Green Options

Rob Gilchrist, a former activist, had spied on 9 different peaceful environment and animal welfare groups over the past 10 years before his girlfriend discovered suspicious emails, New Zealand’s Sunday Star-Times reported in a 3,200-word expose today.

“Protests are part of a healthy democracy,” said Rochelle Rees, Gilchrist’s girlfriend. “The police are supposed to be protecting that but instead they are inhibiting it. It’s foolish of them since stomping on peaceful protest is the best way to make people more extreme and push them underground.”

News broke this week that 53 people were listed in a Maryland State Police database as “suspected terrorists.” The listing was the result of an extensive surveillance program that infiltrated several activist organizations and gathered intelligence about the individuals and activities in them.