to remember the people killed by United States military activity.
We have financed our activities through personal savings, additional part-time employment and a small interest-free loan from one of our supporters.
We are responding to the Bush administration’s admission that intelligence gathering is the most important tool in the so-called War on Terror. This war will have no end until citizens of the world refuse to let it continue. The ECHELON spy network including Waihopai, is an important part of the US government’s global spy network and we have come in the name of the Prince of Peace to close it down.
The base is funded by New Zealand tax payers and located on New Zealand soil which makes New Zealand a target through our association with the UKUSA intelligence cooperation agreement.
Five years ago the Clark government opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq. Yet at the same time the Bush administration was using the National Security Agency’s ECHELON system, of which Waihopai is an integral component, to spy on UN Security Council members so it could more easily swing them in favour of an invasion.
There have been over 100 Ploughshares actions over the last twenty years around the world. Ploughshares direct actions are linked through the common factors of: entry to locations connected to military activity, Christian prayers and most involve some form of property destruction.
- - - - -
About Waihopai & ECHELON
Green MP Keith Locke quoting the Anti-Bases Campaign claims the base has cost New Zealand up to NZ$500million since 1989. The base intercepts electronic communications throughout the Pacific region including New Zealand and is often staffed by personnel from US agencies.
In 1996 researcher Nicky Hager published an expose on Waihopai and New Zealand’s strong links to the USA-led ECHELON network of six similar spy stations around the world. The United Nations launched an investigation in 2003 to claims that ECHELON had been used by the US government to eavesdrop on UN diplomats and Security Council members. A report published in 2000 showed that ECHELON had also been used by the US to gain commercial advantage for US corporations.
Information gathered at Waihopai is transferred to the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) in Wellington and fed unseen directly to Washington DC.
Contents
Contacts
Messages of Support
Updates & Original Statement
Ploughshares F.A.Q.
Profiles
Resources
Support
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