Stella Rimington, the first female Director General of the United Kingdom's domestic intelligence agency MI5, has passed away at the age of 90.
Stella Rimington, the first female director of MI5, the United Kingdom's domestic intelligence agency. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
According to BBC and other outlets on the 4th (local time), Rimington, who led MI5 from 1992 to 1996, died on this day.
Rimington joined MI5 in 1969 and was mainly responsible for counter-subversion operations and counter-terrorism. During her tenure as Director General, MI5 played a significant role in the fight against Irish republican armed groups.
It is known that Rimington served as the inspiration for the character 'M', the head of the foreign intelligence agency MI6 who assigns missions and receives reports from James Bond in the '007' spy film series, portrayed by actress Judi Dench. Until now, MI6 had never had a female chief, but Blaze Metreweli has been nominated and is expected to take office this fall.
Rimington is credited with increasing the transparency of MI5's operations during her tenure. In a public lecture in 1994, she stated, "We have a duty to maintain the confidentiality of information for the sake of efficiency, but that does not mean we need to be a completely secret organization."
In 1996, she was made a Dame, the female equivalent of a 'Sir', after being appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
After her retirement, Rimington became an author, publishing a memoir about her life in the intelligence service titled 'Open Secret', as well as several thriller novels.
Ken McCallum, the current Director General of MI5, said in a statement, "Rimington broke down long-standing barriers and vividly demonstrated the importance of diversity in leadership," and added, "Her leadership ushered in an era of openness and transparency in MI5's work to keep the country safe."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
