Congratulations to Chelsea Manning, released from prison today after her sentence was commuted by outgoing President Obama.
Chelsea Manning released a large number of State Department cables to Wikileaks which exposed some of the things that had been going on around the world from the war in Iraq onwards.
Manning had access to all kinds of secrets as a result of her job but she ensured that only material with the lower levels of secrecy were released. All the same, she was sentenced to 35 years imprisonment for what she did.
Among the things she revealed was film of US air attacks on civilians and journalists in Iraq.
A person of great courage.
Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)
Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com
I've been struggling around Tesco's today, doing the shopping on a bad and painful day.
And yet, I'm very lucky I'm still free to be able to do it.
Unlike Chelsea Manning who, until yesterday, was facing a sentence of 45 years in jail.
Manning released State Department cables and other information to Wikileaks, while she was serving in the U.S. Armed forces. Unlike certain Generals who got sentences of Probation for similar offences, Manning released very little 'Top Secret' information but got the most severe sentence possible.
I was very grateful to her in 2012 and 2013 as the cables enabled me to write a number of articles, mainly on the subject of right wing British Labour party and Trades Union leaders who said one thing in public to their members and constituents and something quite different in their private briefings to the Labor Attachés at the American Embassy in London.
All of which was a little bit interesting but not 'secret' enough for such a savage sentence.
So it was a delight yesterday when the news got out that Manning's sentence has been commuted by President Obama and she will be released in May of this year.
Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)
Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com
