Australia: Demand your Parliament finally allow debate on Julian Assange

The final sitting of the Australian Parliament for 2021 is from Monday until Thursday next week. In the embedded video, I explain how, if it chose to, the Federal Government could have acted long ago to force the British Government to end the illegal imprisonment and torture of Julian Assange. Australians must make the government act to free Julian Assange, or else, hold it to account should it continue to fail to do so.

As Julian Assange, who has so far suffered more than two and a half years in solitary confinement at Belmarsh Prison and who faces the prospect of even worse for the rest of his life should he be extradited to the United States, the Parliament of Australia of which Julian Assange himself is a citizen has, bizarrely, refused even to discuss the case of Julian Assange. As large numbers protest for Julian Assange all over the world, the time devoted in Parliament to Julian Assange in the last year totals no more than 10 minutes: 3 questions and responses from government ministers to those questions during Senate question time and the tabling of a petition in support in support of Julian Assange. As the end of the 2021 Parliamentary year approaches, there is still time for Australians to demand of the Government and Opposition to cease their obstruction and allow those 26 members of the Parliamentary Support Group for Julian Assange to move and argue for their motions in support of Julian Assange. Each and very Australian, who supports Julian Assange, must contact their local member of Parliament and each of their state Senators to ask them to at least act to ensure that at least enough time is found next week, starting from Monday 29 November, to have Julian Hill's foreshadowed motion in support of Julian Assange moved, debated and then voted upon. My own 10 minute speech arguing for this and the transcript  of that speech follows.

 

Last chance for Assange as Australian Parliament blocks debate

 

 

 

There are 26 members of the Parliamentary Support Group for Julian Assange, but the Government and Opposition have used an arcane set of rules to prevent those members of Parliament from speaking-up for Julian Assange.

What sort of Government and what sort of opposition refuses to allow the voice of that famous and most revered Australian anywhere in the world, to be heard in our Parliament?

Those parliamentarians who have prevented the case for Julian Assange from being heard must be held to account

 

It is long past time that Australians everywhere rose up to hold to account those members of Parliament who have not allowed Julian Assange’s voice to be heard there.

Each Australian who shares my disgust at Britain’s, Sweden’s, and America’s, treatment of Julian Assange, must ask of his or her local Member of Parliament, “Are you prepared to act to make our Government take action to end the illegal imprisonment and torture of Julian Assange?"

Still time in 2021 for Julian Assange's supporters in Parliament to act

 

Should that member of Parliament be willing to actively support Julian Assange, ask that member to act urgently with other members who support Julian Assange, to force this speaker to allow debate on Julian Assange at some time next week. Next week is the last week of the last sitting of Parliament for 2021.

Put to your Member of Parliament the case for Julian Assange

However, should that member of Parliament not be fully aware of the facts about Julian, then please take the time to explain those facts to him or her.

Should that member of Parliament then not be as outraged as you, and not moved to immediately act on the floor of Parliament, then tell that member of Parliament that you don’t think that he or she is fit to represent you in Parliament.

It is urgent that Australians ask their Representatives to allow the issue of Julian Assange to be discussed on the floor at Parliament.  In particular, they should allow Julian Hill’s motion, which has been stalled since 16 June 2021.  I will read this motion out a bit later, and refer you to where you may read it yourselves, at https://www.candobetter.net/admin/blog/6134/julian-hill-mp-put-crucial-motion-julian-assange-australian-parliament-coming-monday, which will be linked below this video. [1]

Why the Australian Government must act to free Julian Assange

 

Julian Assange, that most famous and revered Australian anywhere, is founder of the Wikileaks news service and, through the Wikileaks news service, winner of many awards for journalism - 21 by my count. These awards include the Walkley Award for Most Outstanding Contribution to Journalism and the Sydney Peace Prize. In 2010, readers of both Time Magazine and Le Monde selected Julian Assange as Person of the Year.

Julian Assange has not been charged with or convicted of any crime, yet since the 19th of June 2012 until 11 April 2019, when British police invaded the London Ecuadorian embassy to arrest him, he had been forced to stay, without sunlight, in that very confined space.

Julian Assange had sought asylum from an attempt by Sweden to have him extradited to answer fabricated charges of sexual assault, all of which have since been dropped. Those allegations of sexual assault were clearly intended by the Swedish government to facilitate the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States, once he had landed on Swedish soil.

On 5 February 2016, this confinement, to avoid that extradition, was ruled as arbitrary detainment by Nils Melzer, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

Mike Pompeo's plan to kill Julian Assange

In 2017, according to 30 former US intelligence employees, then US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed plans to kill Julian Assange with gun battles on the streets of London, or even by using a helicopter at Heathrow airport to shoot out the tyres of a commercial aircraft, with Julian Assange on board.

These are truly bizarre and frightening allegations, but have not been denied by Mike Pompeo. As no indictment against Julian Assange had even been issued, these plans to either kill Julian Assange or else recklessly endanger the lives of other airline passengers, as well as Julian Assange, were clearly criminal, and should be cause for Pompeo's immediate arrest. Documentary evidence seems to show that the Australian government was made aware of Mike Pompeo's intentions at the time, although they deny it.

Monstrous treatment of a man guilty of no crime

Since his arrest in April 2019, more than two and a half years ago, Julian Assange has been locked away in Belmarsh Prison, in solitary confinement, for 23 hours per day. 

So how is it that someone who is guilty of no crime, is himself locked away in circumstances which could lead to irreparable damage to his health or even to his death?

Nine years failure by the Australian Government to uphold Julian Assange's rights

And how is it that, not once since his arrest in April 2019, nor in more than nine years since Julian Assange first sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy, has the Australian government acted to uphold Assange's legal rights to end both his imprisonment, and the attempts by the United States to extradite him? How is it that the Australian government failed to act, even after they were apparently made aware of Mike Pompeo's plans to kill Julian Assange, in 2017?

The Australian government could have acted long ago to end the imprisonment and torture of Julian Assange

If the Australian government had decided, at any point of time since June 2012, to demand that Britain release Julian Assange, most likely this would have occurred. Were Britain not to have immmediately acceded to that demand, Australia could then have taken the case to either the International Criminal Court or to the United Nations. Both Britain and the United States would have very quickly found that, in the face of international law, British law, the United States' own laws, and global public opinion, neither would have had a leg to stand on. They would very quickly have found that they had no choice but to immediatly grant Julian Assange his freedom.

However the Australian government has clearly failed in this basic duty of care towards Julian Assange. More recent evidence has revealed that, not only has the Australian government failed in this duty of care, but it has actively colluded with the United States, Britain, and Sweden, against Julian Assange.

Parliament refuses to allow any substantial discussion of Julian Assange

Despite this shocking situation, a proper discussion of any of this has yet to be allowed on the floors of our Australian Parliament. So far 'discussion' has been limited to just over two minutes, on about three occasions in question time, or around a minute to table a petition in support of Julian Assange.

This is just not good enough, when the life of Julian Assange, as well as our basic rights to freedom of speech, and to be informed, are threatened.

Unsuccessful attempts to have Julian Assange discussed in Parliament

In fact, there have been a number of unsuccessful attempts to raise the issue of Julian Assange in Parliament. 

Previously, I had thought that in our Parliamentary democracy, only a mover and seconder were required to raise a motion but, in fact, a foreshadowed Private Members Motion (PMM), which is one that is supported neither by the Government nor the Opposition - as is the case with Julian Hill's motion, first foreshadowed on 16 June, five months ago - must first go through an arcane set of procedures before it can be put.

Rules which have been used to prevent discussion

The foreshadowed Private Members Motion first has to be approved by the Parliamentary Selection Committee on a Wednesday. Only if the Private Members Motion is approved by the Selection Committee, can it can then be put to Parliament for debate, but only during the 90 minutes prior to midday the following Monday, if that Monday is not a public holiday!

By my calculation, this allows all of 13 minutes on average for each Private Members Motion to be put, debated, and then voted upon. [2] Even this has not been allowed for Julian Hill's motion, which still has not been approved by this shadowy Parliamentary Selection Committee!

I don't consider that good enough for what purports to be a representative democracy.

Why can't those 26 members of Parliament who support Julian Assange put to Parliament their case for Julian Assange? Why can't those members demand of Prime  Minister Scott Morrison and Foreign Minister Marise Payne, a full explanation for their appalling conduct towards Julian Assange?

Why does the Australian government fear debate on Julian Assange?

As I wrote on 8 August in my Open Letter to Scott Morrison, 

" ... if you truly believe that you have fully discharged all of your responsibilities towards Julian Assange, then what have you to fear from such a debate? Why not move a procedural motion to allow Julian Hill's motion to be fully debated on the floor of Parliament?

"Surely, then, in the course of the ensuing debate, you can show Parliament, Australia, and the rest of the world, how both Julian Hill and I are wrong."

The foreshadowed motion which Scott Morrison has prevented from being put, is:/p>

that this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) the trial and extradition of Mr Julian Assange are inconsistent with international law, and Australian legal standards, and contravene the legal rights and protections for which those laws and standards provide;

(b) the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment has found that Mr Assange 'showed all symptoms typical for prolonged exposure to psychological torture, including extreme stress, chronic anxiety and intense psychological trauma';

(c) several medical reports find that Mr Assange is in ill-health due to prolonged arbitrary confinement, and indeed the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention ruled that the 50-week sentence of Mr Assange for bail violation, which formally ended on 21 September 2019, was punitive and disproportionate given the nature of the offence and the usual sentence;

(d) Mr Assange is facing extradition for an alleged political offence, which is expressly prohibited by Article 4(1) of the Anglo-US Extradition Treaty and an abuse of power; and

(e) Mr Assange is an Australian citizen and, if convicted in the US, faces 175 years in prison, which would be in effect a death sentence;
 

(2) acknowledges that Mr Assange is a publisher and journalist, as recognised by his 2011 Walkley award and 17 other awards for excellence in journalism and promoting human rights, and that his charges:

(a) are a direct assault on press freedom; and

(b) threaten the protection of others who publish classified information in the public interest; and
 

(3) calls for Mr Assange to be allowed to return to Australia.
 

Surely we have a right to expect our representatives in Parliament to allow those supporters of Julian Assange, in both houses of Parliament, to put this motion to Parliament, and have all members with a view on that motion, put those views and have those views debated?

The four days from tomorrow, this coming week and for four days next week, will be the last sitting of Parliament for 2021. Both houses will be sitting.

Given the overwhelming support for Julian Assange, both in Australia and  overseas, including by many overseas members of Parliament, it should be possible to convince members of Parliament to allow the case for Julian Assange to finally be put.

If large numbers of supporters of Julian Assange were to contact their representatives, and put to them the case for Julian Assange and the urgency with which the Australian government needs to act, then it should be possible to finally have the case for Julian Assange put to Parliament.

 

Footnote[s]

[1] The link referred to in which the video is emebedded is, in fact, to this page, "Australia: Demand your parliament stop blocking debate on Julian Assange" (26/11/2021) by James Sinnamon at https://www.candobetter.net/node/6200.

[2] In fact, the time allocated for Private Members Motions on Monday Mornings is 1 hour and 50 minutes and not 1 hour and 30 minutes as I said in the video - my apologies. That allows, on average, 3 more minutes, that is, 15 minute and 42 seconds, for each of the seven Private Members Motions, approved of by the Parliamentary Selection Committee, to be moved, put, debated and then voted upon. - still woefully inadequate for the case for Julian Assange to be comprehensively put, for those against Julian Assange to put their case, such as it is, and for Scott Morrison, Marise Payne and other Government ministers explain to Parliament the reasons for their conduct towards Julian Assange.