Sarah Harrison (journalist)
Sarah Harrison | |
---|---|
Harrison at the 30th Chaos Communication Congress in Hamburg, 2013 | |
Born | 1981/1982 (age 36–37)[1] |
Occupation | Journalist |
Citizenship | United Kingdom[2] |
Alma mater |
Queen Mary, University of London, City University London |
Genre | News leaks |
Subject | Human rights violations, global surveillance and security[2] |
Partner |
Julian Assange (esp. 2009; sep. 2012) |
Website | |
wikileaks |
Sarah Harrison (born 1982[1]) is a British journalist, legal researcher, and WikiLeaks section editor. She works with the WikiLeaks Legal Defense and is Julian Assange's closest adviser.[3] Harrison accompanied National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden on a high-profile flight from Hong Kong to Moscow while he was sought by the United States government.[4]
Early life and career
Harrison was born to Ian and Jennifer Harrison, respectively an executive at clothing retailer Burton, and a reading specialist.[1] In her youth, Harrison attended Sevenoaks School, a private school.[1] Her father has said she was a good runner and swimmer.[1] Harrison performed well in her International Baccalaureate exams and took a gap year to travel and ski.[1] She studied English at Queen Mary, University of London.[1] Harrison continued to travel and decided to be a journalist.[1]
In 2009, Harrison became an unpaid intern researcher at the Centre for Investigative Journalism at City University, London, which trains journalists.[1] In 2010 she became a junior researcher at the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, a new professional organisation also at the university.[1] She later graduated from City University London.[5]
WikiLeaks
As an intern at the Centre, she was assigned to Julian Assange before the Afghan War documents leak.[6] She sorted files about the Iraq War from Assange for future television documentaries.[1] After Daniel Domscheit-Berg left WikiLeaks over a dispute with Assange, Harrison's role in the organisation increased, particularly with the embassy cable publication and Assange's legal fight against Swedish extradition.[6] Harrison is a WikiLeaks section editor.[3] She works with the WikiLeaks Legal Defense led by Baltasar Garzón,[2] and is Julian Assange's closest adviser.[3]
Edward Snowden
On 24 June 2013, WikiLeaks said that Harrison accompanied National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden on a high-profile[7] flight from Hong Kong to Moscow en route to political asylum from US extradition.[2][3][6][7] Dominic Rushe of The Guardian observed that Harrison was a "strange choice" because of her lack of legal qualifications compared to other WikiLeaks staff, such as human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson.[6] At the time, she had been with the organisation for over two years.[3] On 1 August 2013, Harrison accompanied Snowden out of Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport after he was granted a year of temporary asylum.[8]
In 2014, Harrison spoke about her support for WikiLeaks' endeavours saying "the greatest unaccountable power of today [is] the United States and our Western democracies."[9]
Harrison also works as acting director for Courage Foundation, an organisation whose aim is providing support to whistleblowers all around the world, including Edward Snowden himself.[10]
Award
Harrison received the Willy Brandt Peace Prize in 2015.[11]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Levy, Geoffrey (28 June 2013). "The public school girl who fell for Julian Assange- then went on the run with the world's most wanted man". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 FlorCruz, Michelle (23 June 2013). "Edward Snowden Travels To Moscow Accompanied By WikiLeaks' Sarah Harrison". International Business Times. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Kelley, Michael (24 June 2013). "Meet Sarah Harrison, The Wikileaks Representative Travelling With Edward Snowden". Business Insider. Allure Media. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ↑ Corbijn, Sara Corbett, Anton. "How a Snowdenista Kept the NSA Leaker Hidden in a Moscow Airport". Vogue. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
- ↑ Daily Mail Reporter (18 December 2010). "Welcome to WikiLeaks Manor: Julian Assange enjoys an emotional reunion with his mother". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 Rushe, Dominic (23 June 2013). "Edward Snowden's WikiLeaks escort one of Assange's closest advisors". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- 1 2 Shane, Scott (23 June 2013). "Offering Snowden Aid, WikiLeaks Gets Back in the Game". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ↑ "NSA spy leaks: Edward Snowden leaves Moscow airport". BBC News. 1 August 2013. Archived from the original on 7 October 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
- ↑ Berthold Stevens (2 July 2014), Exposing the secrets of unaccountable power Deutsche Welle
- ↑ Courage team members participate in Reddit AMA
- ↑ "Sarah Harrison: SPD ehrt Snowden-Vertraute für "politischen Mut"". Spiegel Online. 2015-09-17. Retrieved 2016-01-12.