The Three Musketeers of Web Freedom: Manning, Assange and Snowden

Manning, Assange and Snowden represent the three musketeers of the cyber era and share a common enemy, the USA — which feels just as unfriendly toward them.

The three Anglo-Saxon men, certainly “international” in their backgrounds and experiences, are now scattered to the three corners of the northern hemisphere. In the United States Private Bradley Manning has just been sentenced to 35 years in prison, whereas in London the father of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has been confined to the Ecuadorean embassy for over a year and Edward Snowden, who triggered “Datagate,” may be in Moscow, or in Russia in any case.

They are very different in terms of their personality and their fate, yet are connected by the delicate thread of a yet-to-be-determined future.

The Australian hacker has repeatedly taken a stand in favor of the U.S. Army’s young mole. Assange himself has only spent a few days in prison. He was captured in the U.K. after a daring escape and was arrested and quickly released on bail. Assange then lost his fight against the extradition request made by Sweden where he faces prosecution for sexual assault against two women. After repeatedly claiming his innocence, Assange was granted political asylum in Ecuador by Rafael Correa, who represents another of Washington’s many Latin American nightmares. As he is unable to set foot on British soil without being arrested, Assange is staying in the Ecuadorean embassy in London as a refugee.

This doesn’t mean Assange isn’t keeping busy. He decided to run for a seat in the Australian Senate and founded the party WikiLeaks. Julian’s father admits that the Italian political party Movimento Cinque Stelle is a model to be considered carefully, and Casaleggio thanks him for thinking so. Perhaps a seat in Canberra may therefore be able to save soldier Assange?

Edward Snowden’s story is equally dramatic. “Datagate” exploded almost as a second, though more violent, shockwave of WikiLeaks. In the wake of the scandal, The Wall Street Journal revealed on Aug. 25 how the American surveillance network can reach 75 percent of all web communications in the U.S.; a much greater percentage than that given by the heads of the National Security Agency. But when, about two months ago, revelations were leaked regarding the NSA’s generalized control of the web, Snowden, who had worked for the same agency, was already far away from the USA, in Hong Kong.

Looking for a way to escape, the “Datagate” mole arrived in Moscow, where he was stuck at the airport for over a month until Putin’s Russia decided to grant him temporary asylum. However, Snowden still continues to look for a country that can offer him a more secure haven. Other possible solutions — though not confirmed — could come from Chavez supporter Maduro in Venezuela, unlikely Iceland or even — why not?— from Ecuador, just as it did for Assange .

The main issue for Snowden — as for the WikiLeaks founder — is to avoid the fate of the unfortunate Manning.