BERKELEY, California, 11 February 2011 — On Tuesday, February 15th, the Berkeley City Council will vote on a resolution to call “for the immediate end to the cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment of PFC Bradley Manning during his military confinement.” If passed, copies of the resolution will be sent to the Marine brig commander at Quantico, Virginia, where Bradley Manning is being held in maximum security solitary confinement, to the Quantico Base Commander, to Secretary of the Army John McHugh, Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, California Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein and President Barack Obama...

The resolution was written by Berkeley Peace and Justice Commissioner Bob Meola and passed by the Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission on January 10th. In December, the Berkeley City Council tabled a resolution that called for freeing Manning and proclaiming him to be a hero if he did what he is accused of doing — releasing the “Collateral Murder” video and other documents to WikiLeaks. That resolution is still on the table.

Commissioner Meola said: “This is another opportunity for Berkeley to set an example by doing the right thing — standing up for the rights of Bradley Manning to be treated in a just and humane way... For now, Berkeley needs to voice its outrage at the mistreatment Bradley Manning continues to suffer. Berkeley can be a guide for other cities to follow with similar resolutions to end the un-American treatment of this soldier by the U.S. government.”