Report From The Courtroom By Gerry Condon
There were tears outside the courtroom today. Of course, Bradley Manning is not really guilty of anything but being a good global citizen, and it is painful to see him so persecuted.
But we scored an important victory today on both the legal and political fronts. The Army had made a ridiculous case that Bradley Manning was “aiding the enemy,” “with evil intent,” and that he was “not a whistle-blower, but a traitor. They even tried to tie Bradley to Osama bin Laden.
There was only one problem with the Army’s case. They had no evidence whatsoever, only baseless insinuations and “child’s logic” (the words of defense attorney David Coombs). Even a military judge who clearly favored the Army prosecutors could not buy their lame arguments.
If Bradley had been convicted of “Aiding the Enemy,” he would be facing life in prison without parole. A big blow would have been struck against freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Any soldier, civilian or reporter involved in shining the light on to the government’s dirty secrets could be arrested and charged with “Aiding the Enemy,” or Being the Enemy.
Bradley Manning and his supporters have won a critical battle in the court of law and the court of public opinion. But, as defense attorney David Coombs said today after the verdict, “now we have to win the war.”
Bradley was found guilty 19 other charges, including 5 counts of espionage, serious enough to add up to 137 years in prison.
Wednesday morning, the prosecution will begin presenting its case for sentencing, expected to go through August 12, when the defense will begin its case. Each side plans to call over 20 witnesses and the sentence will not be announced before late August.
Now is the time for all of us to keep up the pressure. Bradley Manning remains in the hands of the guardians of empire. They want to know everything about us, but don’t think we have the right to know what they are doing in our name and with our dollars.
Go to bradleymanning.org for more information.
Down with the Surveillance State!
Support Whistleblowers!
Free Bradley Manning
Veterans For Peace UK 
The truth and the Law
Drop all charges against Bradley Manning and arrest the real criminals in this scenario.
Free Bradley Manning and bring all present day war criminals to justice immediately.
The crimes associated with waging aggressive war, laid down in the Nuremberg Principles and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court are clear.
“If any person, in furtherance of a state policy, orders the use of force to attack members of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, that person and everyone who takes part in the attack is responsible for the consequences, breaks international law and, if it results in the deaths of innocent people, commits the universal crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, aggression or conduct ancillary to such crimes”.
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/l_to_o/misconduct_in_public_office/
At the conclusion of Bradley Manning’s military show trial with him facing life without parole & following 3 years of pre-trial detention we demand…………
FREE BRADLEY MANNING!
EXPOSE THEIR LIES!
END THEIR WARS!
SPEAKING & PERFORMING
LOVERS ELECTRIC
Vid – http://tinyurl.com/lat7zrx
Website – http://www.loverselectric.com/read.html
BEN GRIFFIN
Vid – http://tinyurl.com/brkgvd4
Website – http://veteransforpeace.org.uk/
CIARON O’REILLY
War Resister & Former Prisoner of the U.S.
Vid – http://tinyurl.com/pc2yxvp
Giuseppe Conlon Hall
49 Mattison Rd.
Harringay
London N4 1BG
2 pm Gather
3 pm Free Bradley Manning event
5 pm Conclude
Tube – Manor House,
Bus 29, 341, 141 – Mattison Road bus stop on Green Lanes
Please RSVP asap as it helps us to organise
email ciaronx AT yahoo.com or text 07 927 259 363
“Bradley was found guilty of 19 other charges, including 5 counts of espionage, serious enough to add up to 137 years in prison” – so he was found guilty not as you state ” is not really guilty of anything but being a good global citizen”.
The guilty verdicts included seven out of the eight counts brought under the Espionage Act. On these counts, Manning was accused of leaking the Afghan and Iraq war logs, embassy cables and Guantánamo files “with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the US or the advantage of any foreign nation”.
Manning was also found guilty of “wrongfully and wantonly” causing to be published on the internet intelligence belonging to the US, “having knowledge that intelligence published on the internet is accesible to the enemy”
Stefan
I would agree with all except:
“Now is the time for all of us to keep up the pressure.”
Shouldn’t that be
“Now is the time for all of us to put on the pressure.”?
I feel that there has been none at all to date.
See http://mwcnews.net/focus/analysis/29107-shame-for-british-activism.html
Regards,
Allen