The case of Pfc. Bradley Manning raises legal issues about his pre-trial detention, freedom of speech and the press, and proving his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Putting aside Manning’s guilt or innocence, if Bradley Manning saw the Afghan and Iraq war diaries as well as the diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks, what should he have done? And what should be the proper response of government to their publication?

A high point in the application of the rule of law to war came in the Nuremberg trials, when leaders in Germany were held accountable for World War II atrocities. Justice Robert Jackson, who served as the chief prosecutor in the Nuremberg trials while on leave from the U.S. Supreme Court, said, “If certain acts of violation of treaties are crimes, they are crimes whether the United States does them or whether Germany does them, and we are not prepared to lay down a rule of criminal conduct against others which we would not be willing to have invoked against us.”

One of the key outcomes of the Nuremberg trials was that people who commit war crimes or crimes against humanity will be held accountable even if they were following orders. This is known as Nuremberg Principle IV, which states: “The fact that a person acted pursuant to order of his government or of a superior does not relieve him from responsibility under international law provided a moral choice was in fact possible to him.” The Nuremberg principles were enshrined in a series of treaties.

How do the Nuremberg principles and other laws of war apply to Bradley Manning?

What is a person who does not want to participate in war crimes or hiding war crimes supposed to do when he sees evidence of them? If Manning hid the evidence, would he not be complicit in the crimes he was covering up and potentially liable as a co-conspirator? These were questions that Bradley Manning allegedly wrestled with. According to unverified chat logs, Manning, talking with Adrian Lamo via email, asked: “Hypothetical question, if you had free reign [sic] over classified networks for long periods of time… say, 8-9 months… and you saw incredible things, awful things… things that belonged in the public domain, and not on some server stored in a dark room in Washington, D.C.… what would you do?”

In Iraq, Manning was ordered “to round up and hand over Iraqi civilians to America’s new Iraqi allies, who he could see were then torturing them with electrical drills and other implements.” Manning questioned the orders he was being given to help round up Iraqis and brought his concerns to the chain of command. He pointed to a specific instance in which 15 detainees were arrested and tortured for printing “anti-Iraqi literature.” He found that the paper in question was merely a scholarly critique of corruption in the government, asking, “Where did the money go?” He brought this to his commander, who told him to “shut up” and keep working to find more detainees. Manning realized he “was actively involved in something that I was completely against.”

He wrestled with the question of what to do. According to the unverified chat logs with Lamo, Manning told Lamo that he hoped the publication of the documents and videos would spur “worldwide discussion, debates, and reform.” He went on to say, “I want people to see the truth… regardless of who they are… because without information, you cannot make informed decisions as a public.” The command structure would not listen, so Manning went beyond them to the people who are supposed to control the military in our democratic republic. He wanted Americans to know the truth.

In the chat logs, Lamo asked Manning why he did not sell the documents to a foreign power. Manning realized he could have made a lot of money doing so, but he did not take that path. He explained: “It belongs in the public domain – information should be free – it belongs in the public domain – because another state would just take advantage of the information… try and get some edge – if its out in the open… it should be a public good.” These are not the words of a traitor, of someone out to hurt the United States; these are the words of someone trying to improve the United States, trying to get the country to live up to its highest ideals.

Manning is charged so far with three counts of unlawfully transferring confidential material to a non-secure computer, i.e., leaking state secrets. Manning faces up to 52 years if convicted of these crimes, and it is likely that he will be charged with additional offenses. The charges against Manning end stating that Manning’s “conduct [is] prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and [is] of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.”

Well, what exactly did the materials Manning allegedly leak show?

The video that is the focus of these initial charges is known as “Collateral Murder.” The video shows American soldiers in an Apache helicopter gunning down a group of innocent men, including two Reuters employees, a photojournalist and his driver, killing 16 and sending two children to the hospital. The video, which has been viewed by millions, shows initial blasts at the group killing and wounding people. U.S. forces watch as a van pulls up to evacuate the wounded. The soldiers again open fire from the helicopter, killing more people. A crew member is heard saying, “Oh, yeah, look at those dead bastards.” But that was not the end. Journalist Rick Rowley reported that a man who  had crawled out of the van was still alive when a tank drove over him, cutting him in half.

Marjorie Cohn, who teaches criminal law and procedure, evidence, and international human rights law at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law, describes multiple war crimes from this single video. First, targeting and killing civilians who do not pose a threat violated the Geneva Conventions. Second, when soldiers attacked the van attempting to rescue the wounded they violated the Geneva Conventions, which allows the rescue of wounded. Third, the tank rolling over the wounded man, splitting him in two, is a war crime, and even if he were already dead disrespecting a body violates the Geneva Conventions.

The “Collateral Murder” video documents war crimes, according to this expert on human rights law. When Manning saw these war crimes, what should he have done? Should he have covered up the evidence of potential war crimes? Should he have tried to go up the chain of command – a strategy that he had already unsuccessfully tried? If Manning did what he is accused of, he did the only thing that could stop these crimes from continuing.

Other documents Manning allegedly provided to WikiLeaks involved the 2009 Granai air strike in Afghanistan, in which as many as 140 civilians, including women and children, were killed in a U.S. attack. The Australian reported that the air strike resulted in “one of the highest civilian death tolls from Western military action since foreign forces invaded Afghanistan in 2001.” The Afghan government has said that around 140 civilians were killed, of whom 93 were children – the youngest 8 days old – 25 were women, and 22 were adult males. The U.S. military had said that 20-30 civilians were killed along with 60-65 insurgents.

Allegedly, Manning released hundreds of thousands of documents to WikiLeaks, which, working with traditional media outlets, has released a small percentage of them. He left it to journalists to decide what was appropriate for release. The small percentage of documents released show widespread and systemic abuses in U.S. foreign policy and in the conduct of wars. WikiLeaks documents, including the Iraq and Afghanistan War Logs and the diplomatic cables, show the following:

• U.S. troops kill civilians, including reporters, without cause or concern and then cover it up (more examples of hiding civilian killings here, here and here).
• The CIA is fighting an undeclared and unauthorized war in Pakistan with Blackwater mercenaries.
• The president of Afghanistan is not trustworthy, and Afghanistan is rife with corruption and drug dealing.
• The Pakistani military and intelligence agencies aid al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
• The U.S. looks the other way when governments it puts in power torture.
•  Hillary Clinton has turned State Department Foreign Service officers into a nest of spies who violate laws to spy on diplomats, all with marching orders drawn up by the CIA.
• Israel, with U.S. knowledge, is preparing for a widespread war in the Middle East, keeping the Gaza economy at the brink of collapse, and engaging in widespread corruption at border checkpoints.

These are a few examples among many. The documents published by WikiLeaks, allegedly provided to them by Manning, are of critical importance to understanding that U.S. foreign policy is not what Americans are told. No doubt historians, human rights lawyers, academics, and others will be reviewing these documents and reporting in greater detail the systemic nature of the unethical and often illegal behavior of the U.S. government. This already has the world looking at the United States with new eyes.

Experience inside the U.S. military turned a young man from Oklahoma who believed in America into someone who doubted it. Manning believed in American freedom, especially economic freedom, and believed the United States played a positive role in the world. He wanted to serve his country. In doing so he became someone who questioned the leadership of the nation, its foreign policy, and its conduct of wars. He saw war crimes, violations of law, and constant deception. After much soul searching he decided that the quest for a more perfect union required him to share this information.

Justice Robert Jackson, during his opening address at the Nuremberg trials, said: “If we can cultivate in the world the idea that aggressive war-making is the way to the prisoner’s dock rather than the way to honors, we will have accomplished something toward making the peace more secure.” Bradley Manning joins in this enlightened viewpoint and is working to make peace more secure and the United States a better nation.

A mature American leadership, rather than prosecuting Manning, would encourage an honest debate about U.S. foreign policy. Thomas Jefferson warned that “oppressions are many” and that for the people to govern we should “leave open … all the avenues to truth.” Manning has provided an avenue to truth where we can look honestly at our government and dramatically change direction. Enlightened leadership would renounce blackmail, threats, and spying on foreign officials, as well as torture and war.

Instead Manning is suffering a fate Thomas Jefferson warned about: “Most codes extend their definitions of treason to acts not really against one’s country. They do not distinguish between acts against the government and acts against the oppressions of the government.” Manning has been sitting in solitary confinement for seven months awaiting trial. He is suffering this fate for the betterment of the nation. People who care about the United States and our impact on the world should stand with Bradley and work to turn American foreign policy away from militarism and toward working cooperatively with other nations for the advancement of all.

To stand with Bradley, visit Stand With Brad.

To prevent prosecution of WikiLeaks, visit WikiLeaksIsDemocracy.org

His cell is six feet wide and twelve feet in length. It has a bed, a drinking fountain, and a toilet.

At 5:00 a.m. he is woken up. He will not be allowed to sleep again until 8:00 p.m. If he attempts to sleep at any time from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. he will be made to sit up or stand by the guards.

He will not be allowed to exercise in his cell, not even push-ups—for his own protection; too dangerous, say his jailers. If he tries, guards stop him.

He has no clothes, as they were taken away the night before. He is forced to sleep naked with a scratchy smock over him that itches throughout the night. He tried not to use the smock because it was so uncomfortable, but he was forced to do so.

A voice asks through the door: Are you all right? I need a verbal response. “Yes, I’m all right.” Five minutes later: Are you all right? I need a verbal response. “Yes, I’m all right.” Every five minutes, every day for seven months he has been asked: Are you all right? I need a verbal response.

A voice through the door orders: Get out of your bed for the morning duty brig supervisor inspection.

Still no clothes.

He gets out of the bed, shivering from being naked all night in a cold cell.

He walks toward the front of the cell with his hands in front, covering his genitals.

A guard orders: Stand at parade rest.

He puts his hands behind his back, with legs spaced shoulder-width apart. He stands at parade rest waiting and waiting until the brig supervisor arrives. Everyone is called to attention.

The brig supervisor and the other guards walk past the cell. They stop and look as he stands naked. Stare at him. Look at the room. Stare at him some more. Then they move on to the next cell. He stands waiting for the inspection of all the cells to end. When this is completed, a guard orders, “Go sit on your bed.” Sitting naked, waiting, waiting, waiting. Ten minutes later, finally, clothes arrive and he can dress. The shiver from the cold night stays with him.

This is how Bradley Manning’s day begins. The nudity has been required for more than a week, with no end in sight, but he has been in solitary in Quantico for seven months, in total for 10 months.

Charles Dickens, who spent months at a time living with the general populations of prisons and mental hospitals throughout America in the 1800s, wrote about solitary confinement: “I believe it to be cruel and wrong. … I hold this slow and daily tampering with the mysteries of the brain to be immeasurably worse than any torture of the body.”

It is torture. They are torturing him. We should call it nothing else. Long-term solitary confinement is torture. Research shows previously healthy prisoners have “develop[ed] clinical symptoms usually associated with psychosis or severe affective disorders” including “all types of psychiatric morbidity.” Many have committed suicide.

The spokesperson for the State Department, P.J. Crowley, put his career on the line to speak with disfavor against the treatment of Manning. He described Manning’s confinement as “counterproductive and stupid.” Crowley resigned Sunday, and it has been reported in the media that Obama administration did not want the division on Manning known to the public. Our pressure forced the president to call the Pentagon about Manning’s treatment. Our work getting Manning’s message out resulted in P.J. Crowley giving up his job as spokesperson for U.S. foreign policy. We are having an impact.

In our Big Brother security state, the military says it does it for Manning’s own protection. It’s a lie that does not pass the straight-face test. Once again lies become truth as a compliant press writes them down and reports them as facts. The president reinforces the lie, telling America he has talked to the Pentagon and they have said it is for Manning’s own protection. The president says this with a straight face.

Does anyone believe the president anymore? This is the president that told us America doesn’t torture. This is the president who said that Raymond Davis was a diplomat who deserved diplomatic immunity. In fact, he was a Blackwater mercenary working for the CIA who allegedly killed two Pakistanis. The president’s comments to the press were dutifully reported when the press knew he was working for the CIA. The press had been told to lie to us, not tell us the truth, and they did as the government demanded until a foreign newspaper told the truth. The president and the press need to lie to us because the truth is terrifying.

Friends, we are here today because we know, we are all Bradley Manning. A crime against one of us is a crime against all of us. We need to stand together, to stand with Brad, because this is much bigger than Bradley Manning.

We are living through a time of revolutionary change. We see it around the world, and we see it around the nation. The corporate-government media does not report the resistance occurring throughout the nation, because if Americans knew that their fellow Americans were standing up against corporate government, real change, shifting power to the people, would be more likely.

And the corporate media is threatened by what Bradley Manning is accused of. They are losing hold of their monopoly on information as WikiLeaks shows the way to the democratization of the media. We are living through the birth of a new media that will shift the power of information control from the few to the many. Information is a commodity that the corporate government has sought to control because it knows information is power. But in this new media age we can all be reporters, writers, commentators. Through email, blogs, websites, and social media, each of us can share information. We all can become part of the new media.

And through encryption technology those who work inside corrupt governments, including our own, and abusive big businesses can provide media outlets—new and old—anonymously with information that increases the transparency of these powers that control our lives. They are scared of Bradley Manning and scared of WikiLeaks, but prosecuting Manning or Assange will not stop this revolution.

If in 1450 Johannes Gutenberg, the inventor of the printing press, had been prosecuted, the revolution of printing would have occurred anyway. The information revolution has progressed too far to be stopped. Information will flow, transparency will increase, and media will be democratized.

Bradley Manning is paying a price because the security state is not secure. The people already know too much of the truth, and the government fears us knowing more. They know control can be lost. The rigged system is falling apart, and they are doing all they can to hold onto power. Bradley Manning must be tortured to force him to testify against Assange. Manning must be made an example of. The revolutionaries must be punished.

The treatment of Bradley Manning is about intimidating all of us. They know, as WikiLeaks says, courage is contagious. By standing together, we respond to their intimidation with strength, joy, and resolve.

For all these reasons, we must stand with Brad. We are all Bradley Manning.

If what he is accused of is true, Manning has exposed abusive governments throughout the world. The documents published by WikiLeaks worked hand in hand with democracy activists in Tunisia and Egypt, Libya and Saudi Arabia, and so many more. The documents have shown the lie of Swedish claims of neutrality. In fact, Sweden’s minister of justice participated in the rendition of two innocent men from Sweden to Egypt via the CIA, where that regime tortured them. Sweden later awarded them damages for their torture. The now former minister of justice who handed these innocent people to the CIA for torture in Egypt, Thomas Bodstrom, is the law partner of the lawyer representing Assange’s accusers.

The documents have shown the truth of the largest and most powerful empire in world history—the American Empire. They have confirmed so much that we already suspected is in fact true—the U.S. is a rogue superpower that bullies, threatens, and blackmails to get its way. That works with dictators and security-state regimes—many of which are now being deposed by their people. That supports coups of democratically elected governments then tries to hide them. It shows the most powerful military in world history, a military that has failed to win a major war since World War II, kills civilians wantonly and then covers it up, arrests people without cause, and violates the law by using torture. And it shows a State Department whose diplomats are required by the order of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to illegally spy on other diplomats. No wonder that just before the WikiLeaks diplomatic cables were published Secretary Clinton said she would never run for office again. The threat of democratized information—the transparency of truth—is occurring at a time when the empire is faltering, and behind its bluster, the empire is afraid.

If what Bradley is accused of is true, he was trying to start a debate on the abusive U.S. foreign policy and create a more perfect union. That is in the preamble to the U.S. Constitution that we seek to form a “more perfect union,” and Bradley is being tortured for doing what the Constitution demands of us.

The treatment of Bradley Manning shows their fear. They know they have been exposed, that the truth of their crimes is becoming known to all. Even the corporate-government media cannot hold the truth back in a time when the media is being democratized.

But even though Manning stands for a bigger issue—a revolution of truth—he is an individual human who is suffering at the hands of abusive jailers. We are here today to work together to end his suffering and free Bradley Manning.

This week Brad’s father, Brian, spoke for the first time. He said his son was innocent. He said his son was being abused. He stood by Brad. When I saw him, and saw he was 55 years old—my age—and looked again at Brad, who is the age of my youngest son, it pierced my heart even deeper. It made Bradley even more human, more fragile, more vulnerable to their abuse.

Many people are coming to Brad’s aid. At the Bradley Manning Support Network, www.BradleyManning.org, thousands have donated to Bradley’s legal defense and enabled our advocacy for him. People are also donating to the Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund, which is making sure Bradley’s side of the story is told. In addition to making donations tonight, bidding on the many items here today, please sign up and stay involved. It is Bradley Manning vs. the U.S. government—a desperate dying empire that wants someone to blame.

Manning is now facing the potential of capital punishment or life in prison, not for selling secrets to U.S. enemies, but for allegedly sharing information about war crimes as well as other criminal and unethical behavior, to the media. The double standard of this potential punishment is seen clearly when compared to the sentences of other soldiers. Retired Col. Ann Wright highlighted the sad absurdity when she pointed to the sentence given to a U.S. soldier convicted of mutilating Afghan civilians. That soldier received nine months of work detail at his base, not even in prison. What is the message? The message is that murder, mutilation, and rape are less serious offenses than allegedly providing documents that show crimes and misdeeds of government officials.

The hypocrisy does not end there. Secretary Clinton has been lecturing the world about the need for freedom of speech, press, and association in the Internet age. At her second speech on the subject, as she was talking about freedom of speech being essential to democracy, our colleague Ray McGovern, an intelligence analyst for the CIA for 27 years as well as a military veteran, stood in silence to protest the U.S. wars and the treatment of Bradley Manning. He was brutally arrested, thrown to the floor, and then thrown in jail, where he was left bleeding. Secretary Clinton kept talking about the importance of freedom of speech as freedom of speech was thrown to the ground before her.

Both Secretary Clinton and President Obama have praised people in foreign governments who have exposed the corruption of their governments, but both have criticized WikiLeaks and Bradley Manning for allegedly doing the same here. The hypocrisy is so evident it is impossible to miss—but the corporate-government media does not even report it.

As I was thinking about Bradley Manning for this speech, my mind wandered to another injustice. The prosecution of Tim DeChristopher for boldly trying to stop or delay the sale of oil leases in Utah as Bidder 70, bidding on the lands to raise their price. Tim saw the sales as illegal and wanted to raise awareness about aggressive drilling in pristine western areas. Even though a federal judge later blocked many of the leases from being issued, on March 3, 2011, Tim was convicted and now faces up to 10 years in jail when he is sentenced on June 23. After his conviction, he came outside the courthouse and said:

“You’ve shown that your power will not be intimidated by any power that they have, and that’s the most important thing that has happened here this week.

“Everything that went on inside that building tried to convince me that I was alone, and that I was weak. Inside that building, they tried to convince me that I was a little finger out there on my own that could easily be broken. All of you out here were the reminder, for all of us, that I wasn’t just a finger all alone in there, but that I was connected to a hand, with many fingers that can unite as one fist, and that fist cannot be broken by the power that they have in there.

“That fist is not a symbol of violence. That fist is a symbol that we will not be misled into thinking that we are alone. We will not be lied to and told we are weak. We will not be divided, and we will not back down. That fist is a symbol that we are connected, and that we are powerful. It is a symbol that we hold true to our vision of a healthy and just world and we are building the self-empowering movement to make it happen. All the authorities in there wanted me to think like a finger, but our children are calling to us to think like a fist.”

So, we must stand with Brad. Bradley is not a finger. Bradley is part of a hand that connects all of us into a self-empowering movement for peace and justice.

To emphasize the point, a large group of supporters from Peaceful Uprising stood outside, and in unity they said, “We are all Bidder 70.” As Tim walked through the crowd hugging each of them, they sang:

“I will stand with you. Will you stand with me?
We will be the change that we hope to see.
In the name of love, in the name of peace,
Will you stand, will you stand with me?
When injustice raises up its fist
And fights to stop us in our tracks,
We will rise and as one resist.
No fear nor sorrow can turn us back.
I will stand with you. Will you stand with me?
We will be the change that we hope to see.
In the name of love, in the name of peace,
Will you stand, will you stand with me?”

Let us show Bradley Manning that he is not alone, and that we are standing with him. We are all Bradley Manning. Bid tonight. Donate to his legal and advocacy funds. And, join us next week in Quantico as we stand at the Marine Base where he is being illegally tortured.

Stand with Bradley Manning.

Thank you all for being here.

** End **

Further Resources:

Timeline: United States v. Manning, Assange, WikiLeaks, and the Press

MILITARY JUSTICE: The Bradley Manning “Article 32 Hearing”

WikiLeaks, Manning and the Pentagon: Blood on whose hands?

Defense Deposition Request

The Truth Will Set You Free. Wait. No. It Will Get You Locked Up Indefinitely

Manning, Guantanamo Prisoners and Reverse Trials

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