過去，若檢方要用間諜罪起訴那些提供機密資料給媒體的情報機關人員，政府須證明被告懷有「不良信念」、有意傷害美國國家利益。若以此為定罪標準，曼寧和史諾登或能得到緩刑，因為有人認為他們洩密的作為實則是為了國家利益。

「我認為政府要證明是否具有『不良信念』十分困難。」紐約大學布瑞南司法中心（Brennan Center for Justice）國安專家高坦（Elizabeth Goitein）說：「而這是個能夠拯救曼寧和史諾登的途徑。」

過去的判例中，被告被檢方以間諜法起訴時，「不良信念」這項評判標準能保護被告：洩漏國安局竊聽計劃資料的前國安局要員德瑞克（Thomas Drake）只以違反不當使用電腦罪被判處緩刑及社區服務，而向記者洩漏中情局臥底姓名的前中情局分析師奇利亞庫（John Kiriakou）則依據情報人員身分保護法判30個月刑期；兩案件中，間諜罪皆不成立。

而在曼寧案中，法官林德在下判決時卻首開先例，在未將「不良信念」納入考量的情形下認定曼寧的5項間諜罪成立；政府從此可合理宣稱，未來以間諜罪起訴的洩密者都可適用間諜法，且政府也能勝訴。

這令民權人士非常擔憂。美國民權聯盟認為，曼寧的判決只是要殺雞儆猴。隱私與科技計畫（Privacy and Technology Project）的團體發言人威斯納（Ben Wizner）說：「曼寧已承認犯下洩密罪，而這個罪的刑罰就很重，政府明顯的就是要恐嚇那些未來打算揭發重大資訊的人。」

史諾登在解釋為何逃離美國時表示，曼寧案的判決對他來說，就是洩漏美國國家安全局機密文件的下場。雖然通敵罪不成立看似是曼寧和其律師團的勝利，但其實他仍須面對間諜罪所帶來的長期監禁。

如同曼寧，史諾登表示他公開機密文件的目的並非是要暴露政府的錯誤，但從對曼寧的判決可以看出，這樣的理由對間諜罪並無招架之力。此外，史諾登和曼寧都揭露了數量前所未有的資訊，涵蓋多個計劃與機關，讓他們在面對檢方時，比過去只洩漏情報單位中單一計畫的洩密者德瑞克和奇利亞庫更加脆弱。

歐巴馬政府在懲處洩漏國安機密者時非常依賴間諜罪，雖然批評者認為，將資料提供給媒體就足以構成間諜罪是十分很可笑的事，但曼寧案卻顯示，法院認為這樣的罪名確實成立。

（整理自《外交政策》）

被控犯下美國史上最大國家安全洩密案的大兵曼寧遭美國政府醜化，說他對美國國家利益造成無法回復的損害；回頭檢視，他造成的損害似乎被誇大了。

美國軍事法庭30日宣判，曼寧被控最嚴重的罪名「通敵罪」不成立，這項判決指出，曼寧洩密一事雖然犯法，但卻不像檢察官所稱的那麼嚴重。

曼寧向維基解密洩漏的資料，包含數十萬份美國關於伊拉克和阿富汗戰爭的外交電報和未加密的情報報告。前美國國務院發言人克勞里說，曼寧違背了他的從軍誓言並「危及許多人的性命和職涯」。

▲美國士兵曼寧於7月30日步出馬里蘭米德堡的軍事法庭。離開時，曼寧身穿制服、戴著手銬、名牌和服務勳表。（圖／路透）

但克勞里表示，洩密對美國在國家聲譽及與友國合作、外交方面所造成的戰略損害「非常短暫」。克勞里在2011年公開譴責美國國防部將曼寧關進軍事監獄的做法後，辭去職務。

有些人認為，當美國國務院機密電報流出時，一些對外國元首未加修飾的描述，或是美國大使與人權組織的通訊細節被公諸於世，將會是美國外交領域的災難。

但是除了克勞里所稱的幾個「獨立個案」中，洩密案確實讓其他國家比起以往有所保留，擔憂他們的訊息可能遭洩漏之外，美國國務院都有能力減輕損害。

數十個例子當中，只有美國與印尼政府的關係在電報洩漏後有所波動：電報指出，美國大使館懷疑印尼維安部隊勾結極端伊斯蘭組織「防衛者陣線」，這個組織被控攻擊少數宗教團體。

印尼總統府外交事務發言人費扎亞說這起洩密案「令人相當不悅」，但他說：「我們與美國的關係此後仍維持正常不變。我們得到的教訓是，在這類情報的交流方面，我們必須更加小心。」

美國軍事法官林德認為曼寧犯下19項罪行，其中包含5項間諜罪。曼寧恐面臨136年徒刑的判決。軍事檢察官曾要求法庭判更重的刑罰，並稱他為「叛國賊」，說他的行為幫助了蓋達組織。

民間團體「美國科學家聯盟」的政府機密專家艾福特古德說：「官方沒有對外公布對曼寧向維基解密洩密的損害評估，但我認為大部分的損失都很細微，並非災難性的破壞。」

「但洩密確實造成損失。」艾福特古德說：「因為維基解密公開的美國外交電報涵蓋範圍廣且數量驚人，這起洩密事件令外界懷疑，美國政府是否能保守任何機密，不管是外交、軍事行動或情報。這可不是小事。」

澳洲是美國在亞太區域的重要邦交國，而在澳洲，洩密案影響了西方國家外交人員行事方式及回報政治進展的方式，外交晚會中的閒聊也因而減少，過去外交人員常在談天中獲得一國當前情勢的內幕。

澳洲議員丹比說：「外交官告訴我，這件事影響了他們報告澳洲或各地事件的方式。」丹比在澳洲最大的聯合情報委員會擔任主席至6月，此委員會負責監督情報事宜。「洩密案使政治報告和往來受限，讓西方社會（外交和政治界）更開放。」他表示。

曼寧案並非在一般法庭，而是在軍事法庭審理，而此判決是否會影響未來的訴訟案仍有待觀察，其中最令人關注的就是美國國家安全局承包公司前雇員史諾登一案。史諾登洩漏的文件，揭發了美國政府之前秘密監控電話與網路通訊的計畫。面臨美國政府刑事告訴的史諾登，日前在莫斯科機場尋求庇護。

艾福特古德警告，軍事法庭和民間洩密審判截然不同，說道：「每個涉及美國間諜法的判例，都將影響未來類似案件的判決、改變法律界呈現出的形貌。」

美國總統歐巴馬在追查及懲處國家安全洩密者方面，比起過去所有總統都要更激烈。

「曼寧案也可能對政府未來處理洩密案的方式造成一些『心理』影響，但這點很難預測。」艾福特古德說：「檢察官可能會說：『啊哈，我們勝訴了，那我們來起訴其他人。』或者他們會說：『好吧，我們已經清楚表達意見，現在可以讓步一些。』」

維基解密洩密一事促使歐巴馬下令採取新措施，以保護政府電腦中的機密資料，也在2012年11月提出「國家機關內部人員威脅因應方針」，防止未來再度發生類似曼寧的洩密案。

美國採取的新措施包括自動監控美國政府機密網絡，目的在偵測不尋常的大批資料下載。但這些措施卻沒能阻止史諾登取得大量美國國家安全局的高度機密文件後離開。（路透）

Accused of the nation's biggest-ever security leak, U.S. soldier Bradley Manning was vilified（1） by the government for causing irreparable damage to American national interests. In retrospect, the harm he caused seems to have been overplayed.

A U.S. military judge cleared Manning on Tuesday of the most serious charge against him - aiding the enemy - in a verdict that indicated the soldier's secrecy violations, while criminal, were not as dire as prosecutors had alleged.

Manning's revelations to WikiLeaks, including hundreds of thousands of U.S. diplomatic cables and raw intelligence（2） reports from the Iraqi and Afghan battlefields, violated his military oath and "put real lives and real careers at risk," said former State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley.

But the strategic（3） damage to the United States - to its reputation and its ability to work with allies and conduct diplomacy - "was transitory," said Crowley, who resigned in 2011 after publicly criticizing the Pentagon's treatment of Manning in a military prison.

As reams of classified State Department cables - some containing unflattering portraits of foreign leaders or detailing U.S. envoys' contacts with human rights groups - leaked to the public, some saw catastrophe for U.S. diplomacy.

Yet, despite what Crowley called a few "isolated cases" in which foreign counterparts were less candid（4） than in the past, fearing their words might leak, the State Department was able to mitigate the damage.

In just one of dozens of examples, U.S. ties with Indonesia wobbled after the release of cables showing the U.S. Embassy suspected collusion between Jakarta's security forces and the extremist Islamic Defenders Front, accused of attacks on religious minorities.

The leaks "were quite unpleasant," said Teuku Faizasyah, Indonesia's presidential spokesman for foreign affairs. But he said, "Our relations with the U.S. have continued normally since. The lesson is that we have to be more careful with the flow of such intelligence."

The military judge, Colonel Denise Lind, found Manning guilty on 19 counts, including five espionage（5） charges. Manning could face a sentence of 136 years in prison. Military prosecutors had pushed for a harsher judgment. They called him a "traitor" and said his actions had helped the al Qaeda network.

"The official damage assessments concerning Manning/WikiLeaks have not been publicly released, but my sense is that the bulk of the damage is subtle rather than catastrophic," said Steven Aftergood, an expert on government secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists, a private group.

"But it is nonetheless real," Aftergood said. "Because of the broad scope and overwhelming volume of the WikiLeaks cables, their disclosure cast doubt on the ability of the U.S. government to guarantee confidentiality of any kind - whether in diplomacy, military operations or intelligence. That's not a small thing."

In Australia, a crucial U.S. ally in the Asia-Pacific region, the revelations have affected the way Western diplomats operate and report on political developments, and have curtailed events such as social dinner party chats where diplomats often gain insights on what is happening in a country.

"The diplomats have told me this has affected their reporting of events in Australia, or events anywhere in the world," said government lawmaker Michael Danby, who until June was head of Australia's powerful joint intelligence committee which oversees intelligence matters.

"It has restricted political reporting and mingling for open Western societies (among diplomats and politicians)."

It remains to be seen whether the Manning verdict - rendered in a military rather than civilian court - will impact future prosecutions, most notably against former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked documents exposing previously secret U.S. telephone and internet surveillance programs. Snowden, who faces U.S. criminal charges, has taken refuge in a Moscow airport.

Aftergood, while cautioning that military courts are quite different from civilian leak trials, said, "Every Espionage Act case can alter the legal landscape for cases that come after it."

President Barack Obama has been more aggressive than any of his predecessors in searching out and punishing those responsible for national security leaks.

"There could also be some 'psychological' effect on how the government deals with leak cases as a result of the Manning trial, but this is harder to predict," Aftergood said.

"Prosecutors might say, 'Aha, we won - now let's go do it again.' Or they might say, 'OK, we made our point - now we can step back a little bit.'"

In the wake of the WikiLeaks disclosure, Obama ordered new steps to protect classified material stored on government computers and, in November 2012, issued a "National Insider Threat Policy" aimed at stopping future leaks like those by Manning.

Among the new steps were automated monitoring of classified government networks, aimed at detecting unusually large downloads of data. But that did not deter Snowden from allegedly making away with numerous highly classified NSA documents.（Reuters）

1.vilify（v）誹謗

2.intelligence（n.）情報

3.strategic（a.）戰略上的

4.candid（a.）坦率的

5.espionage（n.）間諜活動