The leak had 251,287 internal state department communiques,written by 280 embassies and consulates in 180 different countries.They were frank,unflattering assessments of world leaders as well as comments,reports of meetings,summations and gossip.They highlighted the geopolitical interests and preoccupations of the U.S. superpower.They came from London to far off places like Ashgobat or Bishkek.They disclosed information citizens are entitled to know,according to authors Leigh and Harding. The cables discussed human rights abuses,corruption and dubious financial ties between G8 leaders.They spoke of corporate espionage,dirty tricks and hidden bank accounts.The cables were,in a way,the truth.
The Guardian's selection on what to print concerned the larger public interest.The classified directive from July 2009 that revealed the U.S. government was spying on the United Nations was of importance.The directive from Washington asked for sensitive communications information-passwords,encryption codes.The "national human intelligence collection directive"was distributed to U.S. missions at the UN in NYC,Vienna and Rome and to 33 embassies and consulates,including those in London,Paris and Moscow. All of Washington's main intelligence agencies-the CIA,Secret Service and FBI were circulated with these reporting and collection needs.Experts on international law were affronted and it seem to show the U.S. breaking three of the founding treaties of the UN.
Memo after memo from the U.S. stations across the Middle East exposed widespread behind the scenes pressures to contain President Ahmaddinejad's Iran.Startlingly,the cables showed King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia urging the U.S. to attack Iran to destroy its nuclear programme.The cables further highlighted Israel's anxiety to pressure its regional nuclear monopoly and its readiness to go it alone against Iran. Russian government corruption from bribery to money laundering exposed the truth about a regime normally accorded international respectability.The cables also revealed the Chinese position on a reunified Korea controlled by a friendly Seoul and anchored to the U.S.
In a similar story like Russia,Afghanistan seemed to be sliding into kleptocracy.The cables show fears of rampant government corruption and the U.S. is powerless to do anything about it.U.S. diplomats claimed the then vice-president(2009) Ahmad Zia Massoud was stopped and questioned in Dubai after flying into the emirate carrying $52 million in cash.He was later released.
Some of the world's biggest companies have also be involved in dubious practices and dirty tricks,the communiques alleged.Shell's vice president for sub-Saharan Africa boosted that the oil giant had successfully inserted staff into all of the main ministries of Nigeria's government to control bids.Pfizer was also involved in legal action in Nigeria over a controversial drug trial involving children with meningitis.Pfizer hired investigators to unearth evidence of corruption against the countries attorney general to drop the case.
The release of the cables seem to have had a direct result in Tunisia.The cables describe the growing corruption of the inner circle of the leadership.Tunisians were aware of this trend but were grateful for the insight.The cable also elaborated on the citizen's dislike for the first lady and the growing anger for the first lady,Leila Trbelsi.It reviewed the high unemployment and regional inequities.As a consequence,the cable continues,the risks to the regime's long term stability are increasing.As we know,Tunisia was in the grip of a revolution a month after the WilkiLeak's publication.
My impression of WikiLeaks is favorable with some reservations.I stand behind the 'hacker" position that all information(especially corporate) should be released to the public domain if it is undemocratic and abusive to world citizens.The anonymous format that safeguards whistle blower identity is paramount and encourages needed information in the public domain.WikiLeaks and other related sites redact sensitive information that prevents harm and avoids repercussions.WikiLeaks has spawned other sites to expand on this approach to truth in the workplace and in our governments.Unfortunately,Bradley Manning released far too much information at once.He should have probed the military system more before unloading so much information.He shouldn't have stopped at one superior officer and presented what he had found to various levels within the system.He wasn't the most stable person at the time of the leaks.He was against the war from the start and shouldn't have been in the service. He enlisted to escape the private world the was collapsing around him and renew his relationship with his father.He claims to be patriotic but also wanted information to be free if something he perceives to be wrong(he associated with Boston hackers).Assange took advantage of this situation and influenced Manning to leak more and more.Manning knew he was wrong and it bothered him enough to unload to Lamo.He shouldn't be tortured like he is today.It is obvious they are trying to get to Assange who has problems of his own.He shouldn't be the CEO of WikiLeaks anymore.He is self-centered and a misogynist who has too much disrespect for the messy halls of democracy.Information should be shared as much as possible by our representatives...if they misrepresent it,hoard it or disregard it,organizations like WikiLeaks will be there to steer the ship home to port.How they do that is the important question of the day.
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