Diplomatic Sources Revealed by WikiLeaks May Face Reprisal, Endangerment

Washington, D.C.—Human Rights First’s President & CEO Elisa Massimino released the following statement today in response to news reports that Wikileaks has recently published nearly 134,000 cables of diplomatic sources on the web: “We are deeply concerned that WikiLeaks decided to make public the names of diplomatic sources who may face reprisals by oppressive governments. As I wrote to Mr. Assange in November, ‘Human rights advocates in repressive and authoritarian countries face many dangers, as governments in those countries regularly harass, mistreat and imprison them. Not least among these dangers is being charged with receiving foreign support or ‘cooperating’ with foreign governments, as that can make them even more vulnerable to attack by governments and their agents.’” “If human rights activists, journalists, academics, or others identified in the WikiLeaks documents now find themselves in danger, the United States government and other nations should take immediate steps to help these individuals get to safety.” Full text of Massimino’s November letter to Julian Assange can be read here.