Julian Assange

No sign of Anthony Albanese at this brilliant event, although we know he was in parliament.

Update, Tue 26 July: A new larger PDF file which includes a duplicate of the first double-sided A5 page has been uploaded. Without this addition, the second page will be blank. I am about to find out if the problem is fixed. My apologies.

Julian Assange has been imprisoned through barbaric abuse by powerful people of their positions in government and the law, and through the almost total disorganisation of ordinary people. People's ability to defend themselves at law and find crowd support in England nearly 400 years ago was often more sophisticated and engaged than our own.  A famous case was when, in May 1649, Cromwell arraigned John Lilburne for high treason and incitement of Leveller mutinies in the New Model army.

Meet at Vic State Library for 11am rally and march 3 July 2022, Julian Assange's birthday. Australia's award winning journalist, outstanding publisher, creator of WikiLeaks, and possibly the most famous, heroic, and persecuted person in the world, turns 51 years old. This is his 4th birthday spent locked away in Belmarsh prison, London. His previous 7 birthdays were spent locked away in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

At its meeting of Tuesday 28 June, the Melbourne City Council unanimously passed a motion by Cr Olivia Paul which called upon the Australian government to make strenuous diplomatic intervention to free Julian Assange.

"That Council: 1. Expresses grave concern that on 17 June 2022 the British Government approved the extradition of Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange to the United States; 2. Affirms its support for freedom of expression, freedom of the press and whistle-blowers and for their protection in all jurisdictions everywhere; 3.

My open letter to newly elected Australian Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese argues that as Australian PM he could almost certainly force Britain to end its illegal imprisonment and torture of Julian Assange and also force the US to end its efforts to extra

"Assange's case is a mirror which reveals the hypocrisy of the US and British claim to defend press freedom. [Because he revealed their war-crimes ...] the US government has, for more than a decade, filed unwarranted charges of sexual harassment, espionage, and computer-misuse against Assange [...] continuously suppressed Assange through secret surveillance, global pursuit behind the scene, deals, and other means. Britain has spared no effort in cooperating [...]"

Friday, 17 June. In a horrible clown-world, the UK government has approved the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the US to face criminal charges, despite an original British judge ruling that he should not be deported due to risk of suicide and a warning by his lawyer that he still remains a risk - and the fact that he has committed no crime.

"Now that you are Prime Minister, we urge you to waste no time in making good on your wish to see Julian Assange’s ordeal come to an end, as the issue is now beyond critical, with his current health status meaning time is of the essence. It is now much too late for legal remedies.

Tony Wakeham is the first speaker. Good on him.  Great speech.

Phillip Adams wrote on May 27, 2022 —  "Mr Albanese is also a signatory to the Bring Julian Assange Home Campaign petition." (ABC 27-5-2022)

To All Julian Assange Supporters: We are back "on the steps" again, today, Friday at 4pm to 6pm (E.S.T.) for the: 131st Julian Assange Sydney Town Hall Gathering.

NEW GOVERNMENT

Your action can help save Julian Assange. Urge new PM and Foreign Affairs Minister to speak to President Biden at Japan conference

Dear friends of IPAN
We congratulate the people of Australia for voting in a new government comprised of Labor, Greens and Independents demonstrating a real community led demand for quality change in so many areas.

The UK Home Secretary Priti Patel can now sign off on Julian Assange’s extradition to the US at any moment. Extradition will mean that Julian faces the potential of 175 years in prison for exposing US war crimes and corruption.

If he is imprisoned, it will be by the very state whose crimes he exposed. These are the same revelations that Julian and Wikileaks received Journalism accolades around the world for, including Australia’s most prestigious prize, The Walkley Award.

Only the British Home Secretary can stop his extradition now.

"What should happen is every newspaper and journalistic entity should pull out of the United States and you should have a massive sanctioning of the United States. No American should be welcome in any sporting event, much as they're trying to do to other nationalities, including Russian. The only way to stop this devouring of the world is to stop the devourer of the world, and to sanction it, and to withdraw from it. And ignore it and turn away from it.

The UK judge had decided to block the US request for Julian's extradition, on medical grounds. Now the US government is seeking to overturn that decision on appeal. Although the District Judge refused the extradition she nevertheless denied Julian bail.

On 14 March 2022 the UK Supreme Court refused to grant Julian Assange an appeal against being extradited to the United States. We do not know what legal course remain open to Mr Assange at this time. The United States is shamelessly manipulating public media and public opinion by ensuring ignorance about the significance of world events and the task of freeing the world's only effective fighter for truthful reporting has become even more difficult. Australian activist, John Wilson, has renewed his call for a jury trial for Assange, claiming it is his right:

"Official Western institutions have never recognised Assange as a prisoner of conscience,why do you think that is?" Oksana asks Greg Barnes. After almost a decade in confinement, Julian Assange is still fighting against extradition requests to the United States, at cost to his physical and mental health, while also compromising WikiLeaks’ ability to continue its operations.

Recently the Serbian President Aleksander Vucic accused Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison of a "political witch hunt" and of harassing the world's best tennis player. 

Novak Djokovic's parents also slammed this decision to refuse their son's entry into Victoria for the Australian Tennis Open.

His mother claimed the anti-vaxxer and her multi-millionaire son was being wrongly detained in an immigration detention hotel with bugs and poor food.

There is not much comparison between the situation of the multi-millionaire tennis player Novak Djokovic and his fellow detainees in the Park Hotel, Carlton (in Victoria, Australia.)  Petitioners for the release of the long term detainees and those for Djokovic have coincided over the last day but probably have little in common. 

If the Australian government chose to end the illegal imprisonment and torture of Julian Assange they could do it now, because it has no basis at law - UK law, international law, and even American law. "The Australian Government could end this tomorrow." Barrister Greg Barns to Leigh Sales, ABC 7.30 Report

This article was previously entitled "The Secret Trials of Julian Assange."

Chris Hedges discusses ‘The Trial of Julian Assange,’ a new book by Nils Melzer, UN special rapporteur on torture, in this edition of Hedges show, On Contact.

(Politician contact details inside) The Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) says, "We need your help: Call the Morrison Government to act now to save Australian citizen and journalist Julian Assange!"

On December 10 court the UK court upheld an appeal to extradite Julian Assange to the US to be tried on espionage charges which carry a life sentence. Expert medical opinion is that he is very unwell and will be at risk of serious harm in the US prison system or if the legal processes are extended, by continued imprisonment in the UK prison.

I learnt yesterday, on Wendesday, that George Christensen's Illegal Detention of Australian Journalists (Free Julian Assange) Bill 2021, [1] about which I had posted an article was dropped on Tuesday 29 November because no other member of the House of Representatives, not even one 14 other members of Julian Assange Support Group would second George Christensen's motion!