“Medicine Misuse”
ED PILKINGTON / The Guardian
LONDON, August 13 – Almost 40,000 signatures have been added to petitions calling on the US military to drop charges against the army soldier and Guardian columnist Chelsea Manning that could put her into indefinite solitary confinement for violations that include storing a tube of expired toothpaste in her military prison cell.
The charges, in which Manning is accused of “disrespect”, “disorderly conduct” and other violations under the rules of the brig in which she is being held at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, have prompted an outpouring of anger from the public.
“There’s been a huge response from the public,” said Fight for the Future’s Evan Greer. “Just by threatening Chelsea with solitary confinement for such clearly trivial charges, the military is attempting to silence her and violate her right to free speech.”
On Thursday the formal charge sheets were published for the first time, by Manning’s Twitter feed, @xyChelsea. Under the charge “Medicine Misuse”, the military authorities relate to a search of the prisoner’s cell on 9 July 2015.
“A tube of anti-cavity toothpaste, MKIC, was found in your possession past its expiration date of 9 April 2015. You are involved in violation of ACC Policy Letter 16, using, possessing, handling or storing of medicine, except as authorized by the facility medical staff. Failure to take medication as prescribed by medical staff.”
A further charge of “Prohibited property” says that “your cell was inspected and prohibited property was found in your possession. You are in violation of ACC Policy Letter 16, anything not specifically authorized by proper authority to be in a prisoner’s possession is prohibited.”
The property, the military said in newly published documents, was not “properly marked with inmate’s name and registration number”.
In a heavily redacted document marked “investigator activity summary” the military authorities said some of the charges arose from an incident on 2 July. Manning was originally charged with “conduct which threatens” but later authorities decided that accusation was unmerited and removed it.
In a statement to the Guardian, army spokeswoman Tatjana Christian said that the military “remains committed to a fair and equitable process in the adjudication of administrative matters for all of its soldiers”. She said that Manning had been put in front of the Disciplinary and Adjustment Board for alleged rules violations.
Army spokeswoman Tatjana Christian o said that discipline boards were a “common practice in correctional systems”.
When she was first held in military captivity in the US having been brought back from Iraq, at the brig in Quantico marine base in Virginia, she was subjected to prolonged solitary confinement in conditions that were widely denounced as inhumane and even as a form of torture. Read more
2015-08-14
