Friday, February 05, 2016
Assange
Hails 'Significant Victory' After UN Rules He Has Been Arbitrarily Detained
WikiLeaks founder has been living under
asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London for more than three years, fearing
extradition to U.S.
Assange appeared at a press conference to
respond to the UN's ruling. (Screenshot)
A United Nations working group on
Friday declared that WikiLeaks founder Julian
Assange has been arbitrarily detained for more than three years and should be
freed and compensated, in a decision the Australian journalist called a
"really significant victory."
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
issued its nonbinding opinion on Friday, a day after reports began circulating that the panel was
likely to rule in Assange's favor.
"[T]he Working Group recognized that Mr.
Assange is entitled to his freedom of movement and to compensation," the
decision reads. It continues:
Having
concluded that there was a continuous deprivation of liberty, the Working Group
also found that the detention was arbitrary because he was held in isolation
during the first stage of detention and because of the lack of diligence by the
Swedish Prosecutor in its investigations, which resulted in the lengthy
detention of Mr. Assange.
Assange,
who has been living under asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since
2012, where he sought refuge after publishing thousands of classified U.S.
military and State Department documents, urged authorities to abide by the
decision and lift warrants calling for his arrest. He is wanted in Sweden on
sexual assault allegations, but has said he fears being extradited to the U.S.,
where he may face charges over the leaked documents.
"I miss my family," Assange told reporters on Friday. "We have
today a really significant victory that has brought a smile to my face."
"It’s now the task of Sweden and Britain
to implement the verdict," he said.
But as of Friday, that seemed
unlikely. The Swedish Foreign Ministry disagreed with the verdict, saying
Assange was "free to leave the embassy at any point. Thus, he is not being
deprived of his liberty there due to any decision or action taken by the
Swedish authorities."
The UK Foreign Office made similar comments.
"This changes nothing. We completely reject any claim that Julian Assange
is a victim of arbitrary detention," the department said, adding that it
would "formally contest" the working group's opinion.
On Twitter, whistleblower Edward
Snowden warned that this kind of response
"writes a pass for every dictatorship to reject UN rulings. Dangerous
precedent for UK/Sweden to set."
Melinda Taylor, who brought Assange's case to
the UN, called the decision "a damning indictment of the manner in which
this case has been handled [and] affirms that Mr. Assange is a victim of a
significant miscarriage of justice."
She added, "Now finally with today's
decision, there's light at the end of the tunnel."
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The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
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