New Zealand Security Intelligence Service

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service
Māori : Te Pā Whakamarumaru
Headquarters of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service
Jurisdiction National security and government security and its communications and infrastructure
legal form Public Service Department
Headquarters Wellington
Establishment date 1956
minister Andrew Little , Labor Party
since October 26, 2017
Employee full-time equivalent personnel 328
As of June 20, 2019
budget NZ $ 83.557 million
as of June 30, 2019
Website : www.nzsis.govt.nz

The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS), in Māori Te Pā Whakamarumaru , is an intelligence service of the New Zealand state.

history

The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service was founded in 1956 under the name New Zealand Security Service , but initially had no legal basis on which the service could work. Only with the passage and the entry into force of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service Act 1969 did the service get a legal basis and was renamed the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service in September 1969 .

Until its inception in 1956, national security was in the hands of the New Zealand police .

tasks

The NZSIS is a public service department and takes on a number of functions that are important for the security of New Zealand. These include:

  • the collection and analysis of data and the preparation of reports that are relevant to the intelligence services for the security of New Zealand,
  • the provision of protective security services including advice on the security of people, information and physical things as well as security risks at national level,
  • working with the Government Communications Security Bureau , the New Zealand Defense Force and the New Zealand Police to facilitate duties and cooperation with other authorities and to respond to an imminent threat to life and / or security in New Zealand.

In performing its functions, the NZSIS will act in accordance with the law and human rights obligations, independently and impartially and in a manner that facilitates democratic control.

The goals of the NZSIS are:

organization

The Security Intelligence Service is based in the capital Wellington and has offices in Auckland and Christchurch . He has between 110 and 140 permanent employees, slightly fewer than New Zealand's other intelligence agency, the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB). Its budget is slightly less than that of the GCSB at around 16 million New Zealand dollars .

The NZSIS has extensive links with foreign intelligence services, particularly in the US , UK and Australia . He may be affiliated with the Echelon spy network, although these types of duties are more likely to be attributed to the GCSB. The connection of the NZSIS with foreign services is often controversial in New Zealand.

The NZSIS is led by the Director of Security and is overseen by the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security and the Intelligence and Security Committee . The NZSIS reports to the minister responsible for intelligence. This is traditionally the Prime Minister of New Zealand.

The NZSIS was founded in 1956. It was given a legal basis in 1969 by the Security Intelligence Act . The Security Intelligence Act has since been expanded several times. Perhaps the most controversial was the 1977 addition by Robert Muldoon , which greatly expanded the possibilities for surveillance. In 1977 there were major protests in front of parliament against this addition .

The NZSIS in the headlines

The NZSIS has been involved in a wide variety of public incidents and debates since its inception in 1956.

  • In 1974, the NZSIS was the source of the information that led to the arrest of Bill Sutch, an economist. He was charged with spying for the Soviet Union . Sutch was arrested and the NZSIS was criticized for having been charged in the first place.
  • In 1981 the NZSIS was criticized again because a list of 20 so-called "enemies of the state" was published who had taken part in a demonstration against the Springbok Tour , a visit by the South African rugby team. This exclusion of people as "enemies of the state" was seen by many as a violation of the right to protest against government decisions.
  • In 1985 the NZSIS failed to locate the operation in which French DGSE employees sank Greenpeace's ship , the Rainbow Warrior , using an explosive device. A photographer was killed in the process. This was the most significant case of counter-espionage or terror in New Zealand history .
  • In 1996, APEC critic Aziz Choudry watched two NZSIS agents break into his home. He went to court and alleged that the NZSIS had violated his rights by doing this. In the end, Aziz won the lawsuit, was reimbursed for the damage, and the official website apologized for the incident.
  • In 2002 the NZSIS declared that the Algerian asylum seeker Ahmed Zaoui was a security risk for New Zealand and recommended that he deported as soon as possible. However, this recommendation has been heavily criticized. The NZSIS issued a security risk assessment under Section 114 of the Immigration Act 1987. Zaoui was arrested and sent to a correctional facility. The NZSIS refused to release any information that could reveal which facts had made Zaoui a security risk. A statement by the inspector general of the secret and security service, who has the NZSIS under his care, was assessed by some as clearly biased against Zaoui. As a result of this criticism, Inspector General Laurie Grieg resigned from his post in March 2004. Former judge Paul Neazor was elected to succeed him.
  • In 2004 rumors surfaced that the NZSIS was monitoring Maori citizens, including members of the new Maori party. For political purposes this action was called "Operation Leaf". However, the allegations were refuted in April 2005 by a study commissioned by the General Inspector of the Secret and Security Service. Then said Prime Minister Helen Clark , the allegations are a duck, and called for the newspaper The Sunday Star-Times , which had previously published the story to an apology, which also took place shortly afterwards.

See also

literature

  • New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (Ed.): 2019 Annual Report . 2019 (English, online [PDF; 1.8 MB ; accessed on August 4, 2020]).

Web links

  • Homepage . New Zealand Security Intelligence Service,accessed August 4, 2020.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Hon. Andrew Little . New Zealand Parliament , July 22, 2020, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  2. 2019 Annual Report . 2019, p.  3 .
  3. 2019 Annual Report . 2019, p.  45 .
  4. a b History . New Zealand Security Intelligence Service , 2017, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  5. ^ New Zealand Security Intelligence Service Act 1969 . In: New Zealand Legislation . Parliamentary Counsel Office , September 28, 2017, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  6. a b Our work . New Zealand Security Intelligence Service , accessed August 4, 2020 .
  7. Phil Kitchin : Fresh twist in 40-year-old Cold War spy mystery . In: Stuff . Dominion Post , August 11, 2014, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  8. ^ Nuclear-free New Zealand - Sinking the Rainbow Warrior . In: New Zealand History . Ministry for Culture and Heritage , July 10, 2018, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  9. ^ Statement by director of the SIS concerning Mr Ahmed Zaoui . In: New Zealand Herald . NZME. Publishing , September 13, 2007, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  10. Intel Sources Say SIS Investigating Maori Party . In: Scoop . November 11, 2004, accessed August 4, 2020 .
  11. PM's statement on the alleged 'Operation Leaf' . In: Beehive . New Zealand Government , April 12, 2005, accessed August 4, 2020 .