WikiLeaks Exposes the Secret Dealings of the Empire, Washington Hits Back
Written by Mike Palacek Thursday, 09 December 2010
[pic][pic]
[pic][pic][pic]
In the last year, the world’s governments have been rattled by several major leaks of secret documents through the WikiLeaks website. First releasing thousands of US Military reports from the war in Afghanistan, then the same from the Iraq war and finally tens of thousands of secret diplomatic cables, WikiLeaks has stunned the world.
[pic]Now spokesperson and Editor in Chief of Wikileaks, Julian Assange has been arrested as he is rocketed into the spotlight. WikiLeaks is now facing an all-out assault from the American government by both legal and illegal means. As millions of eyes are being opened to the harsh realities of their government’s actions, it is no exaggeration to say that the life of Julian Assange is in jeopardy.
Pulling Back the Veil
In just four years since it was first launched, WikiLeaks has become a household name. The non-profit organization has received several awards including The Economist magazine’s New Media Award and Amnesty International’s UK Media Award. The premise of the site is simple, if you have access to corporate or government documents that are being hidden from the public, WikiLeaks provides a place to publish them anonymously.
In its first year running, WikiLeaks claimed their database had grown to 1.2 million leaked files. In December 2007 they made headlines by leaking the Guantanamo Bay operating procedures to the public. The manual showed that American soldiers were told they could prevent detainees in the prison from access to the Red Cross for up to four weeks at a time. The documents shed light on the systemic abuse of prisoners at a prison which was on shaky legal ground already. The public release of this information was bound to fray the nerves of the powers that be, but WikiLeaks was only just getting started.
Over the next two years, they went on to release...