PRESS RELEASE
March 8, 2024
For Immediate Release
THE TREMENDOUS EFFORT TO SAVE THE LIFE OF JULIAN ASSANGE
The two-day hearing in the UK High Court for Australian journalist Julian Assange’s last appeal was on February 20 and 21, 2024. The two judges presiding asked for additional information and additional time. Their decision could come any moment. Assange did not attend for health reasons. The decision is to allow further appeal through the European Court of Human Rights, or extradite him to the United States.
It is important to note that Assange has not been formally charged, and is only being held on remand to a potential extradition to the U.S. to face the accusations in the U.S. indictment, a total of 18 charges amounting to 175 years in prison on an old U.S. law called the Espionage Act. On the first day, the defense made a point to clarify that Chelsea Manning is a whistleblower/leaker, and Julian Assange/WikiLeaks the journalist/publisher. The whistleblower had been an service member of the U.S. military and has already been punished for breaking confidentiality. As a member of the press and a non U.S. citizen, Julian Assange had no confidentiality agreement with the U.S. government. The accusations in the U.S. indictment suggest Julian Assange assisted Manning to crack a password, but Manning clearly already had access and clearance through her work, so no hacking was needed. C.E. Manning was on leave when she initially spoke and gave documents to more than one news organization before uploading to WikiLeaks secure upload. She did not speak to Julian Assange until well beyond the transfer of information.
The misstatement was made that people were harmed by what WikiLeaks published, but at C.E. Manning’s trial, U.S. admitted in actuality that no one was harmed. Accusations that Assange did not redact names are not true. Several witnesses were present when Assange redacted thousands of names. Redactions were not made in the diplomatic cables, because they were already out in the public venue published in their entirety on Cryptome.org.
The defense also brought out that the head of the CIA, Mike Pompeo planned the kidnapping and murder of Julian Assange. The defense made the point that extraditing Assange to the U.S. would be putting him in the hands of the same people who plotted his murder. It was also mentioned that the CIA illegally spied on Assange, through a company called UC Global, learning his legal defense strategy while he was in the Ecuadorian Embassy.
The importance of this case is what it means to the future of journalism, free speech and press freedoms. If Julian Assange is extradited to the U.S. and successfully convicted, then the Espionage Act, a U.S. law that has never been used against a journalist before, could then be used to arrest any journalist in the world whom the U.S. state department deems has printed classified material, whether it is in the public interest, or not. It could also affect whether the First Amendment will protect the Free Speech of the Free Press, or not. The future jobs of journalists may be in jeopardy and many Assange supporters feel their right to know the truth will be at risk.
Stella Assange, wife of Julian, has been leading the heroic battle for her husband’s freedom. She is afraid he would not survive extradition in his fragile health, and doctors and two UN Rapporteurs on Torture agree. In addition, Assange’s brother, Gabriel Shipton who attended the 2024 State of the Union Address as a guest of Congressman Thomas Massie, expressed the wide concern that Julian Assange who’s health is delicate would not survive the extradition to the United States. Finally, it was admitted by prosecutors at Assange’s hearing that there is no assurance that the Eastern District of Virginia Court would not add the death penalty to the 175 years being held over his head.
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