Questioned about his thoughts on the fate of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, our new prime minister echoed the feelings of many of us. “I do not see what purpose is served by the ongoing pursuit of Mr Assange”, Anthony Albanese proffered.
Yet while Assange languishes in a British gaol pending extradition to the US, his public defence has been hijacked by political activists running a problematic campaign about press freedom.
In a recent interview, journalist John Pilger — well known for his controversial views — made an extraordinary claim.
“If Julian is extradited to the United States, I think it will effectively end real independent investigative journalism… Who will take that risk again?”
Utter nonsense. Firstly, Assange is not really a journalist. He’s an internationally renowned computer hacker, known to have been active since he was 16 years old.
In 1996 he pleaded guilty to 24 hacking charges and was released on a good behaviour bond.
Secondly, Assange is charged under the controversial US Espionage Act with aiding and abetting soldier Chelsea Manning, who was convicted of stealing American government military files. That’s certainly not journalism.
Ironically, during the time that Assange has fought to avoid a court appearance, Manning has been gaoled and then had their sentence commuted.
Commutation comes with the implied acceptance of guilt. It is not the overturning of a conviction. This has implications for Assange should his extradition to the US take...
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