Bradley Manning Statement

"First, your honor,  I want to start off with an apology. I am sorry that my actions hurt people.  

I'm sorry I hurt the United States. 

At the time of my decisions, as you know, I was dealing with a lot of issues, issues that are ongoing and continuing to affect me. Although a considerable difficulty in my life, these issues are not an excuse for my actions. 

I understood what I was doing, and decisions I made. However, I did not fully appreciate the broader effects of my actions. 

Those factors are clear to me now, through both self-refection during my confinement in various forms, and through the merits and sentencing testimony that I have seen here. 

I am sorry for the uintentended consequences of my actions. When I made these decisions I believed I was going to help people, not hurt people. 

 The last few years have been a learning experience. I look back at my decisions and wonder how on earth could I, a junior analyst, possibly believe I could change the world for the better […] on decisions of those with the proper authority. 

In retrospect I should have worked more aggressively inside the system, as we discussed during the […] statement, I had options and I should have used these options.

Unfortunately, I can't go back and change things. I can only go forward. I want to go forward. Before I can do that, I understand that I must pay a price for my decisions and actions. 

Once I pay that price, I hope to one day live in a manner that I haven't been able to in the past. I want to be a better person, to go to college, to get a degree and to have a meaningful relationship with my sister with my sister's family and my family. 

I want to be a positive influence in their lives, just as my Aunt Deborah has been to me. I have flaws and issues that I have to deal with, but I know that I can and will be a better person. 

I hope that you can give me the opportunity to prove, not through words, but through conduct, that I am a good person and that I can return to productive place in society.  

Thank you, Your Honor." [source]

An Apology To Bradley Manning

Here is Scott Galindez, Political Director of Reader Supported News' reply to Bradley Manning's apology … line by line. Bradley's words in bold.

First, Your Honor, I want to start off with an apology.

First of all Bradley, it is the court, the Army, and the American people that should be apologizing to you. We failed you, not the other way around. 

I'm sorry. I'm sorry that my actions hurt people.

Your actions saved lives. You exposed war crimes, you exposed our country's "narcissistic" foreign policy. It is ironic that they tried to portray you as "narcissistic" because you exposed our how our government believes it is privileged to violate international law because "we" somehow know better. 

I'm sorry that it hurt the United States.

You are a hero, a whistleblower who helped the United States. The government was unable to present any evidence that anyone died or was harmed as a result of your leaks. Even the so-called diplomatic harm as a result of the leak of the cables was really harm caused by the actions of our diplomats that you brought out in the open. The truth can be messy, but we should not punish the messenger who reveals the ugly truth.

At the time of my decisions, as you know, I was dealing with a lot of issues, issues that are ongoing, and are continuing to affect me. Although they have caused me considerable difficulty in my life, these issues are not an excuse for my actions.

I applaud you for taking responsibility for your actions, and not blaming our dysfunctional society – but again, your actions were heroic. Our society and the Army failed you, Mr. Manning. While I don't believe anyone is fit for deployment to a combat zone, there were enough warning signs for the Army to not deploy you to Iraq. I understand that you are not using that as an excuse, but the Army should apologize for putting you in a situation that you were not capable of handling. After hearing about your upbringing, I understand why you joined the military to get the funding for your education. Unfortunately there is a de facto draft in our country: many people join the military to escape poverty or poor living conditions. You need treatment, not incarceration.

I understood what I was doing, and the decisions I made. However I did not truly appreciate the broader effects of my actions. Those effects are clearer to me now, through both self-reflection during my confinement, in its various forms, and through the merits and sentencing testimony that I've seen here. I'm sorry for the unintended consequences of my actions.

More important than any perceived harm that resulted from the leaks is the greater harm that was prevented. I believe your actions helped to quicken the pace for the end of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army speculates as to what the consequences of the leaks were – perhaps the real result was they will make soldiers and diplomats think twice before acting. The knowledge that they could not get away with doing wrong, and that someday their actions could become public, might lead to them to do the right thing. That is as likely as the Army's conjecture.

When I made these decisions I believed I was going to help people, not hurt people.

You were right, you helped make the world a better place. You prevented a greater harm. If our country followed international law, you would not have been on trial. You did your duty to prevent a greater harm. If you hadn't exposed the criminal actions you revealed, then you would have been guilty of being complicit.

The last few years have been a learning experience. I look back on my decisions and wonder how on earth could I, a junior analyst, possibly believe I could change the world for the better, over the decisions of those with the proper authority.

I only have one response, you did change the world for the better.

In retrospect, I should have worked more aggressively inside the system, as we discussed during the [...] statements. I had options and I should have used these options.

The "system" was and still is hiding crimes. The most effective way to address those crimes is exposing them. You did that, Bradley Manning. Don't second guess your actions, you did the right thing.

Unfortunately I can't go back and change things, I can only go forward. I want to go forward. Before I can do that though, I understand that I must pay a price for my decisions and actions.

I have committed acts of civil disobedience in the past and knew there would be consequences to my actions. I never faced 90 years in prison as you do now. I applaud you for your courage and pray that Judge Lind shows leniency. I understand your decision to show contrition, but many of us believe it is unjust for you to spend one more day in confinement while the criminals you exposed continue to enjoy their freedom.

Once I pay that price, I hope to one day live in a manner that I haven't been able to in the past. I want to be a better person, to go to college, to get a degree, and to have a meaningful relationship with my sister, with my sister's family, and my family. I want to be a positive influence on their lives, just as my Aunt Deborah has been to me.

I pray that day comes soon. You have been a positive influence on society. History will treat you more kindly than our current militaristic society. You will continue to be a hero to millions.

I have flaws and issues that I have to deal with, but I know that I can and will be a better person. I hope you can give me an opportunity to prove, not through words but through conduct, that I am a good person and that I can return to a productive life in society. 

Thank you, Your Honor.

None of us are perfect, Bradley. Your honorable conduct has already had a positive impact on society.  

I am sorry - sorry that our society continues to fail you. Thank you, Bradley. [source]

WikiLeaks Responds To Bradley Manning Statement

Today Bradley Manning reportedly made a statement of remorse in a sentencing hearing at Fort Meade, Maryland. Manning’s statement comes towards the end of a court martial trial pursued with unprecedented prosecutorial zeal.

Since his arrest, Mr. Manning has been an emblem of courage and endurance in the face of adversity. He has resisted extraordinary pressure. He has been held in solitary confinement, stripped naked and subjected to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment by the United States government. His constitutional right to a speedy trial has been ignored. He has sat for three years in pretrial detention, while the government assembled 141 witnesses and withheld thousands of documents from his lawyers.

The government has denied him the right to conduct a basic whistleblower defense. It overcharged him until he faced over a century in prison and barred all but a handful of his witnesses. He was denied the right at trial to argue that no harm was caused by his alleged actions. His defense team was pre-emptively banned from describing his intent or showing that his actions harmed no one.

Despite these obstacles, Mr. Manning and his defense team have fought at every step. Last month, he was eventually convicted of charges carrying up to 90 years of prison time. The US government admitted that his actions did not physically harm a single person, and he was acquitted of "aiding the enemy." 

His convictions solely relate to his alleged decision to inform the public of war crimes and systematic injustice.

But Mr. Manning’s options have run out. The only currency this military court will take is Bradley Manning’s humiliation. In light of this, Mr. Manning’s forced decision to apologize to the US government in the hope of shaving a decade or more off his sentence must be regarded with compassion and understanding.

Mr. Manning’s apology is a statement extorted from him under the overbearing weight of the United States military justice system. It took three years and millions of dollars to extract two minutes of tactical remorse from this brave soldier.

Bradley Manning’s apology was extracted by force, but in a just court the US government would be apologizing to Bradley Manning. As over 100,000 signatories of his Nobel Peace Prize nomination attest, Bradley Manning has changed the world for the better. He remains a symbol of courage and humanitarian resistance.

Mr. Manning’s apology shows that as far as his sentencing is concerned there are still decades to play for. Public pressure on Bradley Manning’s military court must intensify in these final days before the sentencing decision against him is made.

WikiLeaks continues to support Bradley Manning, and will continue to campaign for his unconditional release.

Free Bradley Manning. [source]

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An Apology To Bradley Manning; Scott Galindez was formerly the co-founder of Truthout, and is now the Political Director of Reader Supported News.  Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.