Tag: Daniel Ellsberg

Press release: Top musicians, actors and Nobel laureates show support for Edward Snowden, publishers and whistleblowers

Post author By admin
Post date November 10, 2014

Russell Brand, M.I.A., Tom Morello and More Involved in Effort
Vivienne Westwood, Viggo Mortensen, Others Promote Courage Foundation’s Whistleblower Defense Efforts

An international coalition of more than fifty actors, musicians and intellectuals have announced their support for Edward Snowden, WikiLeaks, whistleblowers and publishers. Some are also encouraging donations to the Courage Foundation —which runs the official legal defense fund for Edward Snowden and other whistleblowers, as well as fights for whistleblower protections worldwide – with tweets and social media posts.

“The courage that Edward Snowden and other whistleblowers and truthtellers have shown and continue to show is truly extraordinary and necessary in helping the public have access to their historical record through media,” said Sarah Harrison, WikiLeaks Investigations Editor and Director of the Courage Foundation. WikiLeaks and Harrison ensured Edward Snowden’s safe exit from Hong Kong and secured his asylum. “We cannot thank these cultural icons enough for showing their support.”

The announcement coincides with the expanded theatrical release of Laura Poitras’ critically acclaimed documentary CitizenFour — providing a first-hand account of Edward Snowden’s disclosure of the NSA’s mass surveillance program.

“As Albert Camus once put it, governments, by definition, do not have consciences; they have policies and nothing more. Therefore, it is up to all of us as free-thinking citizens to demand truly transparent democracy and high, unbiased moral standards from those who govern us,” said Viggo Mortensen. “I hope everyone can chip in to support Snowden and those patriotic whistleblowers that come after him.”

Signed by Susan Sarandon, Russell Brand, Peter Sarsgaard, M.I.A., Thurston Moore, David Berman, Vivienne Westwood, Alfonso Cuaròn and several other artists and intellectuals, the statement praises the work of whistleblowers such as Snowden, highlighting the need to support these individuals as they face social and legal persecution for their revelations to the public.

The statement reads:

We stand in support of those fearless whistleblowers and publishers who risk their lives and careers to stand up for truth and justice. Thanks to the courage of sources like Daniel Ellsberg, Chelsea Manning, Jeremy Hammond, and Edward Snowden, the public can finally see for themselves the war crimes, corruption, mass surveillance, and abuses of power of the U.S. government and other governments around the world. WikiLeaks is essential for its fearless dedication in defending these sources and publishing their truths. These bold and courageous acts spark accountability, can transform governments, and ultimately make the world a better place.

In addition to urging the public to stand in solidarity with Snowden and other whistleblowers, many of the artists are calling on fans to watch CitizenFour, and are raising awareness of the Courage Foundation’s whistleblower defense efforts, which fundraises for the legal and public defense of whistleblowers and campaigns for the protection of truthtellers and the public’s right to know generally.

Said Grammy Award-winning guitarist, Tom Morello:

Those courageous enough to expose the crimes of government and unmask corruption embody the spirit of democracy and justice. Rather than being celebrated as the truth-tellers and champions of accountability that they are, they are persecuted and find themselves the target of a draconian legal system that punishes them for the act of exposing crimes.

Said Vivienne Westwood:

I didn’t ask Edward Snowden to stick his neck out for me. But now that he did I ask myself where would we be without him? The more that the public watches CitizenFour, which documents Edward Snowden’s bravery in revealing the NSA’s massive web of surveillance of the American people, opposition to the government’s assault on civil liberties will grow. I hope that audiences will turn their outrage into action and donate to the Courage Foundation’s Legal Defense Fund to provide legal representation to Snowden and other whistleblowers to counter the government’s unprecedented attack against these brave men and women.

FULL LIST OF SIGNATORIES:

Udi Aloni
Pamela Anderson
Anthony Arnove
Etienne Balibar
Alexander Bard
John Perry Barlow
Radovan Baros
David Berman
Russell Brand
Victoria Brittain
Susan Buck-Morss
Eduardo L. Cadava
Calle 13
Alex Callinicos
Robbie Charter
Noam Chomsky
Scott Cleverdon
Ben Cohen
Sadie Coles
Alfonso Cuaròn
John Deathridge
Costas Douzinas
Roddy Doyle
Bella Freud
Leopold Froehlich
Terry Gilliam
Charlie Glass
Boris Groys
Michael Hardt
P J Harvey
Wang Hui
Fredric Jameson
Brewster Kahle
Hanif Kureishi
Engin Kurtay
Alex Taek-Gwang Lee
Nadir Lahiji
Kathy Lette
Ken Loach
Maria Dolores Galán López
Sarah Lucas
Mairead Maguire
Tobias Menzies
M.I.A.
W. J. T. Mitchell
Moby
Thurston Moore
Tom Morello
Viggo Mortensen
Jean-Luc Nancy
Bob Nastanovich
Antonio Negri
Brett Netson
Rebecca O’Brien
Joshua Oppenheimer
John Pilger
Alexander Roesler
Avital Ronell
Pier Aldo Rovatti
Susan Sarandon
Peter Sarsgaard
Assumpta Serna
Vaughan Smith
Ahdaf Soueif
Oliver Stone
Cenk Uygur
Yanis Varoufakis
Peter Weibel
Vivienne Westwood
Tracy Worcester
Slavoj Zizek

___

For more information, or for interview with the Courage Foundation, please contact Yasmina Dardari at yasmina@fitzgibbonmedia.com

Tags albert camus, Alfonso Cuaròn, chelsea manning, Daniel Ellsberg, david berman, edward snowden, jeremy hammond, laura poitras, mia, peter sarsgaard, russell brand, sarah harrison, susan sarandon, thurston moore, tom morello, viggo mortensen, vivienne westwood, wikileaks

Courage News News

Press release: Known Unknowns Fund launched to protect alleged sources under investigation

Post author By admin
Post date September 23, 2014

New fund will be the first to aid suspected sources before they face charges
An alleged source under investigation by the US government has already reached out to Courage for assistance
Courage Advisory Board members Daniel Ellsberg and Thomas Drake underline the importance of the new fund
Donations can be made online at https://staging.couragefound.org/known-unknowns-fund/#donate

Courage, the international organisation dedicated to the protection of truthtellers, today announces the launch of the Known Unknowns Fund to support suspected sources under investigation. The Fund is the first specifically designed to assist individuals who are alleged to have disclosed information of significant public value but do not yet face formal charges. The name of the fund, a play on former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s notorious defence of inadequate sourcing, acknowledges that many who find themselves in this situation will not be in a position to confirm their identity to the public.

Daniel Ellsberg, the Pentagon Papers whistleblower and a member of Courage’s Advisory Board said:

In the US, the administration of injustice against whistleblowers under President Obama serves to intimidate potential truth-tellers by the prospect of ruinous legal costs defending themselves under investigation, even if no indictment follows. The Known Unknowns Fund will benefit not only those who may earn suspicion of telling wrongly-withheld truths; it also serves the public interest in being so informed.

By providing support at the pre-indictment stage, Courage hopes to limit the number of cases that proceed to prosecution. The organisation has already received a request for assistance for an alleged source who is currently under investigation by the US government.

Courage’s Acting Director Sarah Harrison explained:

Courage has decided to launch the Known Unknowns Fund because there is a real and pressing need that no one else is in a position to fulfill. We have already received a request regarding someone who needs our help, as they are under investigation by the US government for being the alleged source of some important stories in the US media regarding botched counter-terrorism programmes. Up to this point, Courage has advocated for whistleblowers the public already knows about and who have been wrongly retaliated against. Alleged sources who haven’t yet been charged are in a different situation and a really difficult one – they are often in desperate need of financial and other support, but requesting it publicly can harm their legal situation. Even speaking about an investigation in public can put an individual at risk of additional prosecution. Courage’s Known Unknowns Fund aims to help those who can’t ask openly. We want to make sure that the public has an opportunity to support and protect alleged sources ahead of time, so they can get legal advice and prepare a legal team before potential charges are brought.

The experience of whistleblowers shows a clear need for this new initiative. NSA whistleblower Thomas Drake was charged under the 1917 Espionage Act and faced 35 years in prison. By the time the US government’s case fell apart, Drake had spent several years under investigation and another awaiting trial. At the sentencing hearing Judge Richard D. Bennett said that the conduct of the investigation against Drake had been “unconscionable”, likening the experience to “four years of hell.”

Thomas Drake, who is also a member of the Courage Advisory Board, said:

During my pre-trial criminal proceedings, I was advised by private counsel that my criminal defense prior to public trial would cost at least a million dollars and perhaps as much as three million. I had to prepare a legal defense from my own resources against a government criminal investigation and prosecution which had no such limitations. I went virtually bankrupt, emptied all my liquid assets, took out a second mortgage on my residence and went into severe debt paying for my private attorney over two years. I ended up declared indigent before the Court and represented for criminal defense by public defenders and by attorney Jesselyn Radack, who represented me in the court of pubic opinion as well as whistleblower advocacy and media outreach. She was my voice when I had none. If something like the Known Unknowns Fund had existed before I was indicted, I’d have been in a much better position to defend myself.

Donations to the Known Unknowns Fund can be made at https://staging.couragefound.org/known-unknowns-fund/#donate

___

The following people are available for interview and comment by emailing courage.press@couragefound.org

Daniel Ellsberg, Courage Advisory Board Member and whistleblower
Thomas Drake, Courage Advisory Board Member and whistleblower
Ray McGovern, Courage Advisory Board Member, veteran intelligence analyst and whistleblower champion
Sarah Harrison, Courage Acting Director

Tags charges, courage, Daniel Ellsberg, espionage act, four years of hell, indictment, investigation, known unknowns fund, pentagon papers, richard d bennett, rumsfeld, sarah harrison, thomas drake, unconscionable, whistleblower

Courage News Edward Snowden News

Press Release: Courage campaigns for Snowden’s continued protection in Russia

Post author By sarah
Post date July 25, 2014

With Edward Snowden’s Russian asylum expiring in one week, Courage campaigns for his continued safety

Through Vkontakte (Russia’s “Facebook”) a campaign promoting asylum extension for Snowden was seen by more than 1 million users in Russia last week alone
37 countries already covered by Courage’s #StandWithSnowden campaign
More than $90,000 in Bitcoin donations received by Courage in the year since Courage set up Snowden’s defence fund

Tags advertising, Daniel Ellsberg, edward snowden, facebook, graham linehan, it crowd, jesselyn radack, judith sargentini, julian assange, russell brand, russia, sarah harrison, social network, standwithsnowden, thomas drake, vk, vkontakte

Edward Snowden Journalism Legislation News

Australia’s new law would criminalise Snowden reporting

Post author By Nathan
Post date July 21, 2014

Australian attorney general George Brandis has introduced an amendment to National Security Bill 2014, which he says will criminalise the removal of intelligence information from an agency but is written so broadly that it can potentially be used to punish journalists for publishing or reporting on intelligence information they discover or receive.

As the Guardian reports, according to the Bill’s explanatory memorandum, it criminalises “disclosures by any person, including participants in an SIO [special intelligence operation], other persons to whom information about an SIO has been communicated in an official capacity, and persons who are the recipients of an unauthorised disclosure of information, should they engage in any subsequent disclosure”.

This last clause effectively makes journalism — publishing and reporting on secret government documents — a crime.

The new Bill is in line with an ongoing crackdown on whistleblowing and subsequently on the journalism it enables, in the spirit of the US government’s persecution and ongoing investigation of WikiLeaks for publishing Iraq and Afghanistan war logs and State Department cables. In the US trial of Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning, military prosecutors avowed that they would have tried Manning the same way had she passed the documents to the New York Times rather than WikiLeaks.

It also recalls the abusively broad language of the 1917 Espionage Act, a conviction of which requires merely “potential” harm — no proof of actual damage caused is needed. As Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg writes, reversing Manning’s 35-year prison sentence and conviction on multiple Espionage Act counts is America’s best shot at ending the government’s use of the law to imprison truthtellers.

The Espionage Act carries a ten-year prison term, and Australia’s new bill does as well, making it a crime to “endanger the health or safety of any person or prejudice the effective conduct of a special intelligence operation.” This language hypes fears of national security damage without any factual backing. Snowden-released documents have been published, excerpted from and reported on for more than a year, and American officials have been unable to point to any tangible harm as a result.

Rather than learn from this lack of damage that these documents needn’t have been classified in the first place, Brandis is moving in the opposite direction, stoking fears in an effort to dissuade whistleblowing and, more broadly, Australian journalism.

Tags australia, chelsea manning, Daniel Ellsberg, espionage act, free press, george brandis, journalism, legal reform, national security, national security bill, sio, special intelligence operation, whistleblowing

Courage News Edward Snowden News

Courage’s Advisory Board Stands With Snowden

Post author By admin
Post date June 24, 2014

With the official launch of the Courage Foundation and the one-year anniversary of Edward Snowden exposing the truth of covert mass surveillance, the Courage Advisory Board expressed their solidarity with the NSA whistleblower in a wide range of articles, television and radio interviews, press and online videos. The Courage Advisory Board members demonstrated the numerous and varied ways in which people can Stand With Snowden.

Human rights lawyer Renata Avila spoke at the launch of Courage in Berlin: “The key lesson in the case of Mr Snowden is to put back human rights at the core of our priorities.”

John Perry Barlow, co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, spoke passionately to the Courage launch via video link about his support for Edward Snowden.

John Perry Barlow addressing the Courage launch, Berlin

NSA whistleblower Thomas Drake gave several talks in Europe and featured on a panel discussion on the consequences of Snowden’s revelations at Wau Holland Foundation – listen here.

Daniel Ellsberg, the US whistleblower who famously released the Pentagon Papers, spoke at the Berlin launch of Courage via video link and explains why he Stands With Snowden in this video.

MI5 whistleblower Annie Machon has given a number of talks and interviews throughout the anniversary, and has written about “The Year of Edward Snowden”.

Former CIA Analyst, Ray McGovern was interviewed along with Jesselyn Radack on Russia Today marking one year after the first Snowden disclosure – watch here.

Professor of Law at Columbia University and founder of Software Freedom Law Center, Eben Moglen explains in this video for Courage why he Stands With Snowden.

Digital rights activist Andy Müller-Maguhn spoke at the Berlin launch of Courage, and explains in this video for Courage why Berlin Stands With Snowden.

Writer and activist Sana Saleem explains in this video for Courage why she Stands With Snowden.

US lawyer and activist Kevin Zeese writes for Op Ed News, “Defending Our ‘Right To Know’ With Courage”.

Find out more about the Courage Advisory Board.

Edward Snowden News

Courage launches with Stand With Snowden campaign

Post author By admin
Post date June 12, 2014

Edward Snowden says Courage is “a new rapid response team for global democracy”
Organisation running Edward Snowden’s defence fund launches with new Stand With Snowden campaign to show breadth of international support for the NSA whistleblower
Courage will formally approach governments where the campaign shows public support is strongest and ask them to act

Courage, the international organisation dedicated to the protection of truthtellers, has launched with a new campaign designed to ensure the ongoing safety of its first beneficiary, NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. The announcement was made during the official launch event for Courage, held on the evening of Wednesday 11 June at Claerchens Ballhaus in Berlin.

The Stand With Snowden campaign aims to demonstrate the popular demand for the NSA whistleblower to be protected exists worldwide and that governments should be taking greater note of it. Edward Snowden’s one year period of asylum in Russia comes to an end on 31 July 2014. Courage will formally approach the governments of those countries where the Stand With Snowden campaign indicates public support for Snowden is strongest to challenge them to act.

Edward Snowden’s German lawyer, Wolfgang Kaleck, spoke at the event, explaining his client’s legal situation and the importance of maintaining public pressure for his protection:

You don’t need a lawyer to tell you what’s happening right now because it’s not law, it’s politics. Every single decision that has to be made in the Snowden case is a highly political decision… What I am asking all of you is: be prepared for a long distance run. He enjoys all the expressions of solidarity, but he and we all know that solidarity might still be necessary one, three, four or five years from now.

Other speakers at the event included Courage trustees Gavin MacFadyen and Julian Assange (speaking by video link), along with Advisory Board members Renata Avila and Andy Müller-Maguhn. John Perry Barlow and Daniel Ellsberg, also members of the Courage advisory board, appeared at the event by video link.

Members of Courage’s Advisory Board, and others including Glenn Greenwald, have submitted a first set of photos and videos declaring that their their country, city or region Stands With Snowden and encouraging others to do the same – all can be seen online at http//couragefound.org/stand-with-snowden/.

Wednesday night’s event also launched Courage as an organisation. In addition to running the official defence fund for Edward Snowden – as it will for others in the future who risk life or liberty to make significant contributions to the historical record – Courage advocates for the protection of journalists’ sources and the public’s right to receive their information as guaranteed in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Edward Snowden sent a video message to the event, now published on Courage’s official Edward Snowden support site, in which he described what the organisation means to him:

It means we, the public, have a new rapid response team for global democracy – that when they see someone facing unjustified retaliation for performing a public service we can stand up, raise the alert and, together, rally to their defence to say that sometimes the only way to push back against unconstitutional programs is to open the doors and let in the sunlight.

Gavin MacFadyen, Director of the Centre for Investigative Journalism and Courage trustee, said:

What is really important is that we provide an overall umbrella for all the people who speak truth to power, who speak the truth and pay, at the ultimate conclusion, a staggering price for what they’ve done.

Julian Assange, Publisher of WikiLeaks and also a Courage trustee, said:

We hope to get to a point where we can turn around a website and appoint a campaign team in 24 hours, to capture that moment where the outpouring of support is at its highest and use that to defend these sorts of people for a decade, or however long we need some form of defence, and thereby encourage others to step forward.

Courage originally began in August 2013 as The Journalistic Source Protection Defence Fund and has run Edward Snowden’s defence fund since that time. Courage’s official Edward Snowden support site is located at http://edwardsnowden.com and the related twitter account at @CourageSnowden.