Wikileaks: The Star and the Forgotten Man

The Wikileaks scandal revolves around two individuals, one either lionized or vilified as he occupies the spotlight of international attention, the other, out of sight and out of mind.  They are thus the star and the forgotten man.  The star won his freedom today.  The forgotten man rots away under conditions that make our nation an international pariah and make the world ask, “What has changed?”

Two articles from the same publication tell the tale.

With a smile and a short statement of quiet defiance, Julian Assange tonight walked free from custody and into the kind of media scrum more commonly seen after a decades-long prison sentence, rather than nine days on remand.

This was the third hearing in as many weeks relating to the WikiLeaks founder’s bail application over sex assault charges against two Swedish women, for which his extradition is being sought, and is unlikely to be the last before the allegations, which he denies, are resolved.

But with the global storm over the website’s leaks and a gathering campaign of online protest against what is seen by some of his supporters as a politically motivated process, this was never going to be a mere procedural hearing.

Journalists from around the world – the US, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands – queued from before dawn to secure a seat in court, while a pyramid of photographers and TV crews teetered precariously at the entrance to the Royal Courts of Justice in central London, in anticipation of the Australian, at some point, walking out of its imposing front doors on to the Strand.

At 6pm, more than five hours after being told that, with conditions, he was indeed free to leave, he did so, and walked out into a battery of flashing lights.

Though in court he had seemed weary, leaning his head against the mahogany wall of the dock as the appeal was heard, Assange had found new energy when he was finally let out of the court’s cells, thanking "all the people around the world who have had faith in me", those members of the press "who are not all taken in", and "the British justice system itself, where, if justice is not always an outcome, at least it is not dead yet"… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <The Guardian>

Yesterday, I declared my support for Assange, so I’ll continue without further discussion.  On to Manning.

As Julian Assange emerged from his nine-day imprisonment, there were renewed concerns about the physical and psychological health of Bradley Manning, the former US intelligence operative suspected of leaking the diplomatic cables at the centre of the storm.

Manning, who was arrested seven months ago, is being held at a military base in Virginia and faces a court martial and up to 52 years in prison for his alleged role in copying the cables.

His friends and supporters also claim they have been the target of extra-judicial harassment, intimidation and outright bribery by US government agents.

According to David House, a computer researcher from Boston who visits Manning twice a month, he is starting to deteriorate. "Over the last few weeks I have noticed a steady decline in his mental and physical wellbeing," he said. "His prolonged confinement in a solitary holding cell is unquestionably taking its toll on his intellect; his inability to exercise due to [prison] regulations has affected his physical appearance in a manner that suggests physical weakness."

Manning, House added, was no longer the characteristically brilliant man he had been, despite efforts to keep him intellectually engaged. He also disputed the authorities’ claims that Manning was being kept in solitary for his own good.

"I initially believed that his time in solitary confinement was a decision made in the interests of his safety," he said. "As time passed and his suicide watch was lifted, to no effect, it became clear that his time in solitary – and his lack of a pillow, sheets, the freedom to exercise, or the ability to view televised current events – were enacted as a means of punishment rather than a means of safety."

House said many people were reluctant to talk about Manning’s condition because of government harassment, including surveillance, warrantless computer seizures, and even bribes. "This has had such an intimidating effect that many are afraid to speak out on his behalf," House said… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <The Guardian>

This is horrific!  It’s what I would expect  from the Bush/Republican Reich, not Obama.  The only mitigations I can see are that Robert Gates was originally a Bush appointee, so most of the Pentagon bureaucracy was set in place by Republicans.  I would hope that Obama is ignoring this only because he is already trying to put two pounds of you know what in a one pound bag.  In any case, Manning is innocent until proven guilty, and there are ways to protect his safety without the Machiavellian measures in place.  Keith Olbermann broadcast an excellent piece with FBI whistle blower, Colleen Rowley.

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Not only have previous whistle blowers revealed far more, without receiving such treatment, but also, Obama did campaign on protecting whistle blowers in the interest of the missing transparency he promised.  Bradley Manning deserves humane treatment.  Solitary is torture.