From Cedar Park's last thread, 63, CP directed us to the WikiLeaks Central's expanded reporting on the spreading turmoil and resistance in the Arab world which are indeed excellent resources:
Bahrain
Libya
Kuwait
Djibouti
Syria
Iraq
And what some Librarians think about Wikileaks:
There have always been leaks of government information, most often for political purposes or individual vendetta (Pentagon Papers and the Plame affair are but the most infamous). There are (admittedly weak) laws on the books to protect whistle blowers but none to protect military whistleblowers (hence PFC Bradley Manning, the alleged cable leaker, has been held without charge at Quantico Marine base since July, 2010). These cables are not “stolen” per se, but leaked information. Daniel Ellsberg, perhaps the most famous leaker of government secrets, has praised WikiLeaks and their work.
Organization level developments:
UK verdict on WikiLeaks's Assange extradition due:
A British court is expected to rule on Thursday whether WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should be extradited to Sweden where he is accused of sex crimes.
During three days of legal argument earlier this month, lawyers for Assange, who has angered the U.S. government by releasing thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables on his website, argued he would not get a fair trial in Sweden.
They also said the 39-year-old Australian computer expert, if he is extradited from Britain, may wind up being sent to the United States where he could face execution.
So make sure to check the news tomorrow, we may finally find out if Julian is extradited to Sweden.
Nations braced for 'hacklash' as Assange verdict looms:
If Mr Assange does lose his extradition bid his supporters, particularly those online, are likely to begin targeting the UK. This month Anonymous, the "hacktivist" collective behind pro-WikiLeaks cyber protests, declared war on Britain after five people were arrested for cyber attacks carried out by the loosely defined organisation. Anonymous has called on supporters to flood British government websites with distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, a relatively simple method of shutting down a website by flooding it with requests for information. The threat was taken seriously enough for GovCertUK, the information security agency, to issue an advisory notice urging government websites to take precautions against the attacks.
Any appeal process on Mr Assange's behalf will eat heavily into already depleted WikiLeaks finances. The site is now faced with having to fund both its own whistle-blowing work and protracted legal battles in at least three countries – the US, UK and Sweden.
WikiLeaks has decided to cash in on its global notoriety by opening up an online shop to sell branded T-shirts, mugs, hoodies and bumper stickers. Shirts designs usually involve Mr Assange's face. One features a black and white portrait of the transparency campaigner in a style similar to the iconic portrait of the revolutionary Che Guevara, next to the words "Viva La Informacion". The shop, run by German merchandising company Spreadshirt AG, says all proceeds from sales will be given to WikiLeaks.
WikiLeaks Opens Online Gift Shop:
If you ever wanted a T-shirt emblazoned with a picture of WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange re-imagined as Che Guevara, you're in luck. In an effort to raise money to support its operations, WikiLeaks has opened up an online gift shop.
Run by German company Spreadshirt AG, the store offers a rainbow-colored variety of shirts, messenger bags, hats, buttons, umbrellas, scarves, and other products with WikiLeaks-related imagery. Interestingly enough, it's the same company that has hawked merchandise for groups like the Spice Girls and Boyzone.
The WikiLeaks merchandise is adorned with quotes from George Orwell, Thomas Jefferson, and Assange; the WikiLeaks logo, and various graphic interpretations of Assange. "Courage is Contagious," one shirt proclaims, complete with the whistle-blowing site's logo. "You don't leak 250 thousand diplomatic cables without making a few enemies," reads text plastered over a picture of Assange, in the vein of "The Social Network." One design shows Assange gagged with the American flag. Shirt prices range from about $17.99 to $31.99, depending on the style.
Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund Launches Today:
The Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund is launching a campaign today in support of the United States Army private accused of disclosing classified materials. The Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund will connect the media and the public with friends, experts, journalists, retired military members, whistle-blowers, and academics who can provide insight and expertise on PFC Manning and his case, as well as correct widespread misinformation.
To donate, please visit http://bradleymanningadvocacyfund.org
Despite the recommendations of three forensic psychiatrists, the Brig Commander at Quantico refuses to lift the POI (Prevention of Injury) status, which has kept PFC Manning in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day for the past seven months.
Daniel Ellsberg, who released the Pentagon Papers, said today, "There has been a concerted effort to paint Bradley Manning as a terrorist and traitor. He is neither. He is a patriotic American who deserves better than to be tried in the media – as is happening day after day on the basis of misinformation – before he has had any opportunity to speak publicly for himself or to present his own case in court. I hope others will join me in supporting the Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund to ensure a free-flow of information on PFC Manning and give him a fair shot at due process and humane treatment."
The Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund will send regular updates on PFC Manning and new developments in his case. A link to a timeline on PFC Manning's activities can be found here http://firedoglake.com/... .
For more information please contact Naomi Seligman, 310.627.4577 / Naomi@FitzGibbonmedia.com or Trevor FitzGibbon, 202.406.0636 / Trevor@FitzGibbonMedia.com
The Bradley Manning Advocacy Fund is a 501(C)(4) organization that funds and supports media advocates and promotes public advocacy efforts related to freedom of speech issues.
Also, check out this recommended diary on
solitary confinement here.
Ok, now onto the latest reports on the leaks themselves:
WIKILEAKS: Mexican President's Guard Leaked Secrets To Drug Cartels:
A Mexican army officer assigned to guard President Felipe Calderon leaked military intelligence to drug cartels, trained hit men and supplied military weapons to Los Zetas, according to a U.S. Embassy cable recently released by Wikileaks.
The U.S. Embassy cable, dated Jan. 20, 2009, says the case was the most serious security breach during the Calderon presidency and indicates that Mexico's powerful drug cartels have infiltrated large parts of the security apparatus.
One of the main reasons that the Mexican government relies on the army to fight the cartels is because the military is thought to be less corrupt than state and local police forces.
The WikiLeaks Guide to the Gadhafi Clan:
The 68-year-old colonel -- who grabbed power from King Idris I in a bloodless coup in 1969 -- was described by America's ambassador to Tripoli, Gene Cretz, in 2009 as a "mercurial and eccentric" figure who has "an intense dislike or fear of staying on upper floors, reportedly prefers not to fly over water, and seems to enjoy horse racing and flamenco dancing."
These amusing details might suggest that the self-described "King of Kings" is a comedy tyrant. But the cables also paint him as a master tactician, who after 42 years in charge still oversees every aspect of the North African nation's economic, domestic and foreign policy -- as well as its brutal security apparatus.
He also manipulated his family in order to prevent any premature challenges to his rule. "[Gadhafi] has placed his sons," Cretz wrote in 2009, "on a succession high-wire act, perpetually thrown off balance, in what might be a calculated effort by the aging leader to prevent any one of them from authoritatively gaining the prize."
WikiLeaks: Gadhafi Turned Down Madoff:
Even despotic leaders, it turns out, can make sound investment decisions.
Libyan leader Moamar Gadhafi turned down a chance to invest with Bernie Madoff and accused ponzi schemer Allen Stanford, according to a new diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks. (The U.K.'s Telegraph has the full cable, dated January 28, 2010.)
In the cable, the head of the Libyan sovereign wealth fund, Mohamed Layas, claimed to control $32 billion in liquid assets, most of which was deposited at U.S. banks. Layas, according to the cable, was miffed at Libyan funds that were "mismanaged" by Lehman Brothers, the failed investment bank.
Gaddafi son paid Mariah Carey $1 mn for bash:
WikiLeaks cables have revealed the lavish lifestyle of Libyan leader Muammer Gaddafi and his family, rampant nepotism in his rule and the indulgences of his son Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who paid singer Mariah Carey $1 million to sing four songs at a bash on the Caribbean island of St. Barts, The New York Times reported.
The cables pointed to big financial gains made by Gaddafi's sons. "All of the Gaddafi children and favorites are supposed to have income streams from the National Oil Company and oil service subsidiaries," the report quoted one cable from 2006 as saying.
The bash where Mariah Carey performed was after New Year's Day 2009. Saif has denied the reports and claimed it was his brother Muatassim, Libya's national security adviser, who paid.
Uribe authorized raids into Venezuela:
Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe authorized his armed forces to carry out clandestine anti-FARC operations in Venezuela, according to a U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks Wednesday.
In a diplomatic cable sent to Washington on November 16, 2006 the then U.S. Ambassador to Colombia William B. Wood wrote that Uribe "authorizes clandestine cross border operations against the FARC as appropriate, while trying to avoid a repeat of the crisis generated by the capture of FARC official Rodrigo Granda in Caracas in 2003."
Colombian forces claimed they arrested guerrilla Rodrigo Granda on Colombian territory, in the border town of Cucuta, but Venezuela later ordered an investigation into FARC claims that Granda was in fact seized in Caracas and then transported over the border.
According to the cable, Uribe saw Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez' polarizing, anti-U.S. attitude as a "serious problem" but chose to "manage Chavez as opposed to confront him" due to security concerns and the countries' economic ties.
WikiLeaks and a Failed Secrecy Bid Push Pfizer to Settle Fatal Drug Test Case:
December 2010: WikiLeaks’ U.S. diplomatic cables say that Pfizer attempted to find evidence that a Nigerian attorney general was corrupt in order to pressure him to settle the case. Pfizer denied the cables.
January 2011: Someone anonymously sent the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung a copy of a 2007 letter written by former Pfizer researcher Dr. Juan Walterspiel to Pfizer’s CEO and board alleging the company paid bribes to Nigerian officials to approve fake documents that allowed the Trovan tests to go ahead.
February 4, 2011: Pfizer tried and failed to persuade a federal judge to seal Walterspiel’s letter. “We believe Mr. Walterspiel is attempting to use the Court, without the Court’s knowledge, as a vehicle for violating enforceable legal agreements he signed after his departure from Pfizer,” the company argued. The judge denied the request.
February 4, 2011: On the same day, the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a different case that claims by foreigners against a corporation cannot be brought under the Alien Tort Statute, undermining the basis of the Nigerian plaintiffs’ case in New York federal court.
And finally for some broader thoughts on the leaks:
The Files Will Get Out: The Lesson From WikiLeaks, Gawker, Libya:
In our global communication system including most prominently the Internet, we have a similar system built for profit but that has other implications. And in this case, the people who want to spread information have a structural wind at their back. They are the drivers. The components of the system -- very cheap cell phones, wired and wireless Internet access, an ideology of mostly free information exchange, the transnational nature of communication -- make some things easier than others. Spreading information: easy. Controlling information: hard.
Spreaders can fit hours worth of video on hardware the size of a toenail. One seed can become hundreds in an hour. Servers that can be reached globally can be set up in any country, providing plenty of freedom to play off the laws of the lands as corporations have long done.
Meanwhile, those who would stop and control information have a few draconian levers. They can track people, probably the most effective. They can turn off the Internet. They can steal individuals' cell phone memory sticks. They can arrest bloggers. But they are shooting flies with guns. Empirically, we've seen the results time and again: The files will get out.
Governments have a lot of ways of holding on to power that have nothing to do with information. The can kill people. But the holding and selective dissemination of secrets is a big part of the job description, particularly for authoritarian regimes. And that's going to get harder for them in this era. I think that's why people in Egypt and Tunisia make signs thanking Facebook. That's why every protest I've seen in the Middle East prominently features dozens of people recording everything with cameras and phones. On the ground, people in the Middle East and North Africa seem to sense an important asymmetry that they can exploit.
On 40th anniversary of Pentagon Papers, Ellsberg talks WikiLeaks at FAU:
Daniel Ellsberg will be 80 on April 7, and it's still hard to keep up with the world's most famous secret document leaker until WikiLeaks came along.
How many times have you been arrested, Mr. Ellsberg?
"Eighty," he says proudly at an appearance at Florida Atlantic University last week. "The last time was Dec. 16 at the White House. You can see it on YouTube."
There's a shot of him grinning, then walking toward the police van with his wrists bound behind his back at an anti-Afghan War protest. Earlier in the day he released a statement on Pfc. Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old soldier who put WikiLeaks' documents out there and is facing prison for 52 years.
Still thirsty for some more Wikileaks news? Make sure to check out Greg Mitchell's excellent updates regarding Wikileaks here. Or check out some of the previous threads
What you missed in Informationthread 62
Ex-W. Bush aide Matthew Dowd with a Dec. 2nd article on Wikileaks
Jake Tapper: A Wikileaks Primer on the Cozy US-Bahrain Relationship
The Forgotten Man: Bradley Manning (2011) 1/3
The Forgotten Man: Bradley Manning (2011) 2/3
The Forgotten Man: Bradley Manning (2011) 3/3
What you missed in Informationthread 61
Stars and Stripes : A threat to press and academic freedom
Stars and Stripes’ promised right to gather and present information “without news management or censorship” is being imperiled by the government anew, this time with a suffocating policy that intrudes not only on the newsroom but on classrooms nationwide.
In December, as part of a White House effort to tighten data security after the WikiLeaks disclosures, federal agencies and the military issued advisories on the handling of classified information. The Pentagon entity that incorporates Stars and Stripes, Defense Media Activity, did so on Dec. 10.
But after this column pointed out conflicts with the guarantees of editorial independence and press freedoms in Stars and Stripes’ charter, Department of Defense Directive 5122.11, the DMA withdrew it.
Now, the Pentagon has issued new restrictions more troubling in some respects than those they replaced.
The DoD should have tailored a policy to Stars and Stripes’ unique standing as a government-owned news organization that is nonetheless guaranteed the right to operate free of official influence or interference. Instead, the Pentagon took a one-size-fits-all approach and applied department-wide guidelines to the newspaper.
And those go beyond the concerns raised by WikiLeaks, effectively threatening punitive action against anyone who is in or aspires to federal service and lacks clearance to “access classified information” in the public domain in any form.
That would include even historical documents like the 40-year-old Pentagon Papers.
...
While the advisory was clearly sparked by WikiLeaks and elsewhere emphasizes concern over unsecured government or personal computers accessing and storing leaked information, its language and effect are far more sweeping.
John Prados, a senior research fellow at George Washington University’s National Security Archive and a recognized authority on Vietnam and national security issues, warns on his blog that if the government’s new WikiLeaks-inspired “standard holds true, government employees should not be allowed to read (or reference, or cite) the Pentagon Papers either.”
I asked Army Cadet Command, which oversees ROTC programs, what a cadet should do if assigned a reading from the Pentagon Papers. I was told that that scenario had not been discussed but that a student might ask the campus ROTC commander to intervene with the professor in search of an alternative.
At the Pentagon, a senior press spokesman, Col. Dave Lapan, said he was “not going to get into hypothetical scenarios,” but that “I would hope that service members and DoD employees wouldn't be given academic assignments requiring them to break the law.”
“Military students or those in the categories you describe are prohibited from accessing classified materials from unclassified government computers; this would include classified portions of the Pentagon Papers,” he wrote me. “There are ways to write about the Pentagon Papers without using government computers to access the classified portions.”
But the advisory does not confine itself to “government computers.” Lapan did not reply to a follow-up query seeking clarification.
John Prado: Can Government Employees Read the Pentagon Papers?
What you missed in Informationthread 60
Glenn Greenwald on Ratigan's radio show today with transcript
Brad Friedman on being targeted by the idiots
Alan Dershowitz on Parker Spitzer discussing Wikileaks/Julian Assange and his decision to become a legal advisor for them
WLCentral with review on what the cables have shown about Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and elsewhere in the region