In a shock move, President Barack Obama has named Private Chelsea Manning as one of many prisoners who have had their sentences commuted. Manning was arrested in 2010 for leaking Army secrets to Wikileaks and was sentenced to a total of 35 years in jail.
It is reported that Manning who is transgender, has been tortured while in prison. Julian Assange of Wikileaks has been a loud advocate for her freedom. Assange even recently offered to give himself up for extradition to the U.S. upon her release. Wikileaks detailed this offer on the 13th January 2017 to Obama with this tweet:
If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition despite clear unconstitutionality of DoJ case https://t.co/MZU30SlfGK
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 12, 2017
The #hugsforchelsea campaign was backed by several celebrities, including Sean Lennon, Russell Brand, and Michael Stipe, the ‘REM’ front man.
Wikileaks had also tweeted a message encouraging Democrats to push for Manning’s release if they want to see leaks about the Trump government:
If Democrats want to see whistleblowers expose war crimes and corruption under Trump they need to send a signal: release Chelsea Manning.
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 16, 2017
On hearing the news today, Assange has responded to the success of his push for Chelsea Manning’s freedom. Wikileaks joyfully tweeted (seemingly Julian Assange himself) with the following:
Assange: "Thank you to everyone who campaigned for Chelsea Manning's clemency. Your courage & determination made the impossible possible."
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 17, 2017
It is unknown if Julian Assange will follow through with his offer to give himself up. He is obviously afraid for his own safety with tweets like this:
NOTE: No present WikiLeaks staff, including our editor, have medical, psychological or drug conditions which could lead to sudden death.
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 13, 2017
The reaction to Manning’s release has been one of surprise. Sen. John McCain has told reporters:
“I think that it’s so inappropriate to pardon someone who put the lives of other men and women serving in uniform in danger. I’m stunned”
Sen. Tom Cotton also made this comment:
“When I was leading soldiers in Afghanistan, Private Manning was undermining us by leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks, I don’t understand why the president would feel special compassion for someone who endangered the lives of our troops, diplomats, intelligence officers, and allies. We ought not treat a traitor like a martyr.”
Manning has not been pardoned by Obama, rather her sentence has been cut short. It was seen by many to be a particularly harsh sentence. Some speculated that Manning was originally given 35 years to compensate for the fact that Edward Snowden had escaped capture.
Obama’s announcement today means Manning’s sentence has been reduced to seven years and she will be free on May 17, 2017.
Featured image from DeathandTaxesMag.
