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According to a UK court investigation, MI5 has violated surveillance laws since 2010 and obtained unlawful surveillance warrants against the general public.
Over the years, MI5 surveillance of the public has been questioned. According to human rights groups Liberty and Privacy International, MI5 has violated the rights of the people for many years. MI5 has used various methods to target individuals, such as illegally accessing their personal information and telephone records. (Charter and MI5 breached surveillance laws for more than a decade, 2022)
In a case brought by the human rights organisation Liberty against Mi5, two senior judges ruled that it was unlawful for MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to obtain information from telecom providers without obtaining independent authorisation.”
It is important to note that these are not isolated incidents. On the internet, you will find several articles about people who claim to have been harassed by Mi5.
Mi5 has recently been under much scrutiny, especially for its violence against women. There has been a recent report on the BBC regarding an incident that occurred (De Simone and Thierij, 2022)
A British national met an MI5 agent on a dating site and lived with him for some time. Although She described him as “charming,” he was misogynistic and extremist, obsessed with violence and cruelty. In a horrific video published by the BBC which appears to be filmed on a mobile phone, the MI5 agent is seen attacking Beth with a machete and threatening to kill her. Beth has now filed a complaint with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, the watchdog for intelligence agencies, the Centre for Women’s Justice. There may be a need for MI5 to examine the UK government’s policy on violence against women
Moreover, MI5 has a history of wrongly targeting Muslims for decades, which should be investigated. Let us examine the case of five Muslim community workers harassed by MI5. In 2009, the workers claimed that MI5 attempted to recruit them as informants through blackmail. There was a threat made to the men that if they did not work for the British security services, they would be detained and harassed both within the UK and overseas (Verkaik, 2022)
Other cases show Mi5 blackmailing and harassing vulnerable migrants to recruit them as spy agents for the Muslim community in the UK. One migrant, Isahaq Elmi, alleges that he was bombarded with more than 200 telephone calls and tricked into attending meetings with them. Does this type of harassment constitute acceptable behaviour? (Verkaik, 2022)
There have also been allegations that MI5 has instigated and participated in torture in the UK and abroad. (Mend, 2022)
The list continues to grow of Mi5 abuses, ranging from threatening and violating individuals to violating human rights. We should question their ethics since they violate the human rights of marginalised groups and Muslims. Mi5 has abused its power and should be governed and held accountable for its actions.
Our privacy, our family life, our home and our communications are protected under Article 8 of the Human Rights Act. A person should not be able to watch what we do secretly without having a good reason for doing so, and we are entitled to live our family lives as we choose. (rights and life, 2022)
Which raises the question, why does MI5 abuse its power if its purpose is to protect the country and its citizens?
More details regarding illegally bugging people’s phones, wrongful surveillance and installing spy cameras will be revealed shortly.
If you are being harassed by MI5, you should seek legal assistance.
To be continued…..
Bibliography
Charter, M. and MI5 breached surveillance laws for more than a decade, T., 2022. MI5 breached surveillance laws for more than a decade, Tribunal told – Liberty. [online] Liberty. Available at: <https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/issue/mi5-breached-surveillance-laws-for-more-than-a-decade-tribunal-told/> [Accessed 30 September 2022].
De Simone, D. and Thierij, S., 2022. MI5 agent used secret status to terrorise girlfriend. [online] BBC News. Available at: <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61508520> [Accessed 30 September 2022].
https://www.mend.org.uk/mi5-faces-new-allegations-of-complicity-to-torture/. 2022. .
rights, Y. and life, A., 2022. A private and family life – Liberty. [online] Liberty. Available at: <https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/right/a-private-and-family-life/> [Accessed 30 September 2022].
Verkaik, R., 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/exclusive-how-mi5-blackmails-british-muslims-1688618.html> [Accessed 30 September 2022].
Verkaik, R., 2022. MI5 ‘used blackmail to turn Muslims into informers’. [online] belfasttelegraph. Available at: <https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/mi5-used-blackmail-to-turn-muslims-into-informers-28509517.html> [Accessed 30 September 2022].
Parveen Ali 
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