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A radical of Australian lawmakers wrote to President Biden connected World Press Freedom Day urging him to driblet the charges against WikiLeaks laminitis Julian Assange arsenic property state groups telephone for the merchandise of Assange and different journalists astir the satellite facing ineligible cases.
In a Friday letter, the co-chairs of the "Bring Julian Assange Home" Parliamentary Friendship Group – Members of Parliament Andrew Wilkie, Independent; Josh Wilson, Labor Party; Bridget Archer, Liberal Party, and Sen. David Shoebridge, Greens – called connected Biden to extremity the prosecution of Assange, who is successful a U.K. situation warring extradition to the U.S. to look espionage charges for publishing classified American subject documents 14 years ago.
A proceeding volition beryllium held May 20 successful beforehand of the British High Court successful London to find if Assange, an Australian publisher, tin beryllium extradited to the U.S. to basal proceedings oregon if helium tin marque a afloat entreaty challenging his extradition. If the tribunal rules successful favour of extradition, Assange's lone remaining enactment would beryllium astatine the European Court of Human Rights.
"On World Press Freedom Day, we constitute arsenic a radical of Australian Parliamentarians from crossed the governmental spectrum seeking the state of Julian Assange," the lawmakers wrote. "We constitute successful the anticipation that Mr. Assange, who has endured maximum information imprisonment successful the United Kingdom's Belmarsh Prison for much than 5 years without condemnation connected immoderate important charge, tin spell free, tin spell home, tin beryllium reunited with his wife, children, and family."
ASSANGE EXTRADITION CASE MOVES FORWARD AFTER US ASSURES UK COURT THERE WILL BE NO DEATH PENALTY
A radical of Australian lawmakers wrote to President Biden connected World Press Freedom Day asking him to driblet the charges against WikiLeaks laminitis Julian Assange. (Getty Images)
Assange, 52, faces 17 counts nether the Espionage Act for allegedly receiving, possessing and communicating classified accusation to the public, arsenic good arsenic 1 complaint alleging conspiracy to perpetrate machine intrusion. If extradited, Assange would basal proceedings successful Alexandria, Virginia, and could look up to 175 years successful a maximum information situation if convicted.
The charges were brought by the Trump administration's DOJ implicit WikiLeaks' 2010 work of cables leaked by U.S. Army quality expert Chelsea Manning, and the Biden medication has continued that prosecution. The accusation elaborate alleged warfare crimes committed by the U.S. authorities successful Iraq, Afghanistan and the detention campy astatine Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, arsenic good arsenic instances of the CIA engaging successful torture and rendition.
The missive comes aft Biden said past month helium is considering a petition from Australia to driblet the charges against Assange.
"We were heartened by President Biden's caller acknowledgment that the United States is considering Australia's petition to extremity the prosecution of Julian Assange," the missive reads. "We respectfully impulse the United States to discontinue the long, expensive, and punishing extradition process that prevents Mr Assange from returning to his household successful Australia."
The White House did not respond to Fox News Digital's petition for comment.
SQUAD AND MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE JOIN 16 LAWMAKERS CALLING ON BIDEN TO FREE JULIAN ASSANGE
Assange has been held astatine London's high-security Belmarsh Prison since helium was removed from the Ecuadorian Embassy connected April 11, 2019, for breaching bail conditions. He had sought asylum astatine the embassy since 2012 to debar being sent to Sweden implicit allegations helium raped 2 women due to the fact that Sweden would not supply assurances it would support him from extradition to the U.S. The investigations into the intersexual battle allegations were yet dropped.
A U.K. territory tribunal justice had rejected the U.S. extradition petition successful 2021 connected the grounds that Assange was apt to termination himself if held nether harsh U.S. situation conditions. Higher courts overturned that determination aft getting assurances from the U.S. astir his treatment.
Assange's lawyers person continued to combat against his extradition, presently seeking the accidental for a afloat entreaty pursuing the May 20 hearing, which comes aft the U.S. provided assurances to the U.K. past period that Assange would not look caller charges that could pb to the decease penalty. They besides said helium would beryllium allowed to marque a First Amendment statement successful a U.S. courtroom – things Assange's lawyers and household described arsenic bare promises.
In March, erstwhile the British tribunal asked the U.S. to supply assurances, it rejected astir of Assange’s appeals – six of 9 helium lodged, including allegations of a governmental prosecution and concerns astir an alleged CIA plot nether the Trump medication to kidnap oregon termination Assange portion helium remained hunkered down successful the Ecuadorian Embassy successful London.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of the Labor Party has said "there is thing to beryllium served by his ongoing incarceration" and the Leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton of the Liberal Party, has said helium believes this lawsuit has "gone connected for excessively long."
In February, the House of Representatives successful the Australian Parliament passed a question demanding Assange beryllium freed, stressing "the value of the U.K. and the U.S.A. bringing the substance to a adjacent truthful that Mr. Assange tin instrumentality location to his household successful Australia."
BRITISH COURT RULES JULIAN ASSANGE EXTRADITION ON PAUSE UNTIL US GUARANTEES NO DEATH PENALTY
Stella Assange, woman of Julian Assange, speaks beside a poster of her hubby astatine the Royal Courts of Justice successful London connected Feb. 21, 2024. (AP)
A cross-party delegation of Australian lawmakers visited Washington, D.C., successful September and met with U.S. officials, members of Congress and civilian rights groups successful an effort to unafraid Assange's freedom.
"While we judge the prosecution of Julian Assange is incorrect arsenic a substance of principle, we accidental successful immoderate lawsuit that determination is nary justice, compassion, oregon tenable intent successful the further persecution of Mr. Assange erstwhile 1 considers the duration and harsh conditions of the detention helium has already suffered," the missive concludes.
The Obama medication successful 2013 decided not to indict Assange implicit WikiLeaks' 2010 work of classified cables due to the fact that it would person had to besides indict journalists from large quality outlets who published the aforesaid materials.
President Obama also commuted Manning’s 35-year sentence for violations of the Espionage Act and different offenses to 7 years successful January 2017, and Manning, who had been imprisoned since 2010, was released aboriginal that year.
No steadfast had been charged nether the Espionage Act until Assange, and galore property state groups person said his prosecution sets a unsafe precedent intended to criminalize journalism.
"President Biden has repeatedly said that journalism is not a crime, each the portion his medication continues to prosecute WikiLeaks laminitis Julian Assange nether the Espionage Act for acts that journalists prosecute successful each day," Caitlin Vogus, Deputy Director of Advocacy astatine Freedom of the Press Foundation, told Fox News Digital. "To genuinely observe World Press Freedom Day, the Biden medication should instantly driblet the Espionage Act charges against Assange."
She continued: "If the DOJ tried to prosecute reporters astatine the New York Times oregon Wall Street Journal nether the Espionage Act for speaking to sources, obtaining classified information, and publishing that information, we would rightfully spot it arsenic a terrible menace to the First Amendment. The Espionage Act prosecution of Assange threatens property state by opening the doorway to precisely those kinds of prosecutions of journalists by the existent oregon aboriginal administrations."
Reporters Without Borders Executive Director Clayton Weimers told Fox News Digital that the prosecution of Assange "could acceptable a precise unsafe precedent for American property freedom."
"This would beryllium the archetypal clip the Espionage Act, an archaic instrumentality severely successful request of reform, would beryllium utilized to punish the steadfast of factual information, not conscionable the leaker," helium said. "In this case, the leaker, Chelsea Manning, has already served her sentence. But if the Justice Department is palmy successful prosecuting Assange, they're opening the doorway to prosecuting immoderate writer oregon media outlet – including Fox News – to prosecution for publishing authorities secrets, adjacent if that work is successful the nationalist interest."
On World Press Freedom Day, galore different journalists astir the satellite are facing ineligible cases for their journalistic work, including Wall Street Journal newsman Evan Gershkovich, who is being held successful Russia connected espionage charges for allegedly stealing concealed subject documents.
"We proceed to telephone for the Kremlin to merchandise Evan Gershkovich, and so for the merchandise of each wrongly jailed journalists around the world," Weimers said. "We besides telephone connected the State Department to designate writer Alsu Kurmasheva, a US citizen, arsenic 'wrongfully detained.'"
Julian Assange faces 17 counts nether the Espionage Act for allegedly receiving, possessing and communicating classified accusation to the public, arsenic good arsenic 1 complaint alleging conspiracy to perpetrate machine intrusion. (AP)
When governments apprehension oregon imprison journalists for covering the news, Vogus said, it "threatens everyone's state and quality to beryllium informed."
"Arresting journalists for covering the quality is an authoritarian bullying maneuver whether it's happening successful Russia oregon Austin, Texas," she said. "Compelling reporters to uncover their confidential sources volition marque whistleblowers little apt to travel forward. Sources often hazard their livelihoods and adjacent their state to archer journalists what they cognize astir corruption, crimes, and wrongdoing."
Reporters Without Borders downgraded the U.S. to 55 among nations successful the 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
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"The U.S. should beryllium a beacon for property freedom astir the world. Instead, we person precocious seen journalists successful the U.S. arrested and prosecuted simply for doing their jobs crossed the country, and witnessed increasing distrust fueled by the irresponsible rhetoric of immoderate governmental officials," National Press Club president Emily Wilkins and National Press Club Journalism Institute president Gil Klein said successful a statement. "The falling ranking of the U.S. successful the World Press Freedom Index shows that we are headed successful the incorrect direction."
The Freedom of the Press Foundation, Reporters Without Borders, National Press Club and galore different property state groups are urging Congress to walk the bipartisan PRESS Act, which would forestall the national authorities from compelling journalists to uncover their sources and confidential work.
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