The plight of US whistleblowers is ‘a lot worse’

A former ethics adviser to the US Justice Deparment, Jesselyn Radack, has told RT.com that, despite the fact that an improvement has been seen in the general public’s perception of whistleblowers, they are now in a plight that ‘has gotten a lot worse’.

 
Ms Radack, a former whistleblower herself, has dedicated herself as an attorney to representing whistleblowers following her own experiences. In 2012/2002 she blew the whistle on an alleged ethics violation committed by the FBI in their interrogation of an American terror suspect arrested during the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. She found herself placed on the no-fly list and subject of a criminal investigation, and since has fought on behalf of others finding themselves in similar circumstances.

 
Ms Radack, who has represented CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden amongst others, blames President Obama for the worsening situation, stating that ‘ in the past 5 years President Obama has persecuted more whistleblowers than any previous president and then all previous presidents combined’. She says that this means not only do whistleblowers now have to contend with a fear of losing their jobs, but also losing their freedom.

 
She went on to state that ‘enormous public good has come out of whistleblowing’, highlighting some of the major scandals of recent times including torture, secret surveillance and war crimes. Without whistleblowers willing to come forward, we would have no knowledge of these things.

 
Perhaps the biggest sign of the sea change in the public’s perception of whistleblowers can be seen in the movie Citizenfour. The movie, by Laura Poitras, covers the story of CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden, and also features Willliam ‘Bill’ Binney, the retired National Security Agency Technical Director who this month won the Sam Adams Associates for Integrity in Intelligence Award for revealing the extent of US surveillance programs. The film has been nominated for an Oscar in the best documentary feature category at the upcoming 2015 Academy Awards ceremony next month.

 
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