Open Letter From Members of the European Parliament

7/27/2019 Open Letter From Members of the European Parliament

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Open Letter from Members of the European Parliament

to President Barack Obama and US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel

Pfc. Bradley Manning (photo credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

As Members of the European Parliament, who were elected to represent our constituents

throughout Europe, we are writing to express our concerns about the ongoing persecution of

Bradley Manning, the young U.S. soldier who released classified information revealing evidence

of human rights abuses and apparent war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The U.S. Army has charged Private First Class Manning with 21 different crimes, including Aiding

the Enemy;a capital charge. To convict a person who leaked information to the media of Aiding the

Enemy would set a terrible precedent. Although we understand the US government is not seeking

the death penalty for Bradley Manning, there would be nothing to stop this from happening in future

cases. As it is, PFC Manning faces the possibility of life in prison without parole, recently rejectedas inhuman and degrading treatmentby the European Court of Human Rights.

On July 2nd , Army prosecutors closed their arguments in the case without having provided any real

evidence that Bradley Manning aided the enemy, or that he intended to do so. In his defense against

those charges to which he pleaded not guilty, PFC Manning was not permitted to bring any evidence

of motivation. And in a statement calling on the court to allow a public interest defense, Amnesty

International said that this was disturbingas he has said he reasonably believed he was

exposing human rights and humanitarian law violations. Moreover, the prosecution provided no

evidence that PFC Manning caused harm to U.S. national security or to US and NATO troops.

We agree with Amnesty International that the U.S. government should immediately drop the most

serious charges against PFC Bradley Manning, and that to charge Bradley Manning with aiding the

enemy isludicrous a travesty of justice which makes a mockery of the US military court system.
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Weve now seen the evidence presented by both sides, and its abundantly clear that the charge of

aiding the enemy has no basis,said Widney Brown, Senior Director for International Law and

Policy at Amnesty International. The prosecution should also take a long, hard look at its entire

case and move to drop all other charges that arent supported by the evidence presented.

Rather than causing harm, Bradley Mannings release to WikiLeaks of the Iraq War Logs and the

Afghan War Diaries shone much needed light on those occupations, revealing, amongst other

abuses, the routine killing of civilians. The bleak picture painted by these war diaries contrasts

greatly with the rosy progress reports being provided to the public by military and political

leaders. PFC Manning has said he felt that if the American public had access to this information, this

could spark a domestic debate onAmerican foreign policy as it related to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Far from being a traitor, Bradley Manning had the best interests of his country in mind.

The Iraqi people continue to suffer the consequences of this war, even after the withdrawal of foreign

troops, with millions of homeless refugees and the resumption of sectarian violence. Meanwhile,

eleven and a half years after the U.S invaded Afghanistan, that nation has yet to form a functioning

democracy or to free itself from the Taliban and fundamentalist warlords.

Bradley Manning: I felt that we were risking so much for people that seemed unwilling to co-operate

with us, leading to frustration and anger on both sides. I began to become depressed with the

situation that we found ourselves increasingly mired in year after year.

Bradley Manning was witness to the wrongdoing of the U.S. military. He says

thistroubledand disturbedhim. But instead of passing by on the other side like so many

others, he acted in accordance with international law and with a strong commitment to truth,

transparency and democracy. He wrote at the time that he hoped his actions would lead

to worldwide discussion, debates, and reforms.

Bradley Manning also released information about the men who continue to be wrongly held in

indefinite detention at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo, Cuba. Over one hundred of these prisoners

have been carrying out a long, indefinite hunger strike, and 45 of them are being force-fed by U.S.

soldiers. This intolerable situation continues to undermine U.S. claims to promote freedom and

democracy, compromising the standing of the US in the world and diminishing US moral authority.

Bradley Mannings courageous action, for which he has three times been nominated for the Nobel

Peace Prize, was an inspiration to others, including Edward Snowden, who recently revealed


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massive U.S. government surveillance in the U.S. and also against European governments and

citizens.

We are concerned that the U.S. administrations war on whistleblowers such as Edward Snowden

and Bradley Manning is a deterrent to the process of democracy in both the United States and

Europe.

We hereby urge you to end the persecution of Bradley Manning, a young gay man who has been

imprisoned for over three years, including ten months in solitary confinement, under conditions that

the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan Mendez deemed cruel and abusive. Bradley Manning

has already suffered too much, and he should be freed as soon as humanly possible.

Signed,

Marisa Matias, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

Christian Engstrm, Member of the European Parliament, Sweden

Ana Maria Gomes, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

Gabi Zimmer, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Paul Murphy, Member of the European Parliament, Ireland

Sabine Wils, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Jacky Henin, Member of the European Parliament, France

Alda Sousa, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

Martina Anderson, Member of the European Parliament, Ireland

Nikola Vuljani, Member of the European Parliament, Kroatia

Sabine Lsing, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Lothar Bisky, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Helmut Scholz, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Willy Meyer, Member of the European Parliament, Spain

Mikael Gustafsson, Member of the European Parliament, Sweden

Marie-Christine Vergiat, Member of the European Parliament, France

Patrick Le Hyaric, Member of the European Parliament, France


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Documents

Open Letter From Members of the European Parliament