Difference between revisions of "Annie Machon"

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|employment={{job|employer=MI5/T Branch|start=August 1993|end=August 1995|detail=Ran T5E desk}}, {{job|employer=MI5/G Branch|start=August 1995|end=October 1996|detail=G3}}
 
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'''Annie Machon''' (born 1968) is a former [[MI5]] intelligence officer who together with [[David Shayler]], her then partner, to help him blow the whistle on criminality within the intelligence agencies. There followed a chase across Europe (August 1997), concluding with two years in exile in Paris. They, together with many of their friends, family, supporters and journalists have been intimidated, arrested and/or put on trial. A death threat was announced against Annie Machon on a Middle Eastern radio station.{{CN}}
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'''Annie Machon''' (born 1968) is a former [[MI5]] British intelligence officer who with her partner [[David Shayler]] in the 1990s helped blow the whistle on a range of illegal spy activities, including files on government ministers, illegal phone taps on journalists, IRA bombs that should have been prevented, innocent people being thrown in prison, and an illegal assassination attempt against [[Muammar Gaddafi]] of Libya in 1996. As a result they had preemptively to go on the run around Europe in 1997, live in hiding for a year, or face arrest.<ref>[https://www.couragefound.org/advisory-board/ "Courage: Advisory Board"]</ref>
  
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In 2005, Machon published her first book, ''Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers: MI5, MI6 and the Shayler Affair'' in which she offers criticism of MI5 and the [[Secret Intelligence Service]] based on her observations of the two whilst in the employment of MI5.
+
Following the controversial car crash in Paris on 31 August 1977 in which [[Diana, Princess of Wales]] and [[Dodi Fayed]] were killed, Dodi's father, [[Mohamed al-Fayed]], offered a reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible. [[Oswald LeWinter]], claiming to be a [[CIA]] officer, told al-Fayed he had CIA documents showing that [[MI6]] had arranged the assassination at the behest of Buckingham Palace.
 +
 
 +
In November 1997, Annie Machon and her partner David Shayler, who were living in a remote farmhouse in France, were surprised to receive a call from Mohamed al-Fayed inviting them to Paris. A chauffeur-driven limousine was sent to bring the pair to Paris to inspect the documents. Machon described her reaction upon seeing the documents:
 +
:"They looked good but if you knew what a proper MI6 document looked like, there were some simple errors: things like the date/time line; things like the addressee list; they weren't quite right. They were forgeries, very good forgeries. You know al-Fayed was asked for $20 million for these documents and would have paid if they were real. Because he was desperate to prove that there was a plot against his son and his possible future daughter-in-law. Anyway, we saw they were fakes and saved him $20 million, but also saved him embarrassment. This was a classic 'straw man' operation whereby he would have bought them, held them up to the world's media saying 'Look I've got proof'. Then the authorities would have turned round and said 'It's so obvious, look at these simple errors' and everything else he would have found out, he would have been dismissed as a fantasist. So his entire campaign for justice for his son would have stalled before it had even started."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pucWT_YKJgA "The Real Reason Why Princess Diana Was Assassinated. Ex MI Agent Testifies"]</ref>
  
 
==Background==
 
==Background==
−
Machon read Classics at Cambridge University and after her academic years started a career in publishing.
+
Annie Machon read Classics at Cambridge University and after her academic years started a career in publishing.
  
 
==MI5==
 
==MI5==
−
In 1991 she was recruited by [[MI5]] where she was posted to their counter-subversion department, officially known as [[MI5/F_Branch#F2|F2]]. It was there she met Shayler. She then spent two years working in [[T Branch]], investigating Irish terrorism, before being reposted to the international counter-terrorist division, known as [[G Branch]]. In 1996 she and Shayler resigned to blow the whistle on a range of matters including:
+
In 1991 she was recruited by [[MI5]] where she was posted to their counter-subversion department, officially known as [[MI5/F_Branch#F2|F2]]. It was there she met Shayler. She then spent two years working in [[T Branch]], investigating Irish terrorism, before being reposted to the international counter-terrorist division, known as [[G Branch]]. In 1996 she and [[David Shayler|Shayler]] resigned to blow the whistle on a range of matters including:
 
* Secret MI5 files held on the same ministers responsible for overseeing the intelligence services.
 
* Secret MI5 files held on the same ministers responsible for overseeing the intelligence services.
 
* Illegal MI5 phone taps
 
* Illegal MI5 phone taps
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Drawing on her varied experiences, Machon is now an intelligence expert,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.it-defense.de/itdefense2008_de/pages/programm.html |title=Speaker at IT-Defense conference – Hamburg – Jan 2008 |publisher=It-defense.de |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxbPHgkSAxA |title=RTTV News report June 2010 |work=Youtube |date=30 June 2010 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSRMasdyfak |title=RTTV Crosstalk Dec 2010 |work=Youtube |date=6 December 2010 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsMQDdR0HoU |title=RTTV News report Feb 2011 |work=Youtube |date=23 February 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Act2AYMV3g |title=RTTV News report March 2011 |work=Youtube |date=6 March 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBjwEfUmRfU |title=RTTV News report March 2011 |work=Youtube |date=2 March 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref> author, journalist,<ref>{{cite news|author=Annie Machon |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2005/aug/03/july7.uk |title="MI5 must back use of phone-taps" – 3 Aug 2005 |publisher=The Guardian article |accessdate=1 January 2012 |location=London |date=3 August 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7969608/Annie-Machon-my-so-called-life-as-a-spy.html |title=Sunday Telegraph article: "My so-called life as a spy – 29 Aug 2010 |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=UK |accessdate=1 January 2012 |first=Annie |last=MacHon |date=29 August 2010}}</ref> political campaigner,<ref>{{cite web|last=Machon |first=Annie |url=http://vimeo.com/13714158 |title=On stage with Wikileaks – Aug 2009 |publisher=Vimeo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Machon |first=Annie |url=http://vimeo.com/18539522 |title=Talk at Bits of Freedom – Amsterdam Oct 2010 |publisher=Vimeo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref> media trainer, and PR consultant. She is also a recognised international public speaker on a variety of intelligence-related and civil liberties issues.<ref>{{cite web|author=Annie Machon |url=http://www.anniemachon.com/annie_machon/public-speaking-experienc.html |title=International speaker |publisher=Anniemachon.com |date=28 January 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref>
 
Drawing on her varied experiences, Machon is now an intelligence expert,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.it-defense.de/itdefense2008_de/pages/programm.html |title=Speaker at IT-Defense conference – Hamburg – Jan 2008 |publisher=It-defense.de |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxbPHgkSAxA |title=RTTV News report June 2010 |work=Youtube |date=30 June 2010 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSRMasdyfak |title=RTTV Crosstalk Dec 2010 |work=Youtube |date=6 December 2010 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsMQDdR0HoU |title=RTTV News report Feb 2011 |work=Youtube |date=23 February 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Act2AYMV3g |title=RTTV News report March 2011 |work=Youtube |date=6 March 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBjwEfUmRfU |title=RTTV News report March 2011 |work=Youtube |date=2 March 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref> author, journalist,<ref>{{cite news|author=Annie Machon |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2005/aug/03/july7.uk |title="MI5 must back use of phone-taps" – 3 Aug 2005 |publisher=The Guardian article |accessdate=1 January 2012 |location=London |date=3 August 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7969608/Annie-Machon-my-so-called-life-as-a-spy.html |title=Sunday Telegraph article: "My so-called life as a spy – 29 Aug 2010 |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=UK |accessdate=1 January 2012 |first=Annie |last=MacHon |date=29 August 2010}}</ref> political campaigner,<ref>{{cite web|last=Machon |first=Annie |url=http://vimeo.com/13714158 |title=On stage with Wikileaks – Aug 2009 |publisher=Vimeo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Machon |first=Annie |url=http://vimeo.com/18539522 |title=Talk at Bits of Freedom – Amsterdam Oct 2010 |publisher=Vimeo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref> media trainer, and PR consultant. She is also a recognised international public speaker on a variety of intelligence-related and civil liberties issues.<ref>{{cite web|author=Annie Machon |url=http://www.anniemachon.com/annie_machon/public-speaking-experienc.html |title=International speaker |publisher=Anniemachon.com |date=28 January 2011 |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref>
  
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In 2006 Machon ended her relationship with Shayler due to his use of hallucinogenics and his messianic claims. In 2008 she worked for [[Make Wars History]]. Machon is featured in ''Last Man Out'', a 90-minute documentary movie by Jonathan Kerr-Smith about [[William Rodriguez]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nyfilmvideo.com/2008/la-2008/schedule/la-july-2008.htm |title=NYfilmvideo.com |publisher=NYfilmvideo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref>
+
In 2006, Machon ended her relationship with Shayler due to his use of hallucinogenics and his messianic claims. In 2008 she worked for [[Make Wars History]]. Machon is featured in ''Last Man Out'', a 90-minute documentary movie by Jonathan Kerr-Smith about [[William Rodriguez]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nyfilmvideo.com/2008/la-2008/schedule/la-july-2008.htm |title=NYfilmvideo.com |publisher=NYfilmvideo.com |accessdate=1 January 2012}}</ref>
 +
 
 +
==Author, public speaker==
 +
Annie Machon is the author of the 2005 book "Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers: MI5 and the David Shayler Affair".<ref>[http://anniemachon.ch/spies-lies-and-whistleblowers-the-full-text-of-the-book “Spies, Lies, and Whistleblowers” — the full text of the book]</ref>
 +
 +
Machon is now a writer, media commentator, political campaigner, and international public speaker on a variety of related issues: the [[war on terrorism]], the war on [[whistleblower]]s, the war on drugs, and the war on the Internet. Currently Annie Machon is serving as European Director of [[Law Enforcement Against Prohibition]] (LEAP) and has announced<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G81tJI2Pls "The Four Wars: terror, whistleblowers, drugs, internet</ref> the starting of a new [[whistleblower]] protection organisation called [https://www.couragefound.org/advisory-board/ 'Courage'] at the [[30C3]] conference in Hamburg on 29 December 2013.
  
−
Currently Annie Machon is serving as European Director of [[Law Enforcement Against Prohibition|LEAP]] and has announced<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G81tJI2Pls</ref> the starting of a new [[whistleblower]] protection organisation called 'Courage' at the [[30C3]] conference in Hamburg on the 29th of December 2013.
+
She blogs at [http://anniemachon.ch/ anniemachon.ch].<ref>[http://anniemachon.ch/ "Using Our Intelligence"]</ref>
  
 
==Recent Broadcasts==
 
==Recent Broadcasts==

Revision as of 21:41, 21 November 2015

Person.png Annie Machon   WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(whistleblower)
30C3 Annie Machon.jpg
Annie Machon at 30C3 in Hamburg in December 2013
Born1968
Exposed1994 London Israeli Embassy attack
Member ofBelmarsh Tribunal
Machon quit together with fellow MI5 whistleblower David Shayler in 1996/7 to expose details of various illegal actions by the organisation. She is currently a political activist working to help other whistleblowers.

Employment.png 

In office
August 1993 - August 1995
EmployerMI5/T Branch
,

Employment.png 

In office
August 1995 - October 1996
EmployerMI5/G Branch

Annie Machon (born 1968) is a former MI5 British intelligence officer who with her partner David Shayler in the 1990s helped blow the whistle on a range of illegal spy activities, including files on government ministers, illegal phone taps on journalists, IRA bombs that should have been prevented, innocent people being thrown in prison, and an illegal assassination attempt against Muammar Gaddafi of Libya in 1996. As a result they had preemptively to go on the run around Europe in 1997, live in hiding for a year, or face arrest.[1]

Following the controversial car crash in Paris on 31 August 1977 in which Diana, Princess of Wales and Dodi Fayed were killed, Dodi's father, Mohamed al-Fayed, offered a reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible. Oswald LeWinter, claiming to be a CIA officer, told al-Fayed he had CIA documents showing that MI6 had arranged the assassination at the behest of Buckingham Palace.

In November 1997, Annie Machon and her partner David Shayler, who were living in a remote farmhouse in France, were surprised to receive a call from Mohamed al-Fayed inviting them to Paris. A chauffeur-driven limousine was sent to bring the pair to Paris to inspect the documents. Machon described her reaction upon seeing the documents:

"They looked good but if you knew what a proper MI6 document looked like, there were some simple errors: things like the date/time line; things like the addressee list; they weren't quite right. They were forgeries, very good forgeries. You know al-Fayed was asked for $20 million for these documents and would have paid if they were real. Because he was desperate to prove that there was a plot against his son and his possible future daughter-in-law. Anyway, we saw they were fakes and saved him $20 million, but also saved him embarrassment. This was a classic 'straw man' operation whereby he would have bought them, held them up to the world's media saying 'Look I've got proof'. Then the authorities would have turned round and said 'It's so obvious, look at these simple errors' and everything else he would have found out, he would have been dismissed as a fantasist. So his entire campaign for justice for his son would have stalled before it had even started."[2]

Background

Annie Machon read Classics at Cambridge University and after her academic years started a career in publishing.

MI5

In 1991 she was recruited by MI5 where she was posted to their counter-subversion department, officially known as F2. It was there she met Shayler. She then spent two years working in T Branch, investigating Irish terrorism, before being reposted to the international counter-terrorist division, known as G Branch. In 1996 she and Shayler resigned to blow the whistle on a range of matters including:

  • Secret MI5 files held on the same ministers responsible for overseeing the intelligence services.
  • Illegal MI5 phone taps
  • MI5 lies to government
  • IRA bombs that were allowed to happen
  • False convictions following the 1994 Israeli Embassy Bombing in London, when two innocent people were wrongfully convicted.
  • The attempted MI6 assassination of Muammar Gaddafi of Libya

After MI5

Drawing on her varied experiences, Machon is now an intelligence expert,[3][4][5][6][7][8] author, journalist,[9][10] political campaigner,[11][12] media trainer, and PR consultant. She is also a recognised international public speaker on a variety of intelligence-related and civil liberties issues.[13]

In 2006, Machon ended her relationship with Shayler due to his use of hallucinogenics and his messianic claims. In 2008 she worked for Make Wars History. Machon is featured in Last Man Out, a 90-minute documentary movie by Jonathan Kerr-Smith about William Rodriguez.[14]

Author, public speaker

Annie Machon is the author of the 2005 book "Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers: MI5 and the David Shayler Affair".[15]

Machon is now a writer, media commentator, political campaigner, and international public speaker on a variety of related issues: the war on terrorism, the war on whistleblowers, the war on drugs, and the war on the Internet. Currently Annie Machon is serving as European Director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and has announced[16] the starting of a new whistleblower protection organisation called 'Courage' at the 30C3 conference in Hamburg on 29 December 2013.

She blogs at anniemachon.ch.[17]

Recent Broadcasts

Machon made several broadcasts on Russia Today in 2013, including:

References

  1. ↑ "Courage: Advisory Board"
  2. ↑ "The Real Reason Why Princess Diana Was Assassinated. Ex MI Agent Testifies"
  3. ↑ "Speaker at IT-Defense conference – Hamburg – Jan 2008". It-defense.de. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  4. ↑ "RTTV News report June 2010". Youtube. 30 June 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  5. ↑ "RTTV Crosstalk Dec 2010". Youtube. 6 December 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  6. ↑ "RTTV News report Feb 2011". Youtube. 23 February 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  7. ↑ "RTTV News report March 2011". Youtube. 6 March 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  8. ↑ "RTTV News report March 2011". Youtube. 2 March 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  9. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  10. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  11. ↑ Machon, Annie. "On stage with Wikileaks – Aug 2009". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  12. ↑ Machon, Annie. "Talk at Bits of Freedom – Amsterdam Oct 2010". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  13. ↑ Annie Machon (28 January 2011). "International speaker". Anniemachon.com. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  14. ↑ "NYfilmvideo.com". NYfilmvideo.com. Retrieved 1 January 2012.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  15. ↑ “Spies, Lies, and Whistleblowers” — the full text of the book
  16. ↑ [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G81tJI2Pls "The Four Wars: terror, whistleblowers, drugs, internet
  17. ↑ "Using Our Intelligence"
  18. ↑ Published time: July 22, 2013 10:23 (2013-07-22). "US looks even more like Stasi at news of Berlin cooperating with NSA — RT Op-Edge". Rt.com. Retrieved 2013-08-03.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  19. ↑ Published time: July 31, 2013 02:15 (2013-07-30). "Manning verdict: US saying 'send back whistleblowers, we're not charging them with capital offenses' — RT Op-Edge". Rt.com. Retrieved 2013-08-03.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  20. ↑ Published time: August 03, 2013 00:50. "GCHQ effectively prostituting itself to NSA — RT Op-Edge". Rt.com. Retrieved 2013-08-03.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").

External links

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