Issue 588, 14 Nov 2003 THE INDEPENDENT CAMBRIDGE STUDENT NEWSPAPER www.varsity.co.uk STYLE TRAVEL GARDIES Looking hot in A horseback journey through the This is my side cold weather the heart of Kashmir of the story PAGE 14 PAGE 24 PAGE 7 Secrets of a spymaster Pavla Kopecna Varsity investigates MI6 recruitment at Cambridge moured that each Oxbridge college tend drinks parties and after that some who allegedly took life insurance out stay in the background working hard Laura-Jane Foley used to have its own “MI6 recruiter”, were asked if they had considered a on his children, has often expressed in Engineering, Language and Science MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove although, it is alleged that Trinity was career in the Secret Services”. Another his interest in the Secret Services to stu- degrees and gaining firsts. They do, has been appointed the new excluded after the discovery of the said that recruiters approached po- dents. However MI6 approaches, if however, encourage interested stu- Master of Pembroke seeming to “Cambridge Spy Ring” in the 1980’s. tential spies “through an invitation to they are made, are made discreetly. dents to get in contact by letter. cement the links between Yet Varsity has discovered that re- some odd society or other”. One soci- In contrast, MI5 recruiting at Dearlove’s appointment has led Cambridge and the Secret cruiting now only goes on in a select ety rumoured to be a pre-recruitment Cambridge is still strong and more some to ask whether Cambridge re- Services. However, a Varsity few colleges. This seems to be due to training group is the Oak Shotte open than ever. They advertise for jobs cruitment is set to dramatically in- investigation this week revealed representation issues; a spokesperson Society where “college fellows select and encourage graduates to get in crease. Sources in government suggest evidence that the number of for the Home Office said, “it has long interesting undergraduates to attend”. touch with them. Last night it even that recruitment into MI5 and MI6 will Oxbridge graduates recruited to been the policy of the Government that At other colleges recruitment is less emerged that MI5 engage in head- reach Cold War levels soon and pre- MI6 may have fallen over the those who serve the public should re- conspicuous. A third year student at hunting, having approached leading viously unknown recruits will need to past two decades. flect…those they protect”. Catz says a friend of hers received a figures in CUSU. This is an interesting be heavily vetted. Despite the new Traditionally, Cambridge has been Despite this, Caius, the alma mater letter “from the Ministry of Defence… development as in the past well- openness, the fast-track way into the viewed as a natural stepping stone of famed spy Richard Tomlinson, still but she had never applied for, or ex- known names and faces were usually Service is still undoubtedly by trust- to the Secret Services. However, indi- appears to have links with the Secret pressed an interest in, the MOD”. At not targeted. ed personal recommendation. This cations are that “talent spotters” have Service. Ahistory undergraduate told Downing College an established fel- For MI6 though, where anonymi- should only increase when Dearlove not been replaced when older ones Varsity, “a few friends were ap- low has long been linked with MI6 ty is so important, recruiters do seem takes up his post. have left the University. It was ru- proached by their supervisors to at- work and recruitment. The Fellow, to seek those students who naturally More secrets revealed on page 2 “A world captivated by new linguistic conventions” Win tickets to Fresh As Snow Esther Bintcliff on poetry today PAGE 15 Find the competition on PAGE 09 The region’s best guide to what’s on – see next Thursday’s Cambridge Evening News pg2 5th s Bursar NEWS EDITOR: LAURA-JANE FOLEY, BENJAMIN BLAND, JONATHAN WOOD 02 Nov 14, 2003 www.varsity.co.uk What’s inside... News pg2 Student in the line of fire SPS Faculty re-shuffle, 5th Week Blues, and Kings Bursar Jonathan Wood A former Cambridge student Where now? pg6 claims to have been shot by the Israeli army on the West Bank last How much can Cambridge Monday. Mika Minio-Paluello, 21, grow? said he sustained cuts and bruis- es when he was caught in the fir- ing line between soldiers and a Comment pg7 group of Palestinians apparently Vas Anastasiou, owner of including some school children. Gardies says his piece Minio-Paluello, who graduated from Emmanuel College this year, has been working for the International Editorial pg8 Solidarity Movement, ISM, since July Varsity’s View and was attempting to hinder the work of Israeli troops in the Balatan refugee camp on the Northern West Bank, near the city of Nablus. The sol- Features pg2 diers were setting up roadblocks with bulldozers, blocking the entrance to On Remembrance Sunday and the Balatan camp from 7am until noon. “what happened today could equally and another were injured when try- Defence Force] precautions are very poppies Members of the ISM claim they were well have happened on most other ing to obstruct a tank that acceler- thorough, hence the use of rubber bul- trying to prevent jeeps from firing on days this past week. It’s just the reali- ated towards them. Three others at- lets. He was in a war-zone.” The Ordinary pg11 school children by staying near them ty of the occupation”. tempting to prevent the Israelis This is not the first time that Minio- and approaching periodically. The ISM is a Palestinian-led move- from setting up roadblocks were Paluello has confronted the Israeli Your fun is your challenge Minio-Paluello said “at one point I ment of Palestinian and internation- also shot and lightly injured, two by army. On 16th April 200, Minio- saw a soldier aiming at several chil- al activists that seeks to “utilise non- live ammunition. Paluello and other volunteers, in- dren and so I walked into his line of violent, direct action... [in] a campaign Raphael Bejarano, head of the cam- cluding two other Cambridge stu- fire. He could see me pretty clearly, as against the illegal Israeli occupation paigns at the CU Israeli Society, said dents, engaged in a confrontation that Interview pg12 he was five or six metres away, but of Palestine, and for a just and viable that, “First and foremost we are very allegedly descended into a ten minute Tony Benn on animal rights and pulled the trigger anyway”. The Israeli peace”. This year, two volunteers have sorry that Mika was injured but we’d beating by the Israelis. The IDF Cuba soldiers were firing non-live bullets at been killed in direct-action. like to stress that this is a very com- claimed not to be aware of the incident the group of Palestinians. He added Later in the day Minio-Paluello plicated situation and the IDF’s [Israeli at the time. Listings pullout Your four-page guide to what’s on this week ‘C’: The man with the golden gown at Trinity College in the 1930’s. They interests worldwide. Recruits have to been assigned a pub in which we had Laura-Jane Foley Travel pg13 actively spied for the Soviet Union for sign a confidentiality agreement and to approach a member of the public Cambridge’s association with spies over thirty years and although ex- no names of staff are divulged ex- and extract his or her name, address, Kashmir and Covent Garden goes back a long way. In the 16th posed they were never actually cept the Chief, Sir Richard Dearlove. date of birth, occupation and...pass- century Christopher Marlowe caught. It has been suggested that ever Yet no pictures of him are available port number”. Other alleged tests in- broke off from his studies in or- since there has been no MI6 recruiter and he never gives interviews. He clude having to empty a packed shop Fashion pg14 der to infiltrate a French seminary at Trinity. signs all his correspondence in green in less than five minutes and the which was spying on England. MI6 was established in 1912 by ink with a letter ‘C’ in memory of “Balcony Test”, where recruits have to So sexy... Since then many spies have been Mansfield Cumming but it is only ten Cumming. go into an apartment building and be educated at Cambridge, amongst the years since John Major officially ad- Recruitment has always been dis- out on a balcony within 15 minutes famous ones: Reilly, Muggeridge, mitted its existence. MI6 has the re- creet, often by personal recommen- drinking a glass of water with the Mackenzie, Philby, Burgess, Maclean sponsibility for conducting operations dation or by placing cryptic adverts in apartment’s owner. Arts pg15 and Blunt. The last four, who were the in support of the UK’s foreign policy national newspapers. Former MI6 spy Traditionally the Secret Service has Poetry in motion infamous “Cambridge Spies”, all met objectives and to counter threats to UK David Shayler was recruited after an- been the domain of men but in recent swering an ad which said, “Godot is- years they have been keen to increase n’t coming”. In recent years however their female intake. Vernon Kell, one they have released a PO box address time “C”, said that he wanted “all my Music pg18 for would-be spies to write to (see box). girls to be well bred and have good Pavla Kopecna Prospective spies tend to get asked legs”. Nowadays the service con- Mark Owen on Gary Barlow to interview by an unspecified branch siders all applications on merit.