Splendide mendax

In Latin, it means splendid liar, nobly untruthful. Inspired by Horace’s Odes, Julian Assange, at 16, used “Mendax” as his nom de plume when he and two hackers formed the International Subversives in 1987. He exhorted the rules of the subculture: “Don’t damage computer systems you break into (including crashing); don’t change the information in those systems (except for altering logs to cover your tracks); and share the information”.

The Personal Democracy Forum dubbed Assange “Australia’s most famous ethical computer hacker.” The Age called him “Internet’s Freedom Fighter” and one of the most intriguing people in the world. Counter Punch described him “Australia’s most infamous former computer hacker.” He depicts himself as “extremely cynical” but others portray him as self-taught and widely read on science and mathematics, and as thriving on intellectual battle.

Credited as the founder/editor/director of the controversial WikiLeaks, Assange advocates a “transparent” and “scientific” approach to journalism. “You can’t publish a paper on physics without the full experimental data and results; that should be the standard in journalism.” In one article, he wrote “What does it mean when only those facts about the world with economic powers behind them can be heard, when the truth lays naked before the world and no one will be the first to speak without payment or subsidy?”

WikiLeaks mission is to provide an innovative, secure and anonymous way for independent sources around the world to leak information. It publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified materials of ethical, political and historical significance such as suppressed and censored injustices. Launched in 2006, its website claimed a database of more than 1.2M documents within one year. Its founders are claimed to be a mix of Chinese dissidents, journalists, mathematicians, and start-up company technologists from the US, Taiwan, Europe, Australia and South Africa. Time Magazine is supportive, saying, “It could become as important a journalistic tool as the Freedom of Information Act.”

WikiLeaks has documented extrajudicial killings in Kenya, reported toxic waste dumping on the coast of Côte d’Ivoire, Church of Scientology manuals, Guantanamo Bay procedures, bank documents and a video of the 2007 Baghdad airstrike.

Last November 2010, WikiLeaks launched Cablegate, publishing 251,287 unredacted U.S. State Department cables, the largest set of confidential documents ever to be released into public domain. It gave an extraordinary insight into the US Government’s foreign activities, the degree of spying on its allies, the actions US diplomats take to enhance their contacts. The cables showed the dichotomy between US’ public persona and what it really thinks. It bared UN’s indifference to corruption and human rights abuse in “client states”; backroom deals with supposedly neutral countries and massive lobbying for US companies.

One of those most exposed was the former US Ambassador to the Philippines, Kirstie Kenney, now in Thailand. During her term, the diplomatic circles considered her the photo-op expert “who knew exactly when to pick up the shovel just as cameras clicked”. Attempting to win Filipinos through PR, she guested regularly on TV: morning shows, game shows and noontime variety shows, even gamely gyrating with the dancers. She was constantly in dailies, making the “Best Dressed” lists! A radio talk-show duo said she could win if she runs for senator.

Kenney’s cables sent to the Pentagon, CIA, National Security Council, US Pacific Command in Honolulu, and US diplomatic missions in SE Asia unmasked how pro-GMA she was in pronouncements and private and confidential assessments of other officials and personalities. She was a faithful presence at Arroyo events. However the seeming admiration did not prevent her from belittling GMA’s endeavors.

In 2006, she commented that despite the huge allocation of funds and massive deployment of troops, Manila’s campaign against CPP and its military arm NPA, was “apt to remain deadly and long . . . total victory over the insurgents in the foreseeable future remains unlikely . . . Nothing dramatic has changed in the status quo in the long-running saga despite the announced goal of defeating the NPA within two years...”

Kenney further reported “a new strategy for defeating Asia’s longest-running communist insurgency” where the military, assisted by the police, would “launch multiple offensives to eliminate the NPA in critical areas...will simultaneously seek socioeconomic development, lack of which has fueled the communist insurgency over almost 40 years.” But “apart from the announced troop redeployment, other elements of the new strategy remain vague, with no clearer prospect for success than earlier campaigns.”

Kenney’s memos also revealed several putdowns against President Aquino.

• ”Senator Noynoy” seemed more at ease trading quips with his running mate or reminiscing about his parents than in describing his policy views, which he delineated more in negative terms — overcoming the corruption and cronyism of the Arroyo administration than in a positive vision of where he wanted to take the Philippines.”

• “Previous contacts with Senator Aquino… left the impression of a diffident, unassertive man continuing apolitical tradition handed on by his parents but not carving out his own legacy.”

• “Unlike other major presidential candidates like Senator Manuel “Manny” Villar and former Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Senator Aquino was vague on specific policies he would pursue if he won office.”

• “Queried for his views on issues like Mindanao, the economy and foreign policy, Senator Aquino did not provide any clear policy proposals, but stressed the importance of clearing up the legacy of corruption and cronyism of the Arroyo administration. The only policy concern he mentioned specifically was the dismal state of Philippine education… did not outline any plans to reverse the decline.”

The jury is still out as to whether WikiLeaks is a public service or Public Enemy Number One. But definitely, reading the unexpurgated diary of Kenney the “frenemy” makes one wonder who should be more offended: GMA who may have been misled that Kenney was a fan or PNoy who probably assumed the tête-à-têtes were just friendly banter. After all, Kenney cried at Cory’s funeral. Did the diplomatic face turn beet red at the revelations? The other meaning of splendide mendax is an unblushing liar.

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