Bradley Manning Sentenced To 35 Years In Prison Over Leak Of Government Files

Bradley Manning (right)

Reuters is reporting U.S. soldier Bradley Manning, has been sentenced to 35-years in prison for leaking documents and videos to the whistle blower website Wikileaks, uncovering criminal conduct by the government. Manning will be eligible for parole in 10-years. The sentence is seen as making an example of the soldier to discourage others from coming forward as whistle blowers with proof of criminal wrongdoing on the part of the government.

Elizabeth Goitein of Liberty and National Security Program stated of the sentencing, "It's more than 17 times the next longest sentence ever served. The Judiciary Report agrees, the sentence is excessive. Manning's actions were not done for profit, but out of concern regarding the government breaking the law. Ironically, he goes to prison, while select members of government who violated the U.S. Code, Constitution and U.N. law, go free. That is not justice. 

Soldier Bradley Manning Found Guilty Of Violating Espionage Act (Video)

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Private Bradley Manning, the soldier responsible for bravely leaking government documents and footage to website Wikileaks.org, showing among other things, civilians being murdered in the Middle East, has been found guilty on six counts of violating the Espionage Act of 1917. The 25-year-old American born solider, who spent some of his formative years in Wales (United Kingdom), was acquitted of the most serious charge of "Aiding the Enemy."

Edward Snowden 

Manning has been kept under terrible prison conditions, meant to punish and break him physically and mentally, before trial. His conviction comes as a disappointment to many, who view it as a blow to free speech and free press. Manning exposed government wrongdoing and like NSA leaker, Edward Snowden, should be commended for that. It's ironic and hypocritical that select members of government egregiously break the law, yet those that expose it should be sentenced to prison.  There's something very wrong with that.

Obama Approves Of Mistreatment Of Wikileaks Suspect Bradley Manning

President Barack Obama And The First Family

U.S. President Barack Obama has gone on record this week, regarding the human rights abuses being committed against solder, Bradley Manning, stating he approves of the harsh treatment. President Obama stated, "We have met the minimum standard." This is a side of President Obama the public would rather not see, as it is not a flattering or humane one. To state you approve of a person being kept in conditions, most people would not keep a dog, is morally wrong.

Manning is being kept naked, in a dirty cell, with a mattress on the floor, no sheets, blankets or pillows. He has no contact with the outside world, save for his attorney. He has no access to the newspaper, internet or TV. He has no reading materials and is in his small cell 23 hours a day. He was stripped of his eye glasses and in his own words, "Forced to sit in essential blindness."

Bradley Manning

He is also forced to undergo morning inspections outside his cell in the nude, to disgrace and humiliate him before other occupants and employees of the prison. The government has repeatedly lied about the conditions Manning is being kept under, forcing him to speak out about the abuse.

Manning has been charged with crimes that put him in jeopardy of the death penalty, for allegedly leaking documents to the whistleblower website Wikileaks, run by Julian Assange. Whether the government wants to believe it or not, Manning is someone's child, not a barn animal. The government, including Obama, would not want anyone treating their children that way. It is a disgrace to the justice system that is being condemned in America and all over the world.

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