London – Teresa Ribeiro, representative of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for Freedom of the Press, issued a note urging the United Kingdom not to allow the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States.
expected at the end of May British Home Secretary Priti Patel will decide on the fate of the journalist.
But the British government is experiencing a crisis. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will remain in office after being put to a vote of no confidence by the party this week, which is new wear and tear. There was also a long holiday to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubileemay have delayed the decision.
Assange’s extradition sparks protests and demonstrations by authorities
“In light of British Home Secretary Priti Patel’s impending decision on the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States, I would like to express my concerns about the impact such a decision will have on press freedom and investigative journalism,” the OSCE representative said. .
The impasse over Julian Assange’s extradition has sparked protests and public demonstrations, including by officials and organizations advocating freedom of the press, since the British court returned the case to Patel’s presidency in April.
In a memo issued by the OSCE, Teresa Ribeiro directly asked the British secretary not to extradite Assange to the US.
Being very concerned about the negative impact of extradition @wikileaks Founder Julian #Assange may have #media freedom and I call for investigative journalism. #England Authorities should not extradite Assange #WE. My full explanation is here ???? https://t.co/ugRYrSfFUN
— OSCE media freedom (@OSCE_RFoM) June 7, 2022
Assange has been wanted by US justice since 2010 for posting military secrets on the WikiLeaks website, responding to prosecutions in the country that could lead to 175 years in prison.
The US was able to reverse the January 2021 decision banning extradition due to the journalist’s mental health condition.
“The public interest of the various WikiLeaks publications should be taken into account as they contribute to important research reporting and reporting,” says Ribeiro.
“If extradited and convicted, it is essential to consider the impact on freedom of expression and media freedom. The fact that someone who publishes material in the public interest could face a long prison sentence could have a serious and lasting impact on investigative journalism.”
In this context, the representative recalled that all OSCE member states, including the United Kingdom, have made a series of commitments that recognize freedom of expression and access to information as fundamental human rights and an essential component of democratic societies.
“Access to public interest information enables people to make informed choices and ensures transparency and accountability of governance.”
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In April, as the extradition order was announced, Amnesty International issued a statement saying that Priti Patel would violate the prohibition of torture if she accepted the US request and would set a dangerous precedent for news outlets and journalists around the world.
Amnesty International: ‘If Secretary of State approves US request to extradite Julian Assange, it would violate the prohibition of torture and set an alarming precedent for broadcasters and journalists around the world’ @amnesty #FreeAssangeNOW https://t.co/NLdPEJCSWI
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) 8 June 2022
Remember the Julian Assange case
Australian citizen Julian Assange was arrested in London in 2019 after spending more than six years in the Ecuadorian embassy as a way to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is facing a sexual assault case, and then to the United States. National Security.
The founder of WikiLeaks has been sued by the United States for allegedly conspiring to obtain and disseminate national defense information after hundreds of thousands of leaked documents related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were posted on the site.
He faces up to 175 years in prison on 18 charges. In January 2021, District Judge Vanessa Baraister accepted Assange’s defense thesis and blocked his extradition on the grounds that he risked suicide if he went to a maximum security prison in the United States.
In February, a British court granted the country only three procedural appeals that did not include a medical report indicating a suicide risk, and they had little chance of changing the verdict, analysts said.
US State Department attorneys presented a series of guarantees to the court to reduce the risk of alleged suicide, including not subjecting them to a special segregation regime in a maximum security prison.
Assange’s defense sought to convince the Supreme Court that he could not be extradited to a country that tried to kill him.
But it was not successful. The US State Department managed to overturn the decision in December 2021 and paved the way for extradition.
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Journalists and organizations press British government against Assange’s extradition
Next steps in the saga of possible extradition of Assange
Assange’s defense has not confirmed the next steps, but there is speculation that he may file another appeal after a possible decision in favor of extradition is announced by the British government.
Lawyers will try to question issues such as political motivation, legal neglect and abuse of democratic rights. This would have kept the activist in Belmarsh Prison longer.
Another possibility is to file an application with the European Court of Human Rights, which lawyers expect at a press conference in October. But as the UK is no longer part of the European Union, there is no guarantee that it will consider it.
Despite this, the European Union chose Assange’s side. In May, the Council of Europe’s Human Rights Commission made a request to the UK not to extradite the Wikileaks founder.
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source: Noticias
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