Bradley Manning Support Network » Updates

Update 8/24/13: Alexa O’brien’s interview with defense lawyer David Coombs, NYT calls sentence “excessive”

admin — Sat, 24 Aug 2013 06:07:49 +0000

Journalist Alexa O’brien interviewed David Coombs after the crushing sentence announcement earlier this week. Watch the entire interview:

The Sentencing of Chelsea Manning: Alexa O’Brien’s Exclusive Interview with Attorney David Coombs from Sparrow Media on Vimeo.

The New York Times published an editorial this week criticizing the brutal sentence handed down to Pvt. Chelsea Manning:

For a defense lawyer, a sentence of one-third the potential maximum is usually not a bad outcome. But from where we sit, it is still too much, given his stated desire not to betray his country but to encourage debate on American aims and shed light on the “day to day” realities of the American war effort.

And the new White House petition to grant clemency to Manning has passed 12,000 signatures. It must reach 100,000 signatures within the next 30 days in order for the White House to respond. Please sign the petition today and share it widely!

Update 8/21/13: Amnesty International calls on Obama to commute sentence to time served

admin — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:56:06 +0000

President Obama, uphold your promise to protect whistleblowers! Pardon Bradley Manning!

Immediately following Judge Lind’s sentencing announcement that Bradley Manning would be imprisoned for 35 years, Amnesty International issued a statement calling on President Obama to commute the sentence to time served:

Bradley Manning should be shown clemency in recognition of his motives for acting as he did, the treatment he endured in his early pre-trial detention, and the due process shortcomings during his trial.

The President doesn’t need to wait for this sentence to be appealed to commute it; he can and should do so right now.

Bradley Manning acted on the belief that he could spark a meaningful public debate on the costs of war, and specifically on the conduct of the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan. His revelations included reports on battlefield detentions and previously unseen footage of journalists and other civilians being killed in US helicopter attacks, information which should always have been subject to public scrutiny.

Instead of fighting tooth and nail to lock him up for several decades, the US government should turn its attention to investigating and delivering justice for the serious human rights abuses committed by its officials in the name of countering terror.

Read the entire press release here.

Update 8/19/13: Sentence to be announced in next few days. Community actions planned in response

admin — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 20:26:52 +0000

Vigil at Fort Meade 12 Aug 13. After the sentence is announced, take action in your community!

The final sentencing arguments were heard today in Bradley Manning’s trial.

Judge Lind will begin deliberating the sentence tomorrow morning, and we expect the sentence to be announced in the next few days. Community actions are being planned in response to the announcement, and a mass online shout-out/Thunderclap for Bradley Manning is planned for tomorrow, August 20th at 7pm ET. The campaign will not rest until Bradley Manning is set free.

Host an event in your community in response to the sentence (to be announced in next few days).

Take to the streets hold signs, demand that President Obama pardon Bradley Manning, write the newspapers, write your representatives. We must take action now! Bradley Manning has spent more than 3 years in prison while awaiting his trial, and he faces up to 90 years in prison. A three time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and conscientious soldier who exposed war crimes, corruption, reckless secrecy should be rewarded not imprisoned! Learn more about hosting an action in your community!

Join the mass online shoutout/Thunderclap for Bradley Manning:

“President Obama, you promised to protect whistleblowers. You have no excuse. Free Bradley Manning NOW!”

There is no minimum sentence! Judge Lind can do the right thing.

Bradley Manning faces up to 90 years in prison, however there is no minimum sentence and so Bradley Manning’s future sits in the hands of Judge Lind. Commenting on the possible sentence, Jesselyn Radack of the Government Accountability Project said that the US government is sending a message, ”You choose your conscience over not only your career, but your very freedom.” Let’s hope Judge Lind has strength to do the right thing. (Read more…)

Update 8/17/13: Photos from Bradley Manning’s childhood released

admin — Sat, 17 Aug 2013 18:27:49 +0000

A number of photos from Bradley Manning’s childhood were released by members of his family. View the entire set on Flickr (including many more photos).

Update 8/16/13: Journalist Alexa O’Brien “tracking case” well, notes defense attorney

Jeff Paterson — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 20:21:25 +0000

Following today’s brief court session, Bradley Manning’s defense attorney David Coombs spoke with supporters in the courthouse entrance area. Regrading Bradley Manning’s apology to the court on Wednesday, Mr. Coombs noted that independent journalist Alexa O’Brien was doing a very good job of “tracking” and reporting on these developments.

The ethical consistency of Bradley Manning’s apology

Unlike the US government’s vindictive behaviour, Pfc Manning’s expressions of regret are of a piece with his moral earnestness

By Alexa O’brien, The Guardian. August 16, 2013
http://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/16/ethical-consistency-bradley-manning-apology

Pfc Bradley Manning, the American soldier responsible for transmitting hundreds of thousands of diplomatic cables and US army reports to WikiLeaks, took the stand Wednesday during the sentencing phase of his trial to apologize to the presiding military judge, Col Denise Lind. His three-minute unsworn statement was delivered before defense rested its case.

In July, Manning was convicted of 20 offenses. He currently faces a maximum punishment of 90 years. Manning said Wednesday:

I am sorry that my actions hurt people. I am sorry that it hurt the United States.

Because much of the 19-month trial has been conducted without a public record of court documents until the 1,103rd day of the legal proceeding, many might be surprised to learn that Manning’s statement on Wednesday is consistent with others he has made in court.

Many readers are familiar with excerpts from a 20-page statement Manning read at a February hearing, where he pled to nine “lesser included offenses” of the Espionage Act and one failure to obey a lawful regulation for wrongly storing classified material. In that statement, Manning explained his motive for releasing charged information, including a video of a July 2007 US airstrike in Baghdad, Iraq, which killed two Reuters journalists, at least 12 civilians, and injured two children.

In his statement, Manning described the conduct of the Apache pilots as dehumanizing and “similar to a child torturing ants with a magnifying glass”. Audio of him delivering his statement was later leaked and published by the Freedom of the Press Foundation.

In addition to the 20-page statement at the February Providence Inquiry, however, were lengthy colloquies he had with the judge about the nature of his admitted conduct.

It is important to note that Manning’s unsworn statement on Wednesday did not say that he “harmed” the US. While much of the sentencing hearing has been conducted in closed session away from public scrutiny. In open sessions, prosecution witnesses have testified that no actual damage occurred and no deaths resulted from Manning’s leaks. During the sentencing phase, prosecutors have presented evidence of government mitigation efforts and “expert” opinion testimony by federal employees and contractors that the leaks impacted diplomatic reporting, relationships with foreign governments, and could possibly be used in the future propaganda efforts by al-Qaida.

Explaining his guilt to nine offenses of discrediting the service in February, Manning said:

[T]he public sees that these documents have been released and then it damages their perception and their feeling about whether the armed services as a whole can safeguard information at all.

On Wednesday, Manning also said:

I did not truly appreciate the broader effects of my actions. Those effects are clearer to me now through both self-reflection during my confinement in its various forms and through the merits and sentencing testimony that I have seen here. I look back at my decisions and wonder, ‘How on earth could I, a junior analyst, possibly believe I could change the world for the better over the decisions of those with the proper authority?’

Explaining his February plea to nine offenses of prejudice to good order and discipline, Manning said:

In the military, we have rules and regulations and structures designed to safeguard sensitive information, whether it be classified or unclassified; and I circumvented those … I’m not the right pay-grade to make these decisions or anything.

And now, on Wednesday, Manning also said:

In retrospect, I should have worked more aggressively inside the system as we discussed during the Providence Statement and had options and I should have used these options.

In February, Manning declined to use either a justification (legal duty) defense or a necessity (imminent threat) defense, which may have been unavailable to him. He also told the judge back then that:

I didn’t even look at the possible channels of … of having this information released properly, so. That’s not how we do business.

Manning’s apology is not a zero-sum game. To understand Manning, one must see his acts in light of his moral, not political, agency. Defense has argued at trial that Manning is a humanist. Manning did not want to hurt anyone; in fact, he wanted to inform the American public.

On Wednesday, a defense forensic psychiatrist testified to Manning’s motives:

Well, Pfc Manning was under the impression that his leaked information was going to really change how the world views the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and future wars, actually. This was an attempt to crowdsource an analysis of the war, and it was his opinion that if … through crowdsourcing, enough analysis was done on these documents, which he felt to be very important, that it would lead to a greater good … that society as a whole would come to the conclusion that the war wasn’t worth it … that really no wars are worth it.

Deficient press coverage and the lack of public access, until lately, to some of the 35,000 pages of court documents from his trial have only exacerbated Manning’s legal predicament. Manning’s history with gender identity issues, the lack of public court documents, and the prejudicial and reactive statements by US government official for the last three years have left Manning prey to a feeding frenzy of salacious and hyperbolic coverage and a famine of serious media consideration.

Manning directed his counsel to only engage with the press using text-based media, and to be as “accurate as possible, and try to get to the actual topic and try to be as factual as possible, and try to be as neutral as possible”. While his incredible earnestness is evident to many in court, it is hard to convey to those who haven’t experienced it. At the hearing concerning his unlawful pre-trial confinement at Quantico, in November 2012, Manning’s expressions of admiration and respect for his current command, and his friendly self-effacing charm, even disarmed the lead military prosecutor, Major Ashden Fein, who was smiling at Manning by the end of his cross-examination.

A remarkable aspect of this historic trial is how Manning’s conduct, hiscandor to the court, and his reserved relationship with the press have shown in stark relief how bombastic and prejudicial the US government’s approach to his trial has been.

Manning is expected to be sentenced next week. Perhaps, once his trial is over, the truth about it can finally be learned.

Update 8/15/13: Reactions and reports after Bradley’s request for leniency

admin — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 16:36:42 +0000

Rally for Bradley Manning at the start of the court martial. Take action in your local community immediately after the sentence is announced!

Closing the Defense’s sentencing arguments, Bradley Manning showed integrity and conscience when he took the stand yesterday issuing a plea to Judge Lind for leniency. In his statement he apologized for the harm he caused even though the evidence showed no harm came from the releases. And he expressed regret for not being more aggressive with his attempts to expose war crimes through the proper military channels. His statement was consistent with that of a humanist, one guided by morals and conscience: “I am sorry for the unintended consequences of my actions. When I made these decisions I believed I was going to help people, not hurt people” and “In retrospect I should have worked more aggressively inside the system” he said.

WikiLeaks issued a statement asking supporters to accept this statement with “compassion and understanding” given the enormous weight on Manning’s shoulders. Facing 90 years in prison, having endured a year in solitary confinement, and having his defense blocked at every turn, it is no wonder that Bradley Manning – now only 25 years old – would appeal to the court to give him a second chance at life,

Since his arrest, Mr. Manning has been an emblem of courage and endurance in the face of adversity. He has resisted extraordinary pressure. He has been held in solitary confinement, stripped naked and subjected to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment by the United States government. His constitutional right to a speedy trial has been ignored. He has sat for three years in pretrial detention, while the government assembled 141 witnesses and withheld thousands of documents from his lawyers.

The government has denied him the right to conduct a basic whistleblower defense. It overcharged him until he faced over a century in prison and barred all but a handful of his witnesses. He was denied the right at trial to argue that no harm was caused by his alleged actions. His defence team was pre-emptively banned from describing his intent or showing that his actions harmed no one.

Despite these obstacles, Mr. Manning and his defense team have fought at every step. Last month, he was eventually convicted of charges carrying up to 90 years of prison time. The US government admitted that his actions did not physically harm a single person, and he was acquitted of “aiding the enemy.” His convictions solely relate to his alleged decision to inform the public of war crimes and systematic injustice.

It is understandable that Bradley Manning seeks leniency, and given his strong moral compass it is understandable he has showed regret for causing anyone harm. But outside the court room we must consider the fact no harm actually occurred. The Freedom of the Press Foundation also provides an excellent critique, breaking down the government’s ongoing rhetoric and lies about the potential harm caused:

While the legal strategy of Manning’s attorney at this point—as it would be for any attorney—is to convince the judge to reduce Manning’s sentence as much as possible, the public should know: Bradley Manning didn’t actually hurt the United States.

For years now, the government may have attempted to paint a dire picture of WikiLeaks’ potential impact, but they’ve also admitted, quietly but repeatedly, that the results have been more embarrassing than harmful.

Even when the WikiLeaks hysteria was in full swing, government officials from the State Department have briefed Congress on the impact of the Wikileaks revelations, and have said that the leaks were “embarrassing but not damaging.” U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said that, while some of the information may have been embarrassing, “I don’t think there is any substantive damage.”

Because Bradley Manning selected particular categories of documents that did not contain source information, and which would not put soldiers in harms way, the only damage from the leaks according to all evidence presented publicly was embarrassment. Even so, Manning’s apology is understandable. With few options left, and facing 90 years in prison, deferring to the military court, and to military honor, makes sense. In his article “There Are People Who Should Have to Plead for Mercy from a Judge—None Are Named Bradley Manning”, Kevin Gosztola at FDL writes:

A statement like this was probably to be expected. He had pled guilty to some offenses on February 28 and his defense had diligently worked to have him acquitted of the more serious federal charges he faced. His defense had sought to present evidence of how government agencies had done reviews after the leaks and found little to no damage or harm had been caused, but the judge deemed such evidence irrelevant to the charges. His defense also tried to stop military prosecutors from preventing the defense from presenting evidence related to Manning’s “good faith” during trial, but that effort failed.

Making the kind of public interest defense supporters—and people throughout the world—wanted to hear would and could not have happened.

Supporters holding a vigil for Bradley Manning at Fort Meade. August 15, 2013.

Gosztola is also critical of the military’s arguments that Bradley Manning did not follow the proper channels, writing that he is unsure how much Bradley Manning knows about similar whistleblower cases, such as that of Thomas Drake who approached Congress but found all his requests went “into a black hole”. Read more about these failed “proper channels” here.

We can hope now, as the closing arguments are made and as Judge Lind decides Bradley Manning’s fate, that she will look deeper into the issues presented during the pre-trial hearings – the unheard of punishment of keeping someone on Prevention of Injury status for 9 months – where Manning was stripped naked, given max an hour a day exercise, forced to ask for toilet paper, watched constantly from behind a two way mirror, forced never to lean his back against a wall. We hope Lind will consider the enormous delays created by the government when they withheld crucial evidence from the defense, and which led to the longest pre-trial detention of an American soldier since Vietnam (more than 3 years). We hope Lind understands that Bradley Manning’s treatment at Quantico prison was “cruel, inhuman, and degrading” just as the UN declared, and that the sentencing credit she gave Manning, of 112 days, did not even amount to a slap on the hand for the military. In fact, it gave the military free reign to continue to abuse soldiers. And most importantly, we hope Lind can see the bigger picture – that without more Bradley Manning’s the military apparatus would run amok, that hundreds of thousands of documents were unreasonably kept secret, and that there were very real coverups of war crimes which even after being exposed have not been prosecuted.

We need more Bradley Manning’s and so let’s hope Judge Lind shows understanding and compassion and that she takes Bradley Manning’s actions and statements to heart. The sentence is expected to come sometime next week.

Update 8/14/13: Join the mass online shout out and take action in your community immediately after sentencing!

admin — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 19:09:50 +0000

Over 100 gathered in San Francisco following verdict. We expect the sentence to be announced next Wednesday, August 21, 2013. Help organize a rally in your community, and join the mass online shoutout for Bradley Manning! Demand President Obama keep his promise to protect whistleblowers, demand he pardon Bradley Manning and free him now!

Bishop Thomas Gumbleton has been campaigning for human rights and humanitarian causes for decades. He travelled to Fort Meade and was in court today to support Bradley Manning.

Bradley Manning will be taking the stand today as the Defense is expected to finish its sentencing arguments. The prosecution will most likely give a rebuttal on Friday, and our best guess is that the sentence will be announced next Wednesday.

Immediately following sentencing, join thousands of supporters in the streets in a worldwide action to demonstrate support for the heroic soldier who sacrificed so much to reveal to the public the truth of the wars. Pressure President Obama to keep his promise to protect whistleblowers. Pressure President Obama to pardon Bradley Manning. FREE BRADLEY MANNING NOW!

And join the mass online shoutout/Thunderclap for Bradley Manning scheduled to go off just prior to the sentence. Thunderclap is a service that schedules your Twitter and/or Facebook post. It will only post a single message of support for Bradley, and it will post everyones message at the same time: “President Obama, you promised to protect whistleblowers. You have no excuse. Free Bradley Manning NOW!” Click here to signup for the online shoutout!

Update 8/12/13: Delivering 100,000 Nobel Peace Prize petitions, and what about the Nuremberg charter?

admin — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 15:11:05 +0000

Supporters at an early morning vigil at Fort Meade prior to the defense beginning its sentencing arguments.

Paul Jay and Vijay Prashad discuss the Nuremberg charter, an international agreement signed 68 years ago, which holds soldiers accountable for war crimes, regardless of whether or not they have been ordered to commit the said crimes by their government. The charter creates an international law that demands soldiers act on and report atrocities they witness:

The war in Iraq was illegal, according to most legal scholars I’ve heard, including Kofi Annan, who, unfortunately, didn’t really come out and say it until after he left United Nations, but he said it. An illegal war, invading a country is a war crime. If Bradley Manning sees atrocities committed in the course of a war crime, it’s not just some choice he made. It’s not just a moral obligation. Under international law, he actually had a legal obligation, and certainly a defense, for doing what he did. (Read more…)

More than 100,000 people signed the petition to award Bradley Manning the Nobel Peace Prize, and today Norman Soloman will meet with the Director of the Nobel Research committee to urge them to consider the heroic selfless actions of 3 time Nobel Peace Prize nominee Bradley Manning:

This afternoon I’ll carry several thousand pages of a petition — filled with the names of more than 100,000 signers, along with individual comments from tens of thousands of them – to an appointment with the Research Director of the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The petition urges that Bradley Manning be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Like so many other people, the signers share the belief of Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Corrigan-Maguire who wrote this summer: “I can think of no one more deserving.” (Read more…)

Update 8/10/13: Defense begins sentencing arguments on Mon., Bradley to give statement by Wed.

admin — Sat, 10 Aug 2013 16:19:49 +0000

The prosecution’s sentencing arguments have come to a close and the defense will begin Monday. Sentencing could occur as soon as Friday, August 16, and the Guardian reports that Bradley Manning will give a statement by Wednesday:

Manning’s defense team will begin presenting evidence on Monday in the court-martial at Fort Meade, near Baltimore. The defense attorney David Coombs said Manning will give a statement before the defense rests on Wednesday. Read more…

“This is a historic verdict” writes Marjorie Cohn in her article “Bradley Manning’s Revelations Saved Lives.” Judge Lind was right not to convict Bradley Manning of aiding the enemy, she argues, but she worries that the remaining espionage charges are part of the governments plan to send a chilling message to future whistleblowers:

The verdict finding Manning guilty of Espionage Act offenses, however, sends an ominous warning that could deter future whistle-blowers from exposing government wrongdoing. It’s important to keep in mind that Manning provided information indicating the U.S. had committed war crimes. Traditionally the Espionage Act has been used only against spies and traitors, not whistle-blowers. Yet President Obama has used the Espionage Act to prosecute more whistle-blowers than all prior administrations combined. Read more…

Worldwide actions have been called to follow immediately after Bradley Manning’s sentence:

Immediately following the sentencing announcement of heroic WikiLeaks whistle-blower Bradley Manning by the military court at Fort Meade, Maryland, join us in the streets to declare, “Free Bradley Now!” Read more…

Now is a great time to watch “The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning”, an award winning play by the National Theatre Wales which is being performed at the Edinburgh Festival until August 25th. Every performance will be livestreamed, but not recorded! So watch it now!

Update 8/2/13: Colbert Report’s great segment on Bradley, “my view from inside the courtroom”, Berlin rally pics

Jeff Paterson — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 18:51:01 +0000

Bradley Manning: my view from inside the Fort Meade courtroom

The media loves to argue whether Manning is a hero or a traitor, but that is beside the point. This is about truth

Molly Crabapple, The Guardian. July 31, 2013

On a delicious July afternoon, US army private Bradley Manning sat in a Fort Meade, Maryland courtroom and waited to hear if he’d be declared guilty of treason…. Only the guards hint that the proceedings are special. They carried enough ammo to turn every Manning supporter present into a fine red mist. Read the article at theguardian.com

Sketches by New York-based writer and artist Molly Crabapple

Photos from the ‘Stop Watching Us’ rally in Berlin, Germany

View more photos, along with a few videos, here.