Bradley Manning Defense Allowed Access to Crucial Documents | Common Dreams

Bradley Manning Defense Allowed Access to Crucial Documents | Common Dreams
Common Dreams staff, June 7, 2012
 

US military whistleblower Pfc. Bradley Manning won a significant victory in court on Wednesday when Judge Denise Lind ordered the US government to hand over crucial documents, including the State Department’s preliminary damage assessment of Manning's actions, to the defense; Manning's lawyers argue that the information is vital to Manning's case.

"Should those assessments reveal that the US government found that the fallout from WikiLeaks was limited, that could be used by Manning's defense to argue his innocence against some of the charges he faces, such as aiding the enemy. If the soldier is found guilty, the information might then prove invaluable in reducing any sentence," the Guardian/UK reports.

Manning's Defense attorney David Coombs made the case that little of the government’s evidence against Manning has actually been provided.

Today, the court will hear from the first witnesses including three State Department employees called by the defense.

* * *

Al-Jazeera: Judge orders more disclosure in Manning case

The defence team in the case against PFC Bradley Manning gained some ground getting the US government to turn over material related to their case. Manning is accused of taking thousands of classified US government documents from a secure computer and providing them to the whistleblower website Wikileaks.

At a hearing at Fort Meade in Maryland on Wednesday, Judge Denise Lind asked the prosecution what material collected and analyzed by nearly a dozen government agencies, committees, and review boards has been turned over to the defence and wasn’t satisfied with the answer.

Lind ordered the prosecution to provide the defence with the State Department’s preliminary damage assessment. The government sought to keep that information because it wasn’t a final report.

The defence complained that the CIA’s damage assessment was all classified. Lind said that wasn’t sufficient and said she’d review the assessment to determine how much of it can be turned over to the defence. She also ordered the government to identify relevant information and pass it along.

Defence attorney David Coombs has decried how little of the government’s evidence against his client has been provided by the prosecution. Lead prosecutor Major Ashden Fine said the FBI gave 3,475 documents related to Manning to the prosecution. They’ve provided only 636 to the defence.

Later in the day, the judge pressed Major Fine about the documents that hadn’t been handed over to the defence. Fine maintained the defence hasn’t asked for specific information but broadly every document related to the case. Fine said, “This is a tactic to slow this prosecution down.” But the judge didn’t agree. She called it a circular argument, that the defence can’t make a specific request for information if they don’t know what information is available.

* * *

The Guardian/UK: Bradley Manning defence gets report on WikiLeaks damage to US interests

The judge presiding over his trial at Fort Meade in Maryland has ordered the US government to hand over several confidential documents relating to the massive leak to the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.

In particular, the Obama administration must now disclose to Manning's lawyers some of the damage assessments it carried out into the impact of the leak on US interests around the world.

Should those assessments reveal that the US government found that the fallout from WikiLeaks was limited, that could be used by Manning's defence to argue his innocence against some of the charges he faces, such as aiding the enemy. If the soldier is found guilty, the information might then prove invaluable in reducing any sentence.

As a result of the ruling, Manning's defence team was handed the main findings of a state department investigation into the impact of WikiLeaks on Tuesday evening.

Though the information has not been made public, it is likely to include the assessments of embassies across the globe of the effects on their work of the publication of hundreds of thousands of diplomatic cables.

In addition, Manning's defence lawyers will now also be able to see a redacted report into WikiLeaks by the defence intelligence agency. It was also revealed that the FBI carried out its own inquiry into the leak of confidential material to WikiLeaks, which the Manning's defence lawyers will also now pursue.

# # #

China boosts role in regional security bloc | The Straits Times

China boosts role in regional security bloc |  The Straits Times
Kor Kian Beng, The Straits Times, June 08, 2012

The Chinese have a saying, si hai zhi nei jie xiong di, which translates literally as "within the four seas, all men are brothers".

But when ties with maritime friends are less than chummy, one alternative is to move closer to continental friends.

Observers say China's leading role in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), a regional security bloc that also comprises Russia and four Central Asian states, has taken on added significance in the light of recent developments.

The South China Sea dispute, most recently over the Scarborough Shoal, has heightened tensions between China and Southeast Asian claimants, particularly the Philippines.

The United States' so-called 'pivot' to Asia will see more American warships deployed to the region by 2020, and closer defence cooperation between Washington and its Asian allies and partners, such as South Korea to the east of China and the Philippines to the south.

Given the strained relations, Beijing might find merit in bolstering ties with the other members of the SCO, according to analysts.

This could explain China's decision to extend massive loans and pledge its commitment to developing the four Central Asian members - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

On day two of the SCO annual summit in Beijing yesterday, President Hu Jintao said China would offer US$10 billion in loans to group members, although he did not elaborate on how the funds would be used.

The latest pledge mirrored an earlier US$10 billion loan offer, made at the June 2009 summit, to help the Central Asian states tackle the global financial crisis.

While it is not known how much money from the 2009 offer has been disbursed, China has said on previous occasions that it would "continue providing member states with concessional loans".

At a press conference yesterday, Vice-Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping did not respond directly when asked by The Straits Times whether the South China Sea row had led Beijing to place greater emphasis on the SCO this year.

However, in what appears to be a veiled swipe at the US role in Afghanistan, among others, he said all SCO members had noted and objected to the rise of "interventionism" by certain countries in the domestic affairs of others.

"You can't say that just because you dislike a country's system, you can then think of ways to overturn its government," he added.

Russia is the only other global heavyweight in the SCO, which was formed on June 15, 2001 in Shanghai to foster collaboration in areas such as military cooperation, intelligence-sharing and counter-terrorism.

Being the economic juggernaut of the region, China is well-poised to increase its influence over the group's poorer Central Asian members.

Notably, the SCO is the only international grouping with no US participation.

The group thus provides an ideal stage for China to boost its international stature and advocate its preferred world order, which could attract states weary of a West-centric power structure.

Beijing's growing focus on the SCO might also make its maritime neighbours think twice about standing up against China or throwing their support behind the US.

While the SCO appears to be an excellent vehicle for China to make more friends, there are obstacles that could trip it up, according to foreign policy expert Yang Cheng from the East China Normal University.

For one thing, China must avoid giving the impression that its involvement is motivated by self- interest, he said.
It must act as "a service provider", which he described as a role that rallies members to a common vision, institutionalises the group's procedures and reaches out to outsiders, including even the US.

"Western countries are already present in Central Asia. It is impossible to remove or ignore them," Dr Yang said.
"By reaching out to the West, it could quash criticism that the SCO is anti-West. It might even attract more countries to the group."

Thai red shirt files petition to impeach judges | Bangkok Post

Thai red shirt files petition to impeach judges | Bangkok Post
Bangkok Post, June 7, 2012

he United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) on Thursday submitted a petition to the Senate heralding its intention to seek the impeachment and removal of seven Constitution Court judges.

The red-shirt group filed the petition with Pornthip Chanrattanapreeda, the second Senate deputy speaker, after gathering signatures to support it.

The petition shows the UDD's intention to seek the impeachment of the seven Constitution Court judges who voted to accept the petition against the charter amendment bill for consideration. One judge voted against it.

The court then issued an injunction ordering the parliament to suspend the third reading vote on the bill.

Mrs Pornthip accepted the petition. She said the UDD has 180 days to gather 20,000 names to support the petition.

A large number of red-shirts gathered outside parliament on Uthong Nai road on Thursday to show their dissatisfaction with the Constitution Court's action.

Red-shirt leaders including UDD chair Tida Thawornseth and Weng Tojirakan went on the stage to attack the court and Democrat Party MPs for causing the melee in parliament on May 30 and 31.

Ms Tida said that after submitting the impeachment petition the UDD would continue to gather up to one million names to show the court bench it had been rejected by the people.
It was reported that the UDD would rally until midnight.

Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said UDD former chairman Veerakan Musikhapong should not have commented publicly in a way that can be construed as trying to intimidate the Constitution Court.

Mr Veerakan said on Wednesday that if the charter amendment bill's deliberation by parliament was aborted there might be civil war, which could be more violent than the situation in 2010.

If this happened the Constitution Court would be seen clearly by the people as lacking legitimacy, he said.

Mr Veera said the Constitution Court, in ordering parliament to delay the third reading of the charter amendment bill, concluded in its imagination that the amendment was intended to abolish the constitutional monarchy, even though it was agreed beforehand that the chapter on the monarchy would not be touched.

Mr Abhisit, in a telephone interview with the Blue Sky TV Channel of the Democrat Party, said Mr Veerakan's comments could be seen as trying to intimidate the court, as if the country was without the rule of law.

On House secretary-general Pithoon Poomhiran's conclusion that it was not necessary for parliament to heed the court's order and it was not legally binding on it, Mr Abhisit said he was surprised to hear this.

The former prime minister said the court, in making the order, was following normal practice to prevent possible damage.

The court acted as it was empowered to do by a provision of the Civil Procedures Code.
"Whoever disagrees with the court can seek its removal, but mobilisation of the masses against the court, or intimidation of it, should not happen," Mr Abhisit said.
The Democrat Party and opposition leader foresaw no problems during the joint sitting of parliament on Friday.

He said that if the charter amendment bill was taken up for the third reading on Friday and passed, the parliament president would face a problem in forwarding the legislation for His Majesty the King's endorsement because the Constitution Court had already ordered parliament to delay the third reading.

"I know the man who is staying abroad has given the order to 'go'.  It is now time to see whether the government, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Pheu Thai MPs will listen to an order from just one person," Mr Abhisit said.

Indonesia becomes ‘more intolerant’ | The Jakarta Post

RI becomes ‘more intolerant’ | The Jakarta Post

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | June 06, 2012

A new survey published on Tuesday has once again confirmed the widely held assumption that religious intolerance is rising in the country.

The survey, conducted by the Jakarta-based think tank Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) between Jan. 16 and 24 this year, found that although 83.4 percent of the respondents said that they had no problem with neighbors from different ethnic groups, 79.3 percent objected to inter-religious marriage.

The survey also found that 68.2 percent of respondents refused to allow people of different faiths to build places of worship in their neighborhood.

Of the total 2,220 respondents interviewed in 23 provinces, 91.5 percent said that people from different faiths must get approval from the local community before they could build a place of worship. The survey’s sample represents the plurality of the country’s population.

Close to 80 percent of respondents also thought that all restaurants and eateries should shut down during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

Most of the respondents in the survey also registered low levels of trust towards people of different faiths. More than 25 percent of the respondents said that they would not trust subscribers of different faiths, while 60 percent said that “they would be on guard”.

The survey also found that religious intolerance spread across party lines.

“No difference was seen between nationalist and Islamic party supporters. This means that party ideology, especially that of the nationalist parties, had failed to strike a chord with their supporters,” CSIS’ political and international relations director, Philips J. Vermonte, said at a press briefing.

A significant number of respondents also supported piety-oriented ordinances.

Close to 65 percent of respondents said they would approve a policy that would require female students to wear Muslim headscarves, while 61 percent of them would agree to an ordinance that would mandate students to be fluent in Arabic.

Philips said that the survey indicates that there was only little that the country gained in terms of religious harmony in the years after the downfall of the New Order regime.

“In spite of advances in democratization in the country after the fall of New Order regime, marked by three general elections in 14 years, there’s still a gap between political freedom and religious tolerance in daily life,” he said.

Philips said that the survey also challenged conventional wisdom that the government was the only party to blame for rising intolerance.

“The government is of course the one that should be responsible for promoting tolerance. But this survey shows that the problem lies also with society,” he said.

Contacted separately, Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar acknowledged that there was indeed a trend towards religious intolerance, but he regretted the fact that CSIS released its findings, given that it could cause more trouble in the community.

“This will awaken the sleeping tiger,” he told The Jakarta Post.

Nasaruddin said that the world could get the wrong impression that the country’s majority Muslim population is responsible for the rise in intolerance.

Against this trend, Nasaruddin said that the ministry would step up its campaign to curb intolerance. “For instance we will keep an a close eye on books used in the [educational] curriculum. We will not tolerate any books that provoke religious conflicts,” he said.

University of Indonesia psychologist Ratih Ibrahim attributed rising intolerance to actions of groups and individuals who tried to benefit from communal conflicts.

“These parties seek certain gains, including political ones, by messing with our social harmony,” she said.

She said that if the trend continued, Indonesia could soon lose its bragging rights as a diverse nation. “We tell the world that we respect other religions and cultures, but the fact is that some groups are more dominant and we are now on the verge of a lawless society in spite of the fact that religion now plays a greater role,” she said. (asa/tas/aml)

Thailand: Campaign against judges begins | Bangkok Post

Thailand: Campaign against judges begins | Bangkok Post
Bangkok Post, June 5, 2012

A number of Pheu Thai Party MPs and red-shirt leaders on Tuesday declared the start of a campaign to collect up to 100,000 names to seek the removal of Constitution Court judges for issuing an order that parliament should delay the voting in the third reading of the charter amendment bill.

Weng Tojirakarn, a party list MP, Prasit Chaiyo, a Surin MP, and Vorachai Hema, a Samut Prakan MP, and United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) members holding political positions, including Yossawaris Chuklom, secretary to the interior minister, and Somwang Assarasi, an adviser to the commerce minister, were present at the press conference.

Mr Weng accused the judges of having acted outside their authority.

He said the UDD would coordinate with Pheu Thai MPs in the provinces to distribute a form for people to sign in support of a bid to seek the removal of the judges.

The campaigners expected to collect up to 100,000 names.  This would let Constitution Court judges know that they had been rejected by people all over the country, Mr Weng said.

He said red-shirt leaders of all 50 districts of Bangkok would meet at the Imperial department store at Lat Phrao later today to decide whether to rally in front of the office of the Constitution Court tomorrow.

Chinese, Philippines vessels pull out of Scarborough Shoal – DFA

Chinese, Philippines vessels pull out of Scarborough Shoal – DFA
Fatima Reyes, INQUIRER.net, June 5th, 2012

MANILA, Philippines – Government vessels from the Philippines and China have pulled out of the disputed Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.

In a text message to Inquirer.net, DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez said China moved out two government ships from a lagoon at the center of the rock formation of the shoal and a research ship from the Philippine’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources did the same.
“But there are still 30 Chinese fishing vessels inside,” he said.

It is not clear when the consultations took place or when the three vessels maneuvered to their current positions.

Two Chinese vessels joined six other Chinese ships just outside the lagoon, while the Philippine vessel was now with a second Philippine ship stationed outside, Hernandez said.
At Malacañang, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the repositioning of the Chinese and Philippine vessels will eventually ease the standoff in the disputed waters.

“Yes, this is an easing of tensions and we appreciate the gesture of both parties to deescalate tension in Panatag Shoal,” Lacierda said in a press conference aired on government radio and monitored by Inquirer.net.

The Philippines claims the shoal, which lies near the main Philippine island of Luzon, falls within its exclusive economic zone while China claims it, along with nearly all of the West Philippine (South China) Sea up to the coasts of Asian neighbors.

Chinese and Philippine government ships have been facing off around the Scarborough Shoal since April, when Chinese ships blocked Philippine vessels sent to arrest Chinese fishermen in the lagoon.

Hernandez said the reciprocal pullback left 30 Chinese fishing boats in the lagoon, adding there were no Filipino fishermen in the area.

The Philippines and China are continuing consultations to address the maritime dispute, he added. With a report from AFP

US Navy to move 60% of warships to Asia | The Jakarta Post

US Navy to move 60% of warships to Asia | The Jakarta Post
Jermyn Chow and Ben Nadarajan, Asia News Network (The Straits Times), Singapore, June 3, 2012

The United States will move the bulk of its warships to this part of the world, as it grapples with China's rising military power and a tightening defense budget.

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said the US Navy will reposition 60 per cent of its warships in Asia by 2020, as part of its new military strategy that focuses on Asia.

This is up from the current 50 per cent of its fleet that is in this region, including six aircraft carriers, destroyers, combat ships and submarines. The other half of the fleet is based in the Atlantic.

Panetta said the US would also increase the number and size of the training exercises it conducts alongside its allies in the region.

"Make no mistake, in a steady, deliberate and sustainable way, the United States military is rebalancing and is bringing an enhanced capability development to this vital region," he said.

Panetta gave these details in a speech to some 350 top military brass and defense ministers on the second day of the Shangri-La Dialogue yesterday.

This is the first time that Panetta is elaborating on the new US defence policy announced in January to "pivot" or "rebalance" towards Asia, even as he downplayed concerns that the shift would raise tensions with China.

"We are not naive about the relationship and neither is China," Panetta said.

"We both understand the conflicts we have, but we also both understand that there really is no other alternative but for both of us to engage and to improve our communications."

Despite looming defense spending cuts and fiscal uncertainty, the American defense secretary said the US would be able to implement its new strategy and achieve its long-term goals, while "still meeting our fiscal responsibilities".

Part of the new Asia-focus strategy will be the deployment of the US' latest naval ships, dubbed the littoral combat ships, to Singapore.

Yesterday, Singapore announced that it has agreed to the US request to deploy up to four littoral combat ships to the Republic on a rotational basis from the second quarter of next year.

The approval came after Panetta met his Singaporean counterpart Ng Eng Hen yesterday.
One of the hot button issues discussed yesterday was the territorial dispute in the South China Sea, involving nations including China, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Panetta urged ASEAN and China to put in place a mechanism to settle regional disputes in the hopes of reaching a peaceful resolution to the issue.

"It is not enough to simply develop a code of conduct," Panetta said in response to a question from one of the delegates. He was referring to ongoing talks between China and the 10-member ASEAN bloc, about how to govern movements in the disputed waters.
Dr Chung Min Lee, a professor of international relations at Yonsei University, said he was skeptical of the impact the American defense secretary's speech would have on the issue.
"People will not change their opinions because of this one speech," he said.

"What the secretary of defense did was that he gave a very comprehensive overview but most importantly, he was able to tell the region that we (the US) are not moving out, we are not coming back in, because we never left Asia...

"It's a clear-cut message that the US will have a large footprint in this region."