The Public Inquiry into undercover policing is limited to England and Wales, and as such cannot get to the full truth of the abusive activities of the undercover police that targeted the people we support. We are calling for a full inquiry into their activities on all the countries they operated in.
The undercover police that targeted the people we support were all based in English or Welsh Police forces, yet they operated extensively abroad. They attended political meetings, and took part in political actions in many different countries, often with the people we are supporting. Mark Kennedy particularly spent so much time abroad, and was involved in so many international movements that it is obvious that gathering intelligence on international activists was an important part of his role. Whether this happened with or without the co-operation of foreign police forces, this is something that needs to be fully investigated. Questions need to be answered about whether undercover officers broke the law, whether they targeted women for intimate relationships, or whether they invaded people’s privacy whilst abroad.
Lisa, Helen, Kate & Alison wrote to the Irish Government demanding a full investigation into the activities of UK spycops in Ireland.
Andrea has told the story of being targeted by Carlo Neri in Scotland saying she traveled there four times with him, and believes he was being paid by the police every time.
Alison has expressed concerns over trips Mark Jenner made to Scotland with her that will not be examined by a review set up by the Scottish Government: “I just don’t understand the thinking of the Scottish review,” Alison said. “It makes you wonder if there is stuff they don’t want to uncover. By only going back to 2000, they’re writing huge chunks out of the story.”
Lisa and Kate, were both targeted by Mark Kennedy for intimate relationships and spent time abroad with him. Kate has also campaigned in Ireland for the activities of UK undercover police there to be fully investigated.
Lisa and Kate spoke out in the Guardian about this issue saying:
” Both of us spent time abroad with this man, whom we believed to be a friend and close partner. Attending protests and meetings in Ireland, Spain, France, Iceland and Italy, he and other undercover officers traveled with us. These officers were still at that time being employed by the Met, using the characters created within the undercover units, working with activists from the UK in these countries, and they also continued their deceitful relationships with us wherever they went. Therefore it would allow police to cover up whole chapters of outrageous behaviour if the inquiry is restricted to looking only at activities that took place in England and Wales.”
These four women have made a joint statement about the need for a full investigation into the activities of spycops abroad saying:
“We call for a full Public Inquiry to get to the truth of what happened in Scotland, and in all the countries these undercover officers operated in. We call for everyone who was spied on to be given the police files all these countries. These units were political policing units, akin to the Stasi of East Germany. They must be closed, and held accountable for their actions.”
