Mulling over Rene Laederach to Steve Asher 27 Jul 2003

SA> A bill before the city assembly proposes a network of informers in 
SA> all 600 districts, with councils of residents set up to spy on
SA> neighbours and newcomers. The head of each group will be paid 3200 
SA> roubles ($160) a month.  

 RL> In German, the term for this is "Blockwart", or "Inoffizieller
 RL> Mitarbeiter". Good prospects. At least in Russia, they some
 RL> experience with this and do it with less technology than in the US.

Just after I posted that, I heard a news report on the Nothern Territory
police special branch setting up an "informant management section" 
modelled on the South Australian operation. I wasn't aware that the
police had registered informants here, until now. SA Police has 177
registered informants, but they are not just citizens spying on each
other; they have criminal records, mix in criminal circles, & report
on stuff like drug offences, property crime, motor vehicle crime,
and murder, which is stuff the community likes to see solved anyway.

The typical informant here is an unemployed male 25-39 years old, & get
rewards or benefits based on the evidence of crime they supply to police.

SA> Officials say the scheme should make it harder for terrorists to plot 
SA> attacks in the capital. "We would like to raise public conscientiousness 

 RL> And then they go to rock concerts. I doubt whether this is so much
 RL> better. 

The security staff at the entrance apparently detected them & prevented
them from getting in & causing major casualties, but at the cost of
their own lives, so even bag & person searches at major events have
limitations. A suicide bomber could cause quite a bit of harm in or
near any queue or group, unfortunately.

Cheers, Steve..

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