G. F. 324
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Annex A
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The most common form of attack which Com:aunist intelligence services use is to compromise and subsequently attempt to blackmail a visitor in whom they are interested. It should be understood that acts which in the West are innocent, or at worst carry a slight moral stigma, are often offences against the law in Communist countries. The local intelligence services have been known to incite visitors to commit such offences and then threaten them with arrest and imprisonment.
Compromising Offences
8. Visitors are most likely to get into trouble in one of four ways. First, they may be invited to take part in some unofficial financial transaction, such as obtaining local currency at favourable rates or selling personal possessions to a friend or casual acquaintance, all in contravention of local laws. Secondly,
a visitor may be approached by a local inhabitant and asked to take a letter or a present out of the country for some relative living in the West; to take letters or messages either into or out of a Communist country for delivery to private citizens is dangerous and can lead to imprisonment. Thirdly, there are dangers in taking photographs in Communist countries; it is prudent to find out in advance where a camera can be used. Finally, irregularity in personal behaviour, for example drinking too much, may lead to trouble. The visitor may also be compromised sexually. A liaison between a visitor and a local girl will not long remain unknown to the local intelligence service. The girl may be acting for that service from the outset; if not, she is likely to be brought under its control at an early stage. A homosexual affair carries all the same risks as a normal one, but to an enhanced degree. Local homosexuals are often deliberately trailed before visitors who are thought to be homosexuals.
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9. A visitor who commits any offence against local laws runs the risk of being arrested, faced with photographic or other evidence, and invited under the threat of imprisonment or of exposure publicly or to his family and friends to work for the local intelligence service. Attempts may be made to induce the victim to sign a confession or to agree to 'co-operate'. Alternatively, the 'evidence' may be stored away for use at a later date, perhaps when the circumstances have changed; for example, after the visitor has married. Visitors may face any of these hazards whenever they visit Communist countries.
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