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Salient: Victoria University of Wellington Students' Newspaper. Vol. 32, No. 10. 1969.

Security list

Security list

Salient 8 carried on its front page a heading "Boshier's List". This related to an assertion by Mr Roger Boshier, described as a lecturer in psychology at Victoria, that he had a list of every security agent in New Zealand. Underneath it said plainly "He told Salient it came from a source directly within Security".

The very next day the daily papers carried a statement by the Attorney-General that on being interviewed by a police officer Mr Boshier was unable to substantiate the statement that his list came from sources within the Security Service. He had made the same assertion elsewhere. In fact Mr Boshier said he could not remember who handed him the list but it was not a member of the Security Service. It is, I suppose, fortunate that he could remember that much.

In the same daily papers it is reported that Mr Boshier said later that it was true the list was not handed to him by a security agent. He added, however, that as it was a list of agents it could only have originated within the Security Service. It is as well that Mr Boshier is not a member of the Philosophy Department teaching logic and ethics for if he were his continued employment would certainly need review. The logic of the statement he made is only apparent by its absence and the ethics of someone who can make such a serious but unsubstantial allegation is a matter for concern.

What more damaging allegation could be made against the Security Service than to assert that there had been a leakage of information from it; there is the almost irresistible inference that a member was disloyal and if he was disloyal enough to betray the names of members he would be disloyal enough to betray other information. Not a very comfortable thought for the rest of us either.

Mr Boshier also alleged that the police officer who interviewed him threatened to search his room without a search warrant. This was denied by the Commissioner of Police. In view of Mr Boshier's earlier assertions referred to above, one can draw a fairly confident conclusion as to the rights of that matter.

Mr Boshier worries about the activities of the Security Service. So far as he personally is concerned I should think he need have no further fears. I cannot imagine the Security Service, or anybody else for that matter, being likely to take anything he says very seriously again.

R. C. Savage.