Snowden confidant Sarah Harrison at this year’s Global Media Forum

“The battle against unaccountable power” will be the topic when Sarah Harrison takes to the stage to address the audience at this year’s Global Media Forum. The British WikiLeaks journalist and confidant of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden will present a keynote speech at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 2.

In the summer of 2013, Harrison accompanied NSA whistleblower Snowden on his flight from Hong Kong to Moscow. As part of the WikiLeaks team, she assisted him in his legal applications for asylum to various countries, including Germany.

In an open letter to the German public posted online in November, Harrison wrote of Wikileaks, “We have won the battle for Snowden’s immediate future, but the broader war continues.” She states that, “WikiLeaks’ battles are many: we fight against unaccountable power and government secrecy.”

Harrison, who has chosen to remain in Berlin since that time, is convinced that “Thejob of the press is to speak truth to power. And yet for doing our job we are persecuted.” She declares that she stands in “solidarity with all those intimidated and persecuted for bringing the truth to the public.”

Following her speech at the Global Media Forum, Harrison will engage in a discussion with members of the audience.