The New York Times: US Postal Service Logging All Mail for Law Enforcement
July 3, 2013
July 3, 2013
Summary: The US Postal Service
is digitally photographing and archiving every piece of paper mail
processed in the United States under a program called the Mail Isolation
Control and Tracking program, which was set up after 9/11. This
information gained by the government is very similar to gathering the
metadata of emails and phone calls. This method was used ocassionally
pre-9/11 but only when there was suspicion of a crime.
Key Quote: “It’s a treasure
trove of information,” said James J. Wedick, a former F.B.I. agent who
spent 34 years at the agency and who said he used mail covers in a
number of investigations, including one that led to the prosecution of
several elected officials in California on corruption charges. “Looking
at just the outside of letters and other mail, I can see who you bank
with, who you communicate with — all kinds of useful information that
gives investigators leads that they can then follow up on with a
subpoena.”
But, he said: “It can be easily
abused because it’s so easy to use and you don’t have to go through a
judge to get the information. You just fill out a form.” [emphasis
added]
NBC: NSA Whistleblower Thomas Drake Makes Passionate Rally Speech
July 4, 2013
Summary: National Security
Agency whistleblower and GAP client Thomas Drake, at a rally yesterday
to restore American rights to privacy as given by the Constitution,
declared “our independence from the Surveillance State” in this speech
given before an impassioned crowd. The rally “to restore the 4th” where
Drake was speaking was one of many gatherings taking place yesterday
that altogether brought out an estimated 10,000 people nationwide.
Related Articles: Reuters, Fox News
Associated Press: European States Were Told Snowden Was on Morales Plane, Says Spain
July 5, 2013
July 5, 2013
Summary: According to the
Spanish Foreign Minister, the decision by France and Portugal to deny
airspace entry to Bolivian President Evo Morales’s plane this week was
based on information given to all European states that NSA surveillance
whistleblower Edward Snowden was on board. While it is unclear where the
information originated, Morales blames the US for pressuring European
countries and has threatened to close the US embassy in his country. For
a look at the varying perspectives of the different countries involved
in the controversial flight, this article provides details.
Further burying the United
Nations’ already-dismal reputation for whistleblower protection,
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has spoken out against the actions of
Snowden. Speaking in front of the foreign affairs committee of the
Icelandic parliament, Ban called Snowden’s disclosures “misuse” of the
NSA’s digital communications, also saying that individuals “have to show
more responsibility” with what they put online. GAP recently exposed
the UN ethics office and its whistleblower retaliation policy for the
mere façade that it is while advocating for James Wasserstrom. In
response to Ban’s personal statement, Icelandic Minister of Parliament
Birgitta Jónsdottir, a member of the committee, said “I see it as wrong
for the secretary general of the United Nations to condemn Snowden
personally in front of our foreign affairs committee. He seemed entirely
unconcerned about the invasion of privacy by governments around the
world, and only concerned about how whistleblowers are misusing the
system.”
The Prime Minister of Iceland, a
country known for its free-speech rights and initially a strong asylum
prospect for Snowden, has said that the whistleblower will have to be in
the country to apply for asylum, a difficult proposition since the US
government revoked his passport. Some lawmakers in Iceland have filed a
proposal to grant citizenship to Snowden instead, which would facilitate
the process of travel, though it is apparently unlikely to be approved
by a majority.
In any case, the debate around
Snowden continues to swirl, with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
continuing to advocate for Snowden, most recently in this scathing
review of American hypocritical actions, written with the Director of
Reporters Without Borders. The piece calls for the European Union to
welcome Snowden with open arms, especially after the revelation that
many of their nations’ offices are being targeted by the US surveillance
system as well. Another column from the Washington Post's Eugene
Robinson highlights that the Director of National Intelligence will in
all likelihood go unprosecuted for his recent lie in a congressional
hearing. Furthering the debate that media attention has focused too much
on Snowden and not enough on what he disclosed, the Al Jazeera White
House correspondent says the whistleblower’s story is being used as a
distraction from the truth.
July 2, 2013
Summary: GAP client and
CIA/torture whistleblower John Kiriakou, currently serving a 30-month
sentence in a federal penitentiary in Pennsylvania, has written a letter
to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. In the letter, Kiriakou offers his
own advice as an enemy of the state, charged under the Espionage Act
and pursued by the national security apparatus of the US government to
the greatest extent of the law and beyond.
CBC: Snowden Case – Has Obama Broken Pledge to Protect Whistleblowers?
July 3, 2013
Summary: President Obama has,
during his time in office, signed monumental whistleblower legislation
and made numerous statements praising transparency, declaring an end to
the era of government secrets. But the dogged pursuit of Edward Snowden,
and treatment of NSA and intelligence whistleblowers, runs palpably
contradictory to his message. His administration has charged more
intelligence whistleblowers under the Espionage Act than all previous
administrations combined.
Key Quote: But many who
disagree are hailing people like Snowden a hero. The Government
Accountability Project, which dubs itself the nation’s leading
whistleblower protection and advocacy organization, slammed the Obama
administration, saying it's clear that Snowden is a whistleblower.
"The Obama administration’s
charge of espionage against Edward Snowden is not a surprise. This
administration has continually sought to intimidate federal employees —
particularly intelligence community workers — and suppress any attempt
they might make to speak out against gross corruption, wrongdoing, and
illegality."
It praised Snowden for
disclosing information about a secret program that he reasonably
believed to be illegal. "His actions alone brought about the
long-overdue national debate about the proper balance between privacy
and civil liberties, on the one hand, and national security on the
other," it said. "Charging Snowden with espionage is yet another effort
to retaliate against those who criticize the overreach of U.S.
intelligence agencies under this administration."
DNI/OPM Sensitive Designation A ‘Threat to the Survival of Civil Service Law”
July 3, 2013
Summary: GAP strongly opposes the proposed rule from the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) that would allow federal employers to designate nearly any position as ‘sensitive,’ thereby allowing for unwarranted job-dismissal, effectively eliminating whistleblower and anti-retaliation rights.
Whistleblowing is Patriotic
July 4, 2013
Summary: In honor of
Independence Day, GAP Investigator Shanna Devine reminds readers of
today’s foremost patriots – whistleblowers – and their much-deserved
protection. Sign the petition here to ban the criminalization of
whistleblowers.
The Nationalist: Whistleblowers to Receive Up to Five Years Wages Under New Plan
July 3, 2013
The New York Times: In Rural Oasis, Serpico Finds New Adversaries
July 4, 2013
Summary: New York Police
Department whistleblower Frank Serpico, who exposed a vast corruption
network within the law enforcement agency that subjected him to nearly
fatal retaliation, has wound up in another controversial standoff – this
time at his Hudson River valley oasis two hours north of the city.
--
SIGN THE JERICHO COINTELPRO PETITION!
Free All Political Prisoners!
www.jerichony.org
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