Learning English - Words in the News

19 July, 2006 - Published 11:01 GMT

Romanian spy kids

Romanian President Traian Basescu

Officials in Romania have revealed that the Communist-era secret police,

the Securitate, used children as young as twelve to spy on parents,
teachers and others. This news has shocked Romanian society. This
report from Rob Cameron:

Listen to the story

The Securitate, with its network of agents and informers, struck fear
into the hearts of ordinary Romanians. But 16 years after the end of the
Ceaucescu era, news that those informers included schoolchildren has
been greeted with genuine shock. According to the National Council
for Research into the Securitate Archive, secret police operatives
recruited networks of children to spy on their elders. Cazimir Ionescu
is the Council's spokesman.

"The network was active in all districts. Kids as young as 12 or 14 were

part of this. They were supposed to spy on their schoolfriends, their
schoolfriends' parents and also their teachers."

The Council says it's uncovered hundreds of cases of children who spied
for the secret police - informing on adults for listening to foreign radio
stations or telling jokes about the Ceaucescu family. When it came to
recruitment, the Securitate, it seems, used a carrot and stick
approach. Sometimes they would offer a place at university as a reward
for collaboration. But there were several cases where pupils were
approached in school after getting into trouble and offered a way
out.

Details of the extent of the operation remain sketchy. It's also unclear if
it was deemed a success. But the revelations have stirred a
nationwide debate in a country still coming to terms with its
communist past.

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Rob Cameron, BBC News

Listen to the words

informers
people who give information to the police or security services about
people they know

greeted with genuine shock

reacted to with real surprise and disappointment

secret police operatives recruited networks of children

people from the secret police got groups of children to work for them

a carrot and stick approach

a technique using the possibiltiy of rewards and the threat of punishment

getting into trouble

doing something wrong and being caught by teachers, for example

offered a way out

given a chance to escape punishment

sketchy
unclear

deemed a success
thought to be a success

stirred a nationwide debate

became a topic that the whole country discussed

coming to terms with

accepting and recovering from the unpleasant experience of