Controversial US whistleblower, Chelsea Manning, denied entry to Australia

By MiNDFOOD

REUTERS/Axel Schmidt
REUTERS/Axel Schmidt

Chelsea Manning has been barred from entering Australia ahead of her scheduled speaking tour.

The US whistleblower was due to start the tour, which also includes events in New Zealand, on Sunday – but will not be allowed to enter Australia, according to her speaking tour organiser Think Inc.

Think Inc says that it has received a notice of intention from the Australian government to deny Manning entry. The promoter has called on supporters of Manning to lobby the new Immigration Minister David Coleman to allow her entry.

The former US Army intelligence analyst also plans to enter New Zealand as part of her tour, but the National Party says she should be refused. National leader, Simon Bridges, says that because Manning is a convicted felon she should not receive special treatment, but Green Party foreign affairs spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman says that she acted in the interests of the public and has also paid a high price for her actions, Newshub reports.

Think Inc says her visa application is currently sitting with Immigration New Zealand.

Chelsea Manning was found guilty of espionage and theft and sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking military files to Wikileaks.

Her sentence was commuted by President Barack Obama, and she was released from prison in May 2017 after a tumultuous seven years behind bars which included two suicide attempts and a hunger strike. Since her release she has become a political activist and filed to run for US Senate.

Update

It has since emerged that Immigration NZ has granted Chelsea Manning a special direction to apply for a work visa to New Zealand.

This clears her to apply for a work visa as any other visiting speaker would – a formality her promoters expect will be painless.

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