A group of 63 members of the Australian House of Representatives and Senate have signed a letter to support Julian Assange in demanding that he not be extradited to the United States, where he could be sentenced to up to 175 years in prison.
The document says the US Government “must end” the process of prosecuting and imprisoning Australian citizens.
The letter was released by The Guardian at a time when an Australian delegation, made up of representatives of various political parties, plans to travel to Washington next week to highlight the interests of WikiLeaks founder, while Assange remains a prisoner, in poor physical condition. and psychological conditions, at Belmarsh high security prison, south-east London.
The signatories supported the delegation’s trip and criticized that Assange’s case has been going on for “more than a decade”, and considered it “a mistake” to continue to persecute the journalist in Australia and deprive him of his freedom, which “considered the duration and circumstances of the detention he suffered.
“It is pointless, unfair, and we say clearly – as friends must always be true to friends – that the prolonged persecution of Mr. Australians for the justice system.” in the United States,” the letter showed.
Australian lawmakers warned that “there is no doubt that if Julian Assange is transferred from the UK to the US, there will be a sharp and sustained outcry in Australia.”
The next trip of Australian politicians to Washington aims to end the judicial persecution against Assange. The deputies plan to meet with members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Department of State and the Department of Justice to advocate against the activist’s extradition to the United States.
In June 2022, the United Kingdom approved Assange’s extradition to the United States, where he was accused of publishing hundreds of thousands of pages of secret military documents and confidential diplomatic cables that perpetrated the atrocities committed in Pentagon known to the world. citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan under the cover of the so-called US war on terror, and other illegalities such as electronic espionage against other governments.
The US Department of Justice presented a total of 18 charges against Assange, under the Espionage Act.
Today, the complaint of the legislators of Australia, Julian Assange’s homeland, joins the statements of the same meaning made by dignitaries such as Andrés Manuel López Obrador, from Mexico, and the Brazilian Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Pope Francis also received Assange’s lawyer and wife, Stella Assange, in June in an undisclosed meeting.
Many voices around the world have warned that continuing to punish Assange would be a violation of journalism’s right to information, and would call into question the vaunted freedom of the press that the White House supposedly defends.
Two months ago, MEAA Media federal president Karen Percy wrote to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong, urging them to pressure the United States to drop the charges. spy against Assange.
The UK Government’s decision to back the US Department of Justice’s request to extradite Australian editor Julian Assange puts journalists around the world at risk, the Australian Journalists Union has said.
The Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance is calling on the Australian Government to take urgent action to force the US and UK governments to drop all charges against Assange and allow him to be with his wife and children.
