Who has Bradley Manning's back?
Manning, an Army intelligence officer, remains in a Quantico, Va., maximum-security facility while he awaits trial on charges that he passed on a mountain of classified U.S. government material to WikiLeaks. Now WikiLeaks has donated $15,000 to help pay Manning's legal fees.
Other groups and individuals from around the world have also made donations to support Manning's defense, building a fund that's just $15,000 shy of the $115,000 his supporters say they'll need.
The fundraising effort (and the money) is being managed by the Bradley Manning Support Network, working in partnership with an anti-war grassroots organization called Courage to Resist. Founded in 2005, Courage to Resist's motto is "Support the Troops Who Refuse to Fight." It has worked with many war resisters and military objectors, providing strategic, financial and legal assistance to service members who face penalties for conscientious objection or refusal to fight.
The Bradley Manning Support Network is a more recent creation, launched in 2010 by "cyberactivist" Mike Gogulski, a resident of Slovakia who renounced his American citizenship in 2008. The Support Network has been collecting donations for Manning's defense since July.
What accounts for the $115,000 figure that Courage to Resist says will be needed for Manning's defense? The group says the number is based on the flat fee that Manning's civilian attorney, David Coombs, has agreed to accept, plus expenses for travel and defense witnesses.
Meanwhile, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange faces his own financial troubles: Visa, MasterCard and PayPal stopped processing donations to the WikiLeaks organization last month. Legal costs for WikiLeaks and Assange, who has been charged with rape in Sweden, are nearing $750,000.
But Assange may not have to rely on good will from grassroots groups in order to pay his lawyers. He's already signed book deals worth more than $1 million.
Other groups and individuals from around the world have also made donations to support Manning's defense, building a fund that's just $15,000 shy of the $115,000 his supporters say they'll need.
The fundraising effort (and the money) is being managed by the Bradley Manning Support Network, working in partnership with an anti-war grassroots organization called Courage to Resist. Founded in 2005, Courage to Resist's motto is "Support the Troops Who Refuse to Fight." It has worked with many war resisters and military objectors, providing strategic, financial and legal assistance to service members who face penalties for conscientious objection or refusal to fight.
The Bradley Manning Support Network is a more recent creation, launched in 2010 by "cyberactivist" Mike Gogulski, a resident of Slovakia who renounced his American citizenship in 2008. The Support Network has been collecting donations for Manning's defense since July.
What accounts for the $115,000 figure that Courage to Resist says will be needed for Manning's defense? The group says the number is based on the flat fee that Manning's civilian attorney, David Coombs, has agreed to accept, plus expenses for travel and defense witnesses.
Meanwhile, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange faces his own financial troubles: Visa, MasterCard and PayPal stopped processing donations to the WikiLeaks organization last month. Legal costs for WikiLeaks and Assange, who has been charged with rape in Sweden, are nearing $750,000.
But Assange may not have to rely on good will from grassroots groups in order to pay his lawyers. He's already signed book deals worth more than $1 million.
No comments:
Post a Comment