Cover-ups, Coups, and Drones – A Holiday Sampler of What Wikileaks Reveals about the US

Coups and Cover-ups

When is a coup not a coup?

Wikileaks documents show the US knew in advance about the 2006 military coup in Thailand and changed its definition of the 2009 coup in Honduras within a 30 day period.

In a September 19, 2006 cable, (ID Reference 06BANGKOK5811) written just after a military coup deposed the elected government in Thailand while the Premier was at the UN, the US reminded Thai military coup leaders of an earlier conversation that promised US aid would be cutoff if there was a coup. The cable makes it clear that the US knew of the planning for the coup in advance. The cable goes on to observe that "a coup is a coup is a coup..."

In a July 23, 2009 cable (ID Reference 09TEGUCIGALPA645) written after "the June 28 forced removal of President Manuel "Mel" Zelaya" from Honduras, "the Embassy perspective is that there is no doubt that the military, Supreme Court, and national congress conspired on June 28 in what constitutes an illegal and unconstitutional coup against the Executive Branch, while accepting there may be a prima facie case that Zelaya may have committed illegalities and may have even violated the constitution. There is equally no doubt from our perspective that Roberto Micheletti's assumption of power was illegitimate."

Yet, a month later, in a August 25, 2009 Special Briefing by US State Department included this exchange with journalist Sergio Davila.

Davila: "If this is a coup - the State Department considers this a coup, what's the next step? And I mean, there is a legal framework on the U.S. laws dealing with countries that are under coup d'état? I mean, what's holding you guys to take other measures according - the law?"

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/12/19-5

Wikileaks: US Threatened Spain to Implement Three Strikes Law

http://www.zeropaid.com/news/91623/wikileaks-us-threatened-spain-to-implement-three-strikes-law/

Earlier, we reported that the MPAA, RIAA and the BSA had influenced the push for HADOPI in France according to the Wikileaks ever-present cablegate story. It now turns out that US influence has also been directed at Spain as well. The threat? Implement a three strikes law or be put on the watch list.

It has been said by the major corporate entities – namely the RIAA and the MPAA to name two – that a three strikes law is now becoming an international standard in fighting copyright infringement online. It’s becoming quite apparent that this “standard” is being pushed on to countries with the proverbial pitchfork as motivation as well.

According to one diplomatic cable [reference ID 08MADRID211 ], the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and the BSA (Business Software Allience – American) had a roll in pressuring Spain to implement some very tough anti-piracy laws:

Embassy requests Washington agencies to consider an out-of-cycle review for Spain in October 2008. On March 9, parliamentary elections will be held in Spain and a new government will assume office in April. Even if the ruling PSOE is re-elected, we expect significant changes among officials responsible for IPR policy. We propose to tell the new government that Spain will appear on the Watch List if it does not do three things by October 2008. First, issue a GOS announcement stating that internet piracy is illegal, and that the copyright levy system does not compensate creators for copyrighted material acquired through

peer-to-peer file sharing. Second, amend the 2006 “Circular” that is widely interpreted in Spain as saying that peer-to-peer file sharing is legal. Third, announce that the GOS will adopt measures along the lines of the French and/or UK proposals aimed at curbing internet piracy by the summer of 2009. As this message documents, the Embassy recognizes that the lack of sufficient Spanish progress during the past year could justify Spanish placement on the Watch List. Our out-of-cycle request is made with the view that proceeding in this way be more likely to result in constructive action by the new government.

Speaking to a Spanish newspaper after being released on 275,000 pounds bail, he said: 'I receive death threats all the time. My lawyer receives them, my son receives them.

'Most of them seem to come from members of the United States armed forces.'

Daniel, who works for a software design company, is believed to be in hiding in Australia.

The WikiLeaks founder gave the interview to Spain's El Pais newspaper from a 10-bedroom Norfolk mansion in England where he is awaiting extradition to Sweden to face rape allegations.

He said: 'It's marvellous to have left solitary confinement. I feel very determined.

'I have seen that we received support on a global scale, especially in South America and Australia, and it seems as if everybody everywhere is supporting us.'

http://www.sify.com/news/i-receive-death-threats-from-us-soldiers-assange-news-international-kmuxOgcdiif.html

Oh yeah...this is a big deal in Italy. They won't forget this even a hundred year from now.

Wikileaks: Berlusconi said screw Italian hero Calipari

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/12/20/930600/-Wikileaks:-Berlusconi-said-screw-Italian-hero-Calipari

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/12/21/930761/-Wikileaks-Informationthread-13

Intelligence Officer?

”Anna worked with various issues and different sections of the embassy. In the political and economic section she (…) helped writing the final reports on the respect for Human Rights in Uruguay and Paraguay. To accomplish this Anna independently carried out a fact finding mission to Uruguay (…) Last but not least Anna was a great asset to the press and information section of the Embassy, where she worked with press information, promoted tourism to Sweden and administrated the website of the Embassy in an excellent way. Anna quickly became an appreciated member of the Embassy staff. Her positive attitude and good language skills makes her very easy to work with. I can warmly recommend Anna and I wish her all the best in the future.”

September 1, 2005

Fredrik Folkunger, chargé d’affaires a.i., Embassy of Sweden, Buenos Aires

I just love Cuba connections:

"In June 2006 I traveled to Cuba with the intention of staying for at least two months interviewing leaders, members and supporters of various Cuban political parties. Only a couple of days after my arrival to José Martí International Airport in Havana I managed to get my first interviews. During the first two weeks I met one or two representatives from each of the four chosen parties and a few other organizations, including my field tutor, the ex-diplomat Miriam Leiva. Miriam is also a key person for the network known as Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White) which fights for the rights of political prisoners in Cuba. I owe Miriam greatly for the help she has given, having provided me with, addresses, phone numbers and other input for this thesis, but maybe it was my frequent visits to her and her dissident husband Oscar Chepe’s home that upset the authorities.

One night a young man from the interior ministry came to the house where I rented my room. He told me that I had to stay home the next day because someone would come and ask me a few questions. At eight-thirty the following morning two uniformed men in a police Lada came to take me in for interrogation. They took me to Control de Extranjeros (foreigner control) and put me in a hot waiting room. Finally, after many hours, three anonymous men in civilian clothing questioned me: With whom had I spoken? Why? What did I ask them? How did I get their contacts? What had I been doing the other times I had visited Cuba? Who paid for my trip? Who was my boyfriend in Sweden? Was the cook my Cuban boyfriend? Was I going to publish the facts? This is just an indication of the type of questions I was asked during the two-hour interrogation. After the interrogation they told me the ”truth” that I did not appear to understand: All of the Cubans I had met were liars. They were not opposing to the political system because “here in Cuba we have unity”[1]. They were not political opponents but mercenaries who were paid to say whatever they said to me. They also told me that with a tourist visa I was supposed to do “touristy things”, and their suggestions were: going to the beach, dancing salsa, going to the pool and visiting museums. If I did something else they would kick me out of the country. I could not interview the people I had chosen with the kind of visa I had. So I asked if it was possible to get another visa for this type of interview, to which they replied ”no”. I explained that I had to say goodbye and cancel the appointments I had already made but again they said ”no”. I had to break the contact immediately to be able to stay in the country, and they would know what I did, as they knew what I had been doing until then. At three o’clock they let me out to walk the long way back, in the Cuban summer sun.

It had become too difficult to continue, and I did not want to put my informants at risk, so I decided to leave Cuba. Instead I went to Miami in December 2006 and continued interviewing Cubans there. Due to this forced shift of material and focus, the thesis has not turned out quite as expected, but given the limits of the material I am satisfied with the result.

Thank you to SIDA and the MFS-committee for giving me this opportunity, thank you Armando and Zaida who opened their home in Miami to me, to Ruben and Marisol who gave me a home in Havana, to Mattias for support and for getting me out of Cuba very fast and to Matthew for proofreading. I would also like to thank my Swedish supervisor Li Bennich-Björkman for all her devoted help."...



Studens Union Uppsala University.... (hidden area)

Institutet för bostads- och urbanforskning

Uppsala universitet

Box 785, 801 29 Gävle

Telefon 026 420 65 14, 0733 90 70 17

Telefax 026 420 65 01

E-post: anna.ardin@ibf.uu.se

http://abbyofvenus.blogspot.com/2010/12/anna-ardin-state-asset-vot-iz-thiz-aka.html

http://ichaview.blogspot.com/2010/12/is-anna-ardin-lesbian-if-so-why-get.html

 

  The cuban sure isn't happy.







btw, ladies in white in cuba has a lot of similarity with Falun gong project in china. The techniques are amazingly similar, in crude sort of way.

To show whether the opposition can become an ideological alternative with the ability to lead

the country towards an ideologically characterized democracy, I will investigate if the

opposition groups are bound together by ideologies, that is that they are idea-centered, or if

they are rather (non-ideological) networks bound by social ties and friendship. The democratic

opposition strives rhetorically to achieve democracy for their country. But their ability to

succeed seems to a greater extent to depend on their own experience. Can the opposition

under the current circumstances be called democratic? Do they themselves work according to

democratic principles? To answer these questions I will investigate if the groups’ decision

making is characterized by something that could be called "internal democracy". It is

important to remember that it is - if not impossible - then at least very difficult to have an

internal democratic structure in the Cuban dissident movements because of constant fear of

infiltrators and other security risks. It is likely that the internal democracy of the groups is

extremely low compared to what you can expect from civil society in democratic countries. It

is also likely that many opposition groups do not have open and available structures. I will

nevertheless try to choose as open and available groups as possible. The more open a group is,

the more likely they will be to disclose negative aspects of their organizational structure. It is

important to remember this, that they can be vulnerable to unflattering descriptions just

because they are open. Having this said, any unflattering description in this paper can at least

partly be interpreted as a sign of positive openness. It does not at all have to be arguments

against these parties or their legitimacy as opponents to the Castro regime.

----------------



I utilize Jan Teorell's criteria that for a process of decision-making to be considered

democratic the following three should be fulfilled:

1. Inclusion – everybody should have an influence over decisions made or

representatives chosen, when representatives decide, the delegation should be clear.

2. Theoretical possibility – everybody should have had possibility to the above.

3. Responsibility – Decision-makers can be held responsible for their decisions and

acting.44

This can be interpreted as a graded scale. Ideally all members should have influence; if not

they should have had the possibility, and if not that than they should at least have the

possibility of holding the leaders responsible for their actions.45



-----------------------------



*chuckle*



If she is intellectually honest, her experience with wikileaks should radically alter her understanding of her own ideological environment. (which, btw, she did not acknowledge, and simply took for granted won't affect her observation.) It would be utterly hilarious to watch how she can explain Sweden case of supporting torture, and their FM assassination within the context of decision making in a sovereign state.)



at least we know from her writing she can't that dangerous. She is disposable player.



ps. interesting list of Miami's characters at the end of her stuff.

Cablegate: MPAA, RIAA, BSA weighed in on France’s Internet disconnection law

According to a US diplomatic cable given to secrets outlet WikiLeaks, US business interests played a role in the passage of a French law that created Internet user blacklists, ostensibly to be used against people who access copyrighted content online.

The "Creation and Internet law," which became law in Sept. 2009, was initially set-back for months by the theatrics of 15 French socialist lawmakers, an April, 2009 US State Department communique details.

Noting the vote was not very well attended as most members assumed it would pass, the socialists hid in a broom closet near the entrance of parliament. Since there were no members near the chamber entrance, that meant the vote was to proceed with them in absentia, but at the last moment they emerged from the closet and charged into parliament to cast a bloc of 'no' votes, effectively killing the bill by a ballot of 21-15.

That lawmakers hid in a closet to stifle the French Internet law went unreported at the time.

After reintroduction, the bill passed in September.

The secret US cable described US business groups from the movies and music industries as keenly interested in the bill's passage.

"Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) President Robert Pisano told the Charge on March 20 that the graduated response law is 'very important' to the fight against online piracy, and to MPAA," the US embassy in Paris noted. "The Recording Industry of America has expressed similar sentiments."

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/cablegate-mpaa-bsa-lobbied-frances-harsh-internet-law-very-important-key-copyright-fight/

Watch How WikiLeaks' Mirrors Spread Around the World

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/watch_how_wikileaks_mirrors_spread_around_the_worl.php

Julian Assange may not be Time's Man of the Year, but he almost certainly is a journalist -- at least as far as the First Amendment is concerned.

The Constitution’s First Amendment forbids Congress from making any law abridging either freedom of speech or freedom of the press. Some commentators and government officials have confidently asserted that Assange is not a journalist -- perhaps intending to imply that he does not enjoy the protections afforded by the First Amendment. But they are almost certainly incorrect.

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/12/20/wikileaks_gant_journalism/index.html

So is Assange a journalist? You and I are free to apply whatever standards we like when answering that question. But if the United States government decides to prosecute Assange, it will not have that luxury. Prosecutors and judges will have to put aside their subjective judgments about what constitutes journalism, and instead apply well-established constitutional principles to determine what protections, if any, the First Amendment affords Assange. And applied dispassionately -- without regard for one's personal feelings about Assange's actions -- those principles suggest he is entitled to whatever protections the First Amendment extends to his activities, just as if they had been undertaken by the New York Times.

 

Why Julian Assange is a journalist

Near v. Minnesota

Near v. Minnesota, 283 U.S. 697 (1931), was a United States Supreme Court decision that recognized the freedom of the press by roundly rejecting prior restraints on publication, a principle that was applied to free speech generally in subsequent jurisprudence. The Court ruled that a Minnesota law that targeted publishers of "malicious" or "scandalous" newspapers violated the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (as applied through the Fourteenth Amendment). Legal scholar and columnist Anthony Lewis called Near the Court's "first great press case."[1]

It was later a key precedent in New York Times Co. v. United States (1971), in which the Court ruled against the Nixon administration's attempt to enjoin publication of the Pentagon Papers.

New York Times Co. v. United States

New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971), was a United States Supreme Court per curiam decision. The ruling made it possible for the New York Times and Washington Post newspapers to publish the then-classified Pentagon Papers without risk of government censure.

President Richard Nixon had claimed executive authority to force the Times to suspend publication of classified information in its possession. The question before the court was whether the constitutional freedom of the press under the First Amendment was subordinate to a claimed Executive need to maintain the secrecy of information. The Supreme Court ruled that First Amendment did protect the New York Times' right to print said materials.

 

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/12/20/930518/-Wikileaks-Informationthread-12

Rove’s hand seen in Julian Assange prosecution, sources allege

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/rove-connection-prosecution-julian-assange/

And there's no coincidence that the charges against Assange originate in Sweden, Shuler's source said.

For at least 10 years, Rove has been connected to Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik. More recently, Fredrik, who is known as "the Ronald Reagan of Europe," has contracted Rove to help with his 2010 re-election campaign.

Rove was said to have fled to Sweden during the prosecution of former Alabama Democratic Gov. Don Siegelman, who believes his prosecution to have been politically motivated.

"Clearly, it appears that [Rove], who claims to be of Swedish descent, feels a kinship to Sweden . . . and he has taken advantage of it several times," the source added.

Shuler's source speculated that Rove could be trying to protect the Bush legacy from documents that WikiLeaks may have. "The very guy who has released the documents that damage the Bushes the most is also the guy that the Bush's number one operative can control by being the Swedish prime minister's brain and intelligence and economic advisor."

Following up on Shuler's report, Washington, DC legal reform advocate Andrew Kreig noted a "reliable political source" in citing Rove's Swedish connection.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/12/20/930528/-Karl-Rove-Behind-Push-To-Prosecute-Julian-Assange

Charlie Savage writing at The New York Times December 15 pointed out that "Federal prosecutors, seeking to build a case against the WikiLeaks leader Julian Assange for his role in a huge dissemination of classified government documents, are looking for evidence of any collusion in his early contacts with an Army intelligence analyst suspected of leaking the information":

Since WikiLeaks began making public large caches of classified United States government documents this year, Justice Department officials have been struggling to come up with a way to charge Mr. Assange with a crime. Among other things, they have studied several statutes that criminalize the dissemination of restricted information under certain circumstances, including the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986.

But while prosecutors have used such laws to go after leakers and hackers, they have never successfully prosecuted recipients of leaked information for passing it on to others — an activity that can fall under the First Amendment’s strong protections of speech and press freedoms.

Last week, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said he had just authorized investigators to take "significant" steps, declining to specify them. This week, one of Mr. Assange’s lawyers in Britain said they had "heard from Swedish authorities there has been a secretly impaneled grand jury" in northern Virginia.

Justice Department officials have declined to discuss any grand jury activity. But in interviews, people familiar with the case said the department appeared to be attracted to the possibility of prosecuting Mr. Assange as a co-conspirator to the leaking because it is under intense pressure to make an example of him as a deterrent to further mass leaking of electronic documents over the Internet.

Biden: Assange is a 'high tech terrorist'

Assange interview on BBC Radio 4 circa 0800 GMT (0900 CET, 0200 EST) 21.12.2010 http://bit.ly/e12OQx #reddit #wikileaks





Swedish authorities asked that "he be held incommunicado in Sweden and his lawyer gagged" #Wikileaks #Assange http://tinyurl.com/33pksss

Wikileaks: Documents Confirm US Plans Against Venezuela

http://www.zcommunications.org/wikileaks-documents-confirm-us-plans-against-venezuela-by-eva-golinger

In 2006, Washington activated a Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Mission Manager for Venezuela and Cuba. The mission, headed by clandestine CIA veteran Timothy Langford, is one of only four such intelligence entities of its type. The others were created to handle intelligence matters relating to Iran, North Korea and Afghanistan/Pakistan, evidencing the clear priority that Washington has placed on Venezuela as a target of increased espionage and covert operations. 



Another suggestion made by Kelly in the secret cable, is a recommendation to increase US presence in the region and improve relations with Latin American military forces. "We should continue to strengthen ties to those military leaders in the region who share our concern over Chavez". 



Kelly also proposed a "psychological operations" program against the Venezuelan government to exploit its vulnerabilities. "We also need to make sure that the truth about Chavez - his hollow vision, his empty promises, his dangerous international relationships, starting with Iran - gets out, always exercising careful judgment about where and how we take on Chavez directly/publicly".



Kelly recommended US officials make more visits to the region to "show the flag and explain directly to populations our view of democracy and progress". Kelly also offered details on how Washington could better exploit the differences amongst South American governments to isolate Venezuela: 



"Brazil...can be a powerful counterpoint to Chavez's project...Chile offers another excellent alternative to Chavez...We should look to find other ways to give Chile the lead on important initiatives, but without making them look like they are our puppets or surrogates. Argentina is more complex, but still presents distinct characteristics that should inform our approach to countering Chavez's influence there".



PRESSURING MERCOSUR



Kelly also revealed the pressure Washington has been applying to Mercosur (Market of the South) to not accept Venezuela as a full member in the regional trade bloc. "With regard to Mercosur, we should not be timid in stating that Venezuela's membership will torpedo US interest in even considering direct negotiations with the trading bloc".

http://www.flickr.com/photos/giveaphuk/5248909828/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/freestylee/5228072500/

hey. you are still up. what list you want for your b'day?  



(I don't use redditor.)

I am flinging poo against this annoying guy somewhere else. reddit is too addictive, only using it sporadically.

'mkay. back to making your list/I am changing it again. bbl.



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Bank of America, Assets Seized in Italian Derivatives Probe - FRAUD Bloomberg http://t.co/3TkyOrF via @BloombergNow #wikileaks



Bank of America admits fraud http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2010/s3088013.htm #wikileaks will spill more than official story?



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Uhhhh, they better get what they can while that bank is still standing. This is getting serious, better get out people.