Amnesty International has taken up the case of Bradley Manning. In an open letter addressed to Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, the organization expresses its concern regarding the treatment of Manning:
The harsh conditions imposed on PFC Manning also undermine the principle of the presumption of
innocence, which should be taken into account in the treatment of any person under arrest or awaiting
trial. We are concerned that the effects of isolation and prolonged cellular confinement – which
evidence suggests can cause psychological impairment, including depression, anxiety and loss of
concentration – may, further, undermine his ability to assist in his defence and thus his right to a fair
trial. – LINK
Activist author David Swanson rightly observes that Bradley Manning is “being punished for the crimes of others”:
Material released by Wikileaks and alleged to have originated with Manning has revealed, among many other crimes, secret and illegal wars and missile strikes, support for a military coup, obstruction of justice, numerous war atrocities, complicity in torture, illegal spying, lawless imprisonment (now experienced by Manning himself as well), the granting of retroactive immunity to criminals, and bribery.
When the U.S. government screams that this information has endangered the innocent and then admits that it hasn’t done any such thing and is really no big deal at all, don’t be fooled. It is, in another sense, a very big deal. The reason the government says that informing the public is far more dangerous than informing foreign nations is the same reason that Manning allegedly chose to give the information to the public rather than enriching himself by selling it to another nation: majority rule is threatening to oligarchs. The reason Congressman Peter King says he’d rather see the United States bombed than U.S. citizens learn this information about their government’s behavior is because the behavior is serious indeed, deadly so. – MORE
