Man(ning) of the Hour

Firstly let me apologise for my radio silence as of late. I've just moved to London from Somerset, without a job, and moved in with my best friend and her fiancée. So my life has been pretty crazy as of late and I'm sorry to say blogging has taken a bit of a back seat! I'm a bit more settled so I have returned to the blogosphere with gusto! 

Today's topic is Bradley Manning. Considering my blatant support of Edward Snowden and Julian Assange,  it is hardly surprising for you, dear reader, to know that I am quite a fan of the 25 year old military leaker. With Manning conviction this week, I thought it was high time that I dedicated a few words to the man who is, quite frankly, a hero.

After joining the army 2007, Manning was deployed to Iraq where he unhappily spent two years suffering discrimination and bullying at the hands of his fellow soldiers, primarily on account of his homosexuality. Having strong political opinions throughout his life and being an incredibly bright individual, Manning was clearly unsuited to the life of a solider. In 2010, Private Manning downloaded confidential reports and diplomatic cables before passing them on to whistle-blower website, Wikileaks. 

In January 2010 Wikileaks announced they had received an encrypted video showing attacks by American soldiers on unarmed civilians in Baghdad. The 'Collateral Murder' video is a harrowing watch, we see civilians trying to run for cover, attempting to escape from a rain of bullets from above. All collateral damage in the farce known as The War on Terror.

Private Manning's show trial concluded this week and his twenty-two convictions include theft, fraud and espionage. Thankfully, Manning was acquitted of the charge of 'Aiding the enemy', which carries the death sentence. Apart from the fact that the ex-soldier's life will now be spared, it also means that other like-minded whistleblowers will be assured that their life would be spared if they too came forward, although Manning's convictions could carry a sentence of up to 136 years, which could still be a bit of a deterrent...

Ironically, Manning's leaks helped spark the Arab Spring, a series of revolutions across the middle east, widely supported by the Western world, including, America. Whilst some see the whistle-blower as a spy and deserving of his conviction, many believe he is a champion of peace who's conviction is an abomination. Including, one of my person heroes, Julian Assange, who has called his conviction 'a dangerous precedent' that 'represented a dangerous level of national security extremism'.

David Coombs, Manning's defence lawyer, has already spoken to the world's media in response to the conviction (in regards to the quashed aiding the enemy charge) 'he may have won the battle but now we need to go win the war'.  With prolific human rights charity Amnesty International as well as the hundreds of thousands worldwide who have made countless demonstrations in his support, we can only hope that Manning's sentencing is far less extreme than the American Government want to enforce. 

As ever, we can only wait in hope.

Lora.