A/N:
Welcome, everyone, to the place that's all about the nitty-gritty of politics, spycraft and war. The one-shots and stories here tie directly into our main Marauder-era AU story, The Path Not Tread, giving background to events mentioned in the main story and often having an indirect impact on the main narrative. As usual, cross-references will be clearly listed, and the update schedule will completely depend on various factors, of which two are the main ones:
1) posting and writing schedule of PNT;
2) time and availability of me and my writing partner, SilenceoftheSolitude, who is the absolute genius behind this side of the narrative.
Authorship will be clearly indicated in the notes of each chapter, so that credit goes where it's due, and as this is also where our main joint writing project is located, expect texts containing up to 50/50 split in writing between the two of us.
Moonight Times
16. October 1976
Muggle World
The Expert's View
Interviewing a Muggle world expert on current affairs, weekly
Written by Eric Jones
This week's specialist, Malmery Dempsey, works for the Office of Misinformation, within the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes at the Ministry of Magic. The Office works closely with the Muggle Prime Minister's office to explain all the magical accidents whose nature is too spectacular to be easily hidden from Muggles. Following the recent disappearances of Muggles throughout the British Isles, believed to be connected to the activity of a group of anti-Muggle wizards and witches headed by the man who calls himself Lord Voldemort, the Office of Misinformation has had to work double time to liaise with the Muggle authorities.
Mr Dempsey, we have arranged this interview, first and foremost, because our readership has inquired after the type of work you undertake. In particular, questions have been raised as to how you can reconcile upholding the secret of the existence of magic to Muggles with the need to liaise with some of them in order to cover up major magical accidents.
Well, the first thing that must be said about the Office of Misinformation is that we must keep abreast of current Muggle developments. As I'm sure everyone knows, we are tasked with finding plausible explanations to happenings that are quite unexplainable without magic; think of a giant being sighted and – why not – recorded on camera by a Muggle over the hills of Scotland. While giants are only acceptable in a society that recognises the existence of magical creatures, it is not beyond the scope of Muggle fantasy to envision such creatures themselves. What our Office does, then, is find a plausible excuse for unlikely events by capitalising on Muggles' vast imagination; in the case of a giant, for instance, we could simply say that it was an expedient for the filming of a motion-picture (which is much like a magical picture, only it goes on much longer and usually sustains a narrative, as well as producing sounds).
It is because of this role that every member of our Office is highly knowledgeable about Muggle culture and technology. We need to evaluate the scope and range of an accident first (though it is here worth noting that the process of selection is made at a lower level by the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, which then decides whether to send cases to us or to the Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee), and then we have specialised teams that are tasked with dealing with different accidents (some are in charge of dealing with illnesses like Dragonpox, others with magical accidents with repercussions on weather, and so on). This requires special knowledge that is not easily acquirable unless we dedicate ourselves quite thoroughly to Muggle sciences and find within them acceptable explanations.
Once our teams have formulated the necessary excuses, we expound on them in a formal presentation to the office of the Muggle Prime Minister. Because the man is quite busy with matters pertaining the ruling of Muggle Britain, it would be impossible to have him read on every one of our explanations to approve it or fix it accordingly; indeed, even if he had, the knowledge required to approve our justifications is well outside any one person's scope. Because the Prime Minister is, with the Monarch, the only Muggle person without magical connections allowed to know of the existence of magic at any given point, the office within the Muggle ministry in charge of analysing our work and liaising with us is comprised of Squibs. Their unique nature makes them absolutely invaluable to the smooth running of our work.
Squibs are considered rejects within our society; it is not only not unheard of, but actually quite common for magical families to reject Squibs altogether and disown them. Accidents of suspicious disappearances have been raised on more than one occasion, to be sure.
The status of Squibs within our society is certainly deplorable. The idea that they should be cast off from their families and left to fend for themselves in the world without any kind of support is lamentable. Magic is not the solution to all the problems of this world; whilst magic does help in many endeavours, Muggle science has brought Muggles all the way to the Moon, and has allowed them to achieve endeavours that no magical human would ever dream of without the use of magic – flying, of course, comes to mind quite quickly, but let's not forget simpler things like lighting a fire. Squibs, with their knowledge of magic and the need to reinvent themselves and adapt to a new environment, could be a great source of help for the innovation and betterment of our world. In this, not only are they not to be shunned, but they should be held in much higher regard.
Mr Dempsey, in recent talks at the Ministry, a proposal has been set forth to cut funds to your Office, in an attempt to better regulate the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Despite very reasonable demands advanced by the DMLE, you have been a staunch opposer to this proposal; could you tell us why?
Talks have been brought forth by the DMLE about the need to better equip our Ministry with the tools to fight the unlawful actions of a select group of individuals set on disrupting the smooth running of the Ministry and the British Wizarding world more thoroughly. The points made were very valid, and I do not dispute the need to fight this rising aversion to the current system. Indeed, I find it quite necessary and urgent myself. What I did oppose at the time the proposals were brought forth, and what I still oppose today, is the idea that my Office should be considered any less useful in the current political situation. My Office, which deals mostly in protecting the Statute of Secrecy, is the one most involved in entertaining Wizarding-Muggle relations and, as such, is a cornerstone to the sensibilisation of the Wizarding public to the Muggle world. By removing funds to our Office, not only would the Ministry impeach those relations, but it would also send a message of silent agreement to those same lawless individuals who have been attacking its validity as a proper institutional agency.
In your preliminary response to the Wizengamot, on the date the proposal was first advanced to the court, you also highlighted how recent unlawful activity has necessitated your working overtime to come up with viable excuses for the increasingly violent acts that have occurred in our territory.
Yes, indeed I have. Starting roughly six years ago, an increasing number of disappearing Muggles has been noted by the Muggle government and perplexed it greatly. While kidnappings and the odd killing have occurred in the Muggle world without ransom notes ever sent or bodies ever discovered, the incidence of such accidents increased to the point where the Muggle government felt it necessary to consult us on the topic. Aurors were sent to investigate many of those disappearances, and while some indeed proved to be unrelated to our world, there have been at least a dozen proven connections to magical activities – not to mention the countless scenes where evidence, though inconclusive, certainly pointed towards that way. It has been the duty of the Office of Misinformation to investigate those cases and find explanations that could appease the Muggle general public. These duties have piled up over our ordinary workload, and have put a lot of stress on our staff, who have been required to work well outside their contracted hours. To remove further funding from our Office would imply that we would be made to fire some of our employees and thus further exert the ones who would remain. It is either that, or risk the breach of the Statute of Secrecy.
A counter-argument which was very resonant with the Wizarding public was that the Ministry should give priority to the protection of magical individuals rather than Muggles, and that it is the duty of the Muggle government to protect its own. What is your personal stand on the matter?
While I do not dispute this sentiment, I should remind the public that the reason why the Statute of Secrecy – which is our Office's duty to defend and uphold – is in place is to protect our society as much as the Muggle one. This is not mere propaganda, because if it were, the Statute would not have been approved by the International Confederation of Wizards as early as 1692, and would not currently still be upheld by all the countries which adhere to the ICW, which are all the world's countries. Indeed, the Statute of Secrecy is one of the few legislative acts that has been successfully supported nearly unanimously by the ICW. While some countries, for their specific cultures, require the Statute less than Britain, it is nonetheless true that magic has been made to flourish thanks to this implementation and that by protecting it we are, in fact, protecting our society.
Furthermore, what the public here fails to address is the fact that the protection of Muggles needs to concern us when it is wizarding criminals that bring forth their demise. We have not – nor has any other country involved with the facts – taken part in the Muggle World Wars, indeed we have opposed such actions for exactly the purpose of protecting the Statute of Secrecy, so then it naturally follows that we should now be at our best in the attempts at protecting Muggles against rogue elements of our world.
You will hopefully indulge me this question, Mr Dempsey, though it does not deal with your immediate interests, but I do believe it quite pertinent with the current topic. You have, and rightly so, mentioned an incidence of suspicious disappearances in the Muggle world; it is especially true that these occurrences have had their peak the last November, leading to the ousting of former Minister for Magic, Eugenia Jenkins. How would you say has that affected yourself, your work and the Ministry?
I must firstly caution anyone for taking my word on this to be reflective of my Office's views on the subject. The accidents that have been grouped under the 'November disappearances' had a very strong impact on our society, a sure sign of what I have thus far underlined – while the SoS effectively separates us from the Muggles, our destinies cannot be so distinctly separated. It is paramount that we remember we share a country with Muggles, and that we are brothers in the end. They, just like us, are very much humans, and as such they must be treated. To allow that rogue elements of our society attack Muggles so deliberately and with impunity was a blemish to our society's name.
The change in leadership within our government, then, has not surprised me in the least, for it showed us that the majority of our society is against allowing such behaviours. I cannot truly speak of what Minister Minchum's arrival in the position of Minister for Magic has done to the whole of the Ministry, for that is not within my scope of competences, but I can certainly say that the Minister's concern with the protection of our society has been remarked. One thing is for certain, Minister Minchum does not see with a favourable eye the presence of outlaws that strive to gain strength and power within our society, and it is clear that he will be fighting against this bloated opponent who fashions himself as our true protector while destroying all that we stand for with his actions.
Your recount of your Office's activities seems to imply that you are, as of late, stretching far beyond your capabilities and your sphere of competence. Would it not be more prudent to leave investigative work to the Aurors within the DMLE and, possibly, the Obliviators? Is not a collaboration preferred to the stretching of your resources and the venturing outside of your realm of competences?
You do raise a valid point. Personally, and I know I can speak for a fair amount of my colleagues as well, I can tell you that we would be delighted to have the Aurors take up the investigative work that has fallen into our hands. Indeed, one such proposition was made to the DMLE at a far earlier stage in the investigative process. The request, unfortunately, was met with a sound refusal. I do not wish to cast blame on the Auror Office here, for I can assure the public of their utmost cooperation and their attempts at improving our efficiency; unfortunately, their acceptance was dependant on more funds being directed their way to increase their productivity, a productivity which, at this stage, does not allow them to come to our aid. Those funds, of course, would have to come from somewhere, but because priorities for the Auror Office are other than the ones we ourselves require, to give them the funds requested from the source suggested – us – would indeed worsen our situation.
Now let me spare a word for the Obliviators. I have not grouped them with the Aurors for a very specific reason. While it is true that their job is often necessary, and needs to be appreciated, in this instance, erasing Muggles' memories would serve no actual purpose. We are not trying to hide the sighting of a unicorn by some small children, something that might have happened as an accident, but whose reoccurrence we can easily prevent; we are here talking about mass disappearances of people with families, friends, acquaintances, and written records to their names. There is no number of Obliviators that can efficiently deal with all of that, and even less so when the disappearances have been occurring for six years and are not ensured to stop, though they do appear to have abated somewhat. We should focus our efforts on prevention, rather than damage containment.
You have mentioned an increase in unlawful activity, and it seems that what you are saying connects this new trend to a risk for the Wizarding society as a whole. Would that be a fair assessment of your stand, or are there other conclusions to be drawn from your words?
No, you are quite right in your assessment. I, as well as the majority of the Wizarding public, have been following with ever-increasing interest recent political developments. The subtle, yet perseverant attack on the Ministry and its institutions that goes hand-in-hand with a perpetual attack on the Muggle world and its sympathizers within the magical environment, is nought but the attack of a megalomaniac whose only interest rests within himself. This Lord Voldemort character, who hides himself and his followers behind names designed to instill fear in all of his opposers, does not wish to better our society, his only desire is to rule us with fear and violence. And just to let you all know that we should not be made to fear or hate the Muggle world, let me address to you old words of a Muggle man: "Nothing good ever comes of violence".
A/N: The article is in full the work of SilenceoftheSolitude, and fits into PNT ChIII,37: Of Trades and Deals (sections are quoted in the main story from it).