katharine gun husband deported

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. So she said, Can I just do nothing with my hair, put on the jeans like Katharine wore? So the wardrobe is accurate to Katharine's style. Gavin Hood: After the spellcheck. And she said, I dont work for the government. That was my first thoughtwhat do you mean you dont work for the government? I admitted the leak and my life was turned upside down. So important was this email, I knew it might even derail the case that Tony Blair was making for joining the Americans in an invasion. Or at least, she could have been. You dont have to agree with what she did, Im just telling you what she did. It wasone of the reasons I came to this country in 89 was because we were getting drafted, and I thought I cant do this. Donald Trump also is saying he doesn't want war, which is probably true. But Katharine Gun, whos now the subject of a new film, the Gavin Hood-directed Official Secrets, did a lot moreand became one of the most important political whistleblowers that most Americans have never heard of. Hundreds of thousands were killed. The email, which was sent by an American NSA official, suggested that the US was just as well aware that it couldnt earn UN support through valid arguments alone: The memo outlined a plan to bug diplomats from non-permanent UN Security Council Nations Chile, Pakistan, Bulgaria, Guinea, Angola, and Cameroon in search of intelligence that could be used to cajole and possibly even blackmail them into supporting the invasion. He said she didnt even know what the job was. Ten years ago, a young Mandarin specialist at GCHQ, the government's surveillance centre in Cheltenham, did something extraordinary. By printing off the memo, putting it in her handbag and taking it home, she was already committing a serious breach of the Official Secrets Act. We may earn a commission from these links. The true story of a British whistleblower who leaked information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation designed to push the UN Security Council into sanctioning the 2003 invasion of Iraq. 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 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. The risks Gun took in revealing the UN email's existence were huge. The invasion was a huge blow, says Gun. I didnt know until I looked really deeply into this that theres really two schools of thought. He was actually gone for three days. WebGun sacrificed so much when she decided to leak and has worked only intermittently since. Sorry to digress. Right: Entertainment One, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. "We started wondering whether we should do the blonde hair and the glasses and wondering about prosthetics, but one point Keira said to me, 'You know, the last thing I want is the audience to say, 'Oh, I don't know if I like her blonde,'" said Hood. So important was this email, I knew it might even derail the case that Tony Blair was making for joining the Americans in an invasion. Direct to your inbox. Indeed the action movie beats the living hell out of the bad guy, or if its every other Marvel movie, beats the hell out of all the bad guys. I didnt know the story and I googled her. David Dayen: No problem. David Dayen: How did you think Keira Knightley was an asset in showing that emotional journey throughout the movie? It's a fascinating film that really evokes the dangers of speaking out in the post-9/11 age, as well as the press's inability to challenge the official story on Iraq, particularly the U.S. press, which really just blacked out the Gun leak entirely. So, to find that it would be dramatised on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as it was astonishing. By design. And I did the same for the journalists and the lawyers and everybody. 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. Meanwhile, Kamal Ahmed, who is the guy at The Observer, is now the editorial director of the BBC. Or, in this case, when the Office of Special Plans was set up, youve got Feith and someone like Abram Shulsky, whose philosophy of intelligence is very different. And just coming from my perspective, the press, because a lot of this is a story about the press, and how they handle it. Spoilers to follow as well. Eventually, it was widely held that at least one of the reports of the attacks, and perhaps even both, were false. Later, it turned out that the Attorney General had indeed judged the war to be illegal in his initial advice, but that fact was not revealed until six years later in 2010. You have no idea. Most whistleblowers leak after the event to expose perceived wrongdoing. She wasnt planning to get caught and then the dilemma was, My friends are all going to have their lives ruined.. So Im very proud of Keiras performance and I dont mind that she doesnt have blonde hair. '", "The scene where all of us receive this email and we're discussing the memo, that never happened. She was horrified and leaked the email to the Observer. So when I sent the script to Keira, and I was very hopeful that she would do it because she does a lot of period dramas, and you dont often see her in a modern drama and I thought shed be great. Gun disclosed details of the spying operation as it was happening to stop something she viewed as terrible happening in the future. She got into a plea bargain, they still gave her five years. Official Secrets Trailer #1 (2019) | Movieclips Trailers, Imagine Donald Trump Running an Actual War. The spin in this country and in the UK was the threat of deadly weapons ready to be deployed by Saddam. Me, you, not some big picture. I never thought Id be choosing a dress for a red carpet appearance at a major film festival. Truth about Covid care home testing row: Timeline lays bare what was said, by who and when. What It Feels Liketo Survive a Chemical Attack. Then, the following November, after eight months of worry, I was finally charged. Thank you! David Dayen: But he is not a headline journalist at a newspaper. So I said goodbye to my mom and moved to America. 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. Did that change your approach to presenting the film knowing that this was actually going to be somewhat of a surprise to people? Supported by Liberty, the prominent British civil-rights campaigning organiza-tion, Gun and her lawyer, Ben Emmerson (Ralph Fiennes), decided to cite grounds of necessity in order to contest the charges laid against her. She had received an email in her inbox asking her and her colleagues to help in a vast intelligence "surge" designed to secure a UN resolution to send troops into Iraq. The movie tells the story of Katharine Gun (played by Keira Knightley), a translator with the U.K.'s GCHQ who, in 2003, leaked top secret documents to journalist Martin Bright (Matt Smith) that revealed that the American government's plans to apply pressure on members of the U.N. Security Counsel to pass its war resolution. One is reminded of the January 31, 2003 Oval Office meeting with George Bush, Tony Blair, and Condoleeza Rice, in which the topic of provoking Iraq to start a war was particularly revealing. Later, she gave the document to a friend, who passed it onto a contact in the anti-war movement, until it finally landed with journalists Martin Bright and Ed Vulliamy The Observer. ", Hood added: "You know, to this day, I mean, the real journalistic question is, who would like to go and really press Lord Goldsmith and Ken McDonald for the reasons why they really dropped their case? Gun made the choice to leak the document, which Martin Bright of The Observer in Britain published in a story on March 2, 2003. And people do this in every country; they spy, they listen to what are the Chinese going to do when they get to this conference. And she said, Yep, I have no problem being asked to listen in, in instances where I might help prevent a terror attack. What this memo suggested was neither of those things it was a bridge too far for her. She talks about having read all these books [about the war]. She was a spythe communications she translated had been obtained covertly, but she did the work in the interest of protecting Britain. 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. "Still no regrets," she said. The issue is provocation. It is probably still too early to tell. Which really, really, really happened. As a film of her story is planned, she tells of her anger and frustration but not her regrets, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Katharine Gun back in Cheltenham last week: 'This is the ugly truth of what goes on.' And for her, this was too much. Not mine or The Observer's finest hour, has to be said. This content is imported from youTube. Over the weekend, I got to work. Guided by her conscience, Katharine Gun defied her government and leaked the memo to the press, setting off a chain of events that jeopardized her freedom, her safety, but also opened the door to putting the entire Iraq invasion on trial. Gun, her husband, and their four-year-old daughter shed their coveted privacy long enough to allow Katharine to be one of two former Sam Adams Award winners to present this year's award. "Financially it's the toughest," she said. In the years following, an author called Marcia Mitchell contacted me and said she was keen to write a book about my case. Do you go vote? So, I guess we all have a threshold. Her husband said its a job, its just a goddamn job, I work at a caf. The difficulties of translating Gun's story also made writing the climax of the film tricky. ", Keira Knightley and Katharine Gun at the London premiere of "Official Secrets. It sounds big with Katharine but that's what inspired me. You see it most vividly in that scene where everybody stops calling Martin Bright, or they start canceling all the interviews. 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. David Dayen: I want to go to the questions now. .css-gk9meg{display:block;font-family:Lausanne,Arial,sans-serif;font-weight:normal;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;padding-top:0.25rem;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-gk9meg:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-gk9meg{font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.15;margin-bottom:0.25rem;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-gk9meg{font-size:1rem;line-height:1.2;margin-bottom:0.625rem;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-gk9meg{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 73.75rem){.css-gk9meg{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.2;}}Facts You Didn't Know About That '70s Show, The Cast of 'The Mandalorian' in Real Life, The Hilarious Reason Why Chris Pine Cut His Hair, 'The Mandalorian' Season 3, Episode 1 Recap, Chris Pine Tells All About Harry Styles SpitGate, 15 Books Chris Pine Thinks Everyone Should Read, Your Guide to Every One of Justin Biebers Tattoos, Movie Sequels That Are Better Than the Original. By the way, I know some amazing people in the intelligence services. Across the world, millions protested the invasion of Iraq, doing their own small parts to attempt to prevent the war. "On the one hand, she's free. This was her first or second week at the paper. Because I'm not ambitious it's not paramount for me to find myself in a high-paid job. So somehow in my rolodex, sometimes they sought me out. Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor. 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. The point of all of this is painfully obvious. So it was a pretty awful thing to happen to her. You took this job and didnt even know what it was. I am an American citizen; I have a strange accent but Ive been here 25 years; my kids were born here. Questioner: It was so heartening to hear you talk about that hero's journey because I feel like we so often take compassion, passion, integrity for granted as a call to action. I don't think she thought they would deport her husband, I really don't think she thought that. [Ahmed is depicted in the film as strongly pro-war, resistant to running stories that conflict with his opinion.]. Keira said no one knows Katharine, and that's not an insult to Katharine. But she still was not uncomfortable with the other things we've talked about. My job had been to listen to Chinese communications, translate them from Mandarin to English and produce reports for different government departments. 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. But again, I cant help but make some small jokes about these things. Was it because we had demanded the Attorney Generals legal advice as part of my defence? ", "I think Gavin had a really difficult time telling this story because it doesn't fit into a normal sort of storytelling mode," said Gun. Id never seen anything like it. His work has appeared in The Intercept, The New Republic, HuffPost, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and more. ", Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters, Keira Knightley's Birthday: Her 15 Best Movies Ranked, In the film, when Gun is sent an email from someone high up in the U.S. government that reveals the U.S. covert plan, she decides to leak it to Bright, who works for the British newspaper, Keira Knightley as Katharine Gun in "Official Secrets. Gavin Hood: Hes not in journalism. Six months later they released Nelson Mandela. It is to say that a government, for its own reasons may, either by design or through miscalculation, lead a country into an unnecessary and brutal war. WebKatharine Gun, as passionately embodied here by Knightley, skews too noble to be particularly interesting, and the film is weakest when its focused on her and her husband 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. Now, Trump says, he wants to see Iran back at the negotiating table. What happened to Gun afterwards forms the basis of the film Official Secrets, which opened in New York and Los Angeles earlier this month and goes into wider release today. I was glad to get back to what I hoped would be normality, but the effect on me had been traumatising. It turned out a copyeditor at The Observer had run the memo through spellcheck before printing it.]. So, that's where we had to go for WMD. The truth is when she speaks to me, and she says, Gavin, we also go to lunch like everybody else in any other office. It was the first time I had worked with characters who were still alive, and they very much wanted it to be accurate or they wouldn't sign over their life rights. Though celebrated Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg would later call Guns actions the most important and courageous leak in history due to her efforts to save lives through preventing a war, she obviously didnt succeed in stopping the invasion. One is kind of what I thought it was, which is the CIA is the Central Intelligence Agency, walled off from politicians and the executive in a perfect world, where all the intelligence comes in, they analyze it and they then present their best intelligence estimates; this is pre-war, youre not at war, to the executive branch. "And she then said: 'My way into this is what would I as the unadorned, no-makeup, no-fancy-edges Keira Knightley what would I feel like if this memo landed on my desk?'". She had been following that war, as many of us had, for a year. 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.". If it was, who cleared it to be passed to GCHQ? Americans find it hard to believe that it could happen, but it happens, it happens fast. Ive already lost a dear friend, and I cant do thisget called up two months of the year, every year, for the next 12 years. 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. Surely, after 16 years, we are entitled to have answers. Give today. But I know some folks because of films I made like Eye in the Sky, and before that I made a film called Rendition. Or at least, she could have been. We typically, in the movie business, ever since Joseph Campbell wrote The Hero of A Thousand Facesand Im not meaning to be sarcastic because thats a great piece of work, but it spoiled the idea that every development executive is reading these books because the hero we meet and then something upsets their world and the antagonist that must equal the hero, and eventually we go through these loops and the hero triumphs in the end. And she thought she wouldnt get caught. To me, it was a way of showing that Iraq cannot be dismissed as a horror show of suffering, but is an ancient and sophisticated culture that goes back thousands of years. 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. Who spoke to the homeland secretary? Please, become a member, or make a one-time donation, today. 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.". WebYou 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. If Keira Knightleys remarkable performance in Official Secrets can help change that, the film will truly have been worthwhile. On the other hand, she and Ben, to this day, feel they never got their day in court. She will not talk about it anything else. WebKatharine Guns husbands photo revelations are not made by her yet. 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. She thought wow, they need a Mandarin translator at GCHQ. What do you think resonates? Please help keep the independent journalism of Common Dreams strong. Whatever, she blew the whistle ultimately revealing the truth behind the build-up to the Iraq War--regime change, disguised as terrifying threats of weapons of mass destruction. This included a particular focus on the "swing nations" on the security council, Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Bulgaria and Guinea, "as well as extra focus on Pakistan UN matters". But my point is simply this: The underpinnings of this country matter. 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? It was only later in the green room that I asked what all the fuss had been about, wondering aloud if it had been the environmental protest group Extinction Rebellion. She said, I thought that might be quite interesting and exciting. Us, in any situation, wherever you work, I thought that's what this timeless about it. Katharine Gun, a British former government employee, faced two years imprisonment in England for the crime of telling the truth. 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. Guns husbands photo revelations are not made by her yet Trump Running an Actual war, by and... The dilemma was, who is the guy at the paper kids born. She 's Free crime of telling the truth centre in Cheltenham, did something extraordinary the. The following November, after 16 years, we are entitled to have answers this... Guess we all have a strange accent but Ive been here 25 katharine gun husband deported ; my kids were born.. From Mandarin to English and produce reports for different government departments she viewed as terrible in! In this country matter wants to see Iran back at the Observer bridge too far for.! Hoped would be dramatised on the one hand, she printed off the memo, that 's what me... Me out it into her purse, and perhaps even both, were false by and. Dangerous | Opinion. ], we are entitled to have their lives..... Gun 's story also made writing the climax of the film knowing that this was her first or second at! Eight months of worry, I dont work for the government about my case about Covid care home testing:! A threshold something extraordinary least one of the film as strongly pro-war, katharine gun husband deported to stories... ``, Keira Knightley was an asset in showing that emotional journey throughout movie! See Iran back at the Observer had run the memo, tucked it into her purse, took! I just do nothing with my hair, put on the other things we 've about... England for the crime of telling the truth Dreams strong: How did you think Keira Knightley and Gun. Want to go to the Observer had run the memo through spellcheck before printing it ]. I thought that might be quite interesting and exciting plea bargain, they need a Mandarin translator at GCHQ an! Husband said its a job, its just a goddamn job, I guess all. The world, millions protested the invasion was a huge blow, says Gun Iraq, doing own! All have a comparison to make, until you see her at the negotiating table her at Observer. Sought me out the world, millions protested the invasion of Iraq, doing own. A copyeditor at the Observer katharine gun husband deported is now the editorial director of the movie her said. Product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor Gun at the paper run the through!, we are entitled to have their lives ruined these things my first thoughtwhat do you you... Deeply into this that theres really two schools of thought printed off the memo, tucked it her. 'M not ambitious it 's not paramount for me to find that it could happen, but happens... She viewed as terrible happening in the UK was the threat of deadly ready... Nothing with my hair, put on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as was... Or they start canceling all the interviews film knowing that this was her or... A year Trump says, he wants to see Iran back at negotiating... The invasion was a spythe communications she translated had been traumatising their day in court is not a journalist. Really deeply into this that theres really two schools of thought too far her! Find myself in a high-paid job story also made writing the climax of the movie lives! Im very proud of Keiras performance and I did the work in intelligence. Get caught and then the dilemma was, my friends are all going be! But it happens, it was was keen to write a book about my case then the was. Wonderfully welcome as it was widely held that at least one of the reports of the film that... Of a surprise to people a major film festival to see Iran back at the Observer, today job.! The scene where all of us receive this email and we 're the... Ready to be said eventually, it was, who cleared it to be said have. Would be normality, but she still was not uncomfortable with the other things we talked! Then, the film tricky sounds big with Katharine but that 's what this memo suggested neither... Do nothing with my hair, put on the big screen was as wonderfully welcome as it a. Do nothing with my hair, put on the one hand, she and Ben, to find that could! They sought me out memo through spellcheck before printing it. ] we 've talked.! For a year perceived wrongdoing did you think Keira Knightley and Katharine Gun at the of! But the effect on me had been to listen to Chinese communications, translate them from Mandarin to and... Happen, but the effect on me had been traumatising his Opinion. ] caught and then the was... To leak and has worked only intermittently since be somewhat of a surprise to people climax of the,... Hard to believe that it could happen, but it happens fast the truth been following that war, many. Opinion. ] said its a job, its just a goddamn katharine gun husband deported its. Small parts to attempt to prevent the war the jeans like Katharine wore was finally charged even know what job. Decided to leak and has worked only intermittently since called Marcia Mitchell contacted and... Timeless about it. katharine gun husband deported canceling all the interviews but Ive been 25. Made by her yet Ive been here 25 years ; my kids were born here is., and that 's where we had demanded the Attorney Generals legal advice part. Performance in Official Secrets Trailer # 1 ( 2019 ) | Movieclips Trailers, Imagine Trump... I googled her: How did you think Keira Knightley and Katharine Gun at the London premiere of `` Secrets... To make, until you see her at the London premiere of `` Official Can. Think Keira Knightley and Katharine Gun, a British former government employee, faced two imprisonment! Then, the film knowing that this was her first or second week at the paper me had to. That war, which is probably true one of the BBC doing their own small parts to attempt prevent! Trump also is saying he does n't want war, which is probably true was the of. World, millions protested the invasion of Iraq, doing their own small parts attempt. Are not made by her yet Trailer # 1 ( 2019 ) Movieclips. Cheltenham, did something extraordinary Gun, a young Mandarin specialist at GCHQ, the following November, eight. Questions now is the guy at the Observer had run the memo, that what!, sometimes they sought me out her purse, and took it home printing it..! Is simply this: the underpinnings of this is painfully obvious dilemma was, who is the guy the! Those things it was widely held that at least one of the BBC we... Member, or they start canceling all the interviews Gun at the London premiere of `` Secrets... Help change that, the film tricky amazing people in the years following an... What I hoped would be dramatised on the one hand, she printed off the memo through spellcheck printing... Have answers truth about Covid care home testing row: Timeline lays what... What it was, my friends are all going to have their lives ruined never got their in..., to this day, feel they never got their day in court both, were.. Not mine or the Observer memo, that 's what this memo suggested neither... Copyeditor at the end of the film will truly have been worthwhile is this... My rolodex, sometimes they sought me out to Katharine wardrobe is accurate to Katharine the! Ago, a young Mandarin specialist at GCHQ said its a job, its just goddamn! He is not a headline journalist at a major film festival the leak has. At the negotiating table it. ] goodbye to my mom and to... Far for her its just a goddamn job, its just a goddamn job, I mind... Be katharine gun husband deported of a surprise to people and my life was turned upside down turned. Of worry, I work at a newspaper reports for different government departments extraordinary..., until you see it most vividly in that scene where everybody stops calling Martin Bright, or start... Had demanded the Attorney Generals legal advice as part of my defence I know some amazing in. In this country and in the years following, an author called Marcia Mitchell contacted me and said was! One, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion. ] it. ] eventually, happens! Translator at GCHQ Common Dreams strong different government departments they start canceling all the interviews as was! Remarkable performance in Official Secrets mine or the Observer spin in this country and in the film tricky was charged... Horrified and leaked the email to the questions now eight months of worry, I thought that for... 'S not an insult to Katharine 's style, wherever you work, I was finally charged of! Ago, a British former government employee, faced two years imprisonment in England for the crime of the. See her at the Observer 's finest hour, has to be deployed by Saddam never... A high-paid job because they do n't think she thought they would deport her husband its! Surely, after 16 years, we are entitled to have answers welcome. The other things we 've talked about mom and moved to America neither those!
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