Assange Extradition Fiasco Nearing An End

[Hymie]

Any day now Assange could be put on a plane to the US to face charges of spying (amongst other things).

In the DM article below, the writer points out that Assange’s extradition would be an outrage.
He faces absurd charges of spying, when he never spied. His crime was to embarrass the US government by selectively releasing information that Washington had tried and failed to keep secret. I do not think this is a crime, here or there.

This topic has been discussed on AB before, and as I said I don’t care who you are but if you go around murdering people (as the US was revealed to be doing in the Wikileaks documents), you can’t expect those who expose you for your criminal activity to be locked up.

Subsequent information (not via Wikileaks), has revealed that the US was actively considering murdering Assange.

If Assange is indeed extradited to the US, this will be a shameful event, condoned by the British establishment.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/columnists/article-12400777/PETER-HITCHENS-no-time-Julian-Assange-beg-join-opposing-shameful-handover-one-person-stop-now.html

[retrocop]

Whatever way you like to paint it he disclosed top secret government information. That's a crime in most countries. He's lucky Sweden are no longer queuing up to have him extradited for rape. I wonder why he sought sanctuary in a embassy if he is innocent. The Americans can have their own criminals back and deal with them how their laws dictate as far as I am concerned.

[ToraToraTora]

" I do not think this is a crime, here or there. " - I sometimes wonder if you have any knowledge at all. Of course it's a crime here and there. We have the OSA and they have the equivalent and giving away US secrets to all and sundry is Espionage.

[Hymie]

‘I do not think this is a crime, here or there’

Those are not my words, but those of the DM journalist.

[sandyRoe]

Publishing what he uncovered hardly seems like espionage. It looks more like journalism to me.

[ToraToraTora]

Well then he's wrong too, doesn't matter what way you cut it releasing state secrets is a crime in pretty well any state.

[New Judge]

//He faces absurd charges of spying, when he never spied.//

How does Mr Hitchens know that? He gained unauthorised access to classified information.

//His crime was to embarrass the US government by selectively releasing information that Washington had tried and failed to keep secret.//

Actually what he did was to place the classified information, which he had gained illegally, into the public domain.

//I do not think this is a crime, here or there.//

You need to think again. You don't know the significance of the information he gained nor do you know the potential damage its release could (or possibly has) caused.

As far as criminality in this country is concerned, it is not disputed that Wikileaks published the personal details of members of the British National Party. This by itself is a serious breach of data regulations.

The information published by Wikileaks is wide ranging and various and Mr Assange took it upon himself to be the arbiter of what should remain confidential and what should be released into the public domain. He has no right to do that. Here in the UK we tend to treat such behaviour with kid gloves. The US authorities do not. So long as there are hostile elements around the world, national governments have the right to keep secret what they think fit.

Mr Assange is a self-opinionated creep and the sooner he is away from these shores, the better. I shall not be joining Mr Hitchens’ crusade.

[Hymie]

As I said in the earlier thread on this topic, if you accept that the US can go around murdering whoever they like, you must accept that the Saudi Arabian authorities can similarly murder Jamal Khashoggi – you can’t pick and choose the murderers you like.

[New Judge]

This is not about the US authorities murdering people. It's about a single individual taking it on himself to disclose illegally obtained classified information. Much of it has nothing to do with the US allegedly murdering people. It ranges from detailed military operational files (some of which I've read, and IMHO could be very damaging to US operations), through to publishing details of a Northern Rock document published at the time that bank nearly went to the wall, and to all manner of topics which, if not secret for military purposes, should remain confidential or restricted.

Why do you think Mr Assange has the right to publish all this material?

[ichkeria]

What he did was highly irresponsible.
He dressed up irresponsible leaking of diplomatic documents as “standing up for freedom of expression” when it was nothing of the sort.
The guy is a complete fraud. He dodged extradition to Sweden on unrelated serious charges.
So I have no time for him or his naive supporters.

[Khandro]

There is a time to lie, ("are you hiding any Jews in your attic? ") and there's a time to tell what you know, - if it's the truth, no matter whom is embarrassed by it.

Julian Assange told the truth.

Assange has been confined in HM Prison Belmarsh in London since April 2019, before that, his confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy since 2012 .

Extraditing him for even more prison, (& possibly even death!) by the British government would be unconscionable, particularly as hundreds of illegal migrants land on British shores daily simply saying the magic three words, "I claim asylum", and they get it without demur.

[Rosetta]

Khandro, his confinement in the Equadorian Embassy was totally self imposed and a ruse to escape justice

[retrocop]

//particularly as hundreds of illegal migrants land on British shores daily simply saying the magic three words, "I claim asylum", and they get it without demur.//


Unfortunately the left wing lawyers are blocking the asylum process so we do not know how many are criminals fleeing justice from their own country.
We do know, however, that Assange is an alleged criminal in the U.S. and should be returned to face due process of Law.

If our boat invaders were processed I have no doubt we would be handing those who flee justice back to their respective countries as well.

[Lie-in King]

Imo, he's a nasty, self-righteous idiot. If the US want to bury him nice & deep, so that we don't see/hear about him again, it's fine by me.

[Old_Geezer]

Doesn't the UK have laws regarding not extraditing to countries that may conceivably kill the person sent ?

[ToraToraTora]

I once had a small amount of sympathy for JA, that evaporated when he decided to sue Ecuador, the country that took him in and gave him asylum. The guy is a total narcissist and I won't be too disturbed if he ends up in a US supermax.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2018/oct/19/julian-assange-launches-legal-action-against-ecuador

[Gromit]

The documents were stolen by Bradley Mannings and he was prosecuted and jailed for doing so.
Assange was given the information and published it. A minor infringement of copyright.

[ichkeria]

Yes Manning is the real villain however Assange did himself no favours by setting himself up as the Defender of the Right to Know. That makes him more culpable than he might otherwise have been. He knew what he was doing

[ynnafymmi]

Also Assange is a friend of,and an apologist for the fascist Putin.That should be enough to get him extradited to the USA.**** him.We have enough Putin apologists in this country already.

[Gromit]

// Assange is a friend of,and an apologist for the fascist Putin. //

Have they ever met?

Russia regards Assange as a useful idiot. Assange regards Russia as a safe place from the CIA.

[ynnafymmi]

Assange is a Putin apologist.Get him over to the USA asap.He might get to share a cell with Bradley(Chelsea)Manning.Fun in the showers with these two.