News Archive - 2012-04 (April 2012)

2012-04-02 Australian Government's escalating hostility toward WikiLeaks and Julian Assange

After a public forum on WikiLeaks, Australian Greens Senator Scott Ludlam made the following comment:

The Australian Government has done the absolute bare minimum above stuff-all to help this Australian citizen in trouble. […] They've attempted to block and delay Freedom of Information requests, they haven't answered straight questions, they've voted against motions, and to me it's starting to look not like indifference but like hostility.

This hostility from the Australian Government is becoming more and more apparent, especially as Julian Assange awaits the UK Supreme Court's decision on whether he'll be extradited to Sweden. Not only is the Government offering little support to its citizen, but it is making derogatory and false remarks against the WikiLeaks organization, refusing to offer timely release of relevant information, and passing new laws which make it difficult for WikiLeaks to continue operating legally and raise safety concerns for its founder.

Back in December 2010, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard condemned WikiLeaks' release of information, calling the action "irresponsible" and, the far more serious allegation, "illegal." A week later, and just days after Julian Assange's arrest, Attorney-General Robert McClelland further expanded on Gillard's comments saying that the information WikiLeaks released was "accessed in an unauthorized manner" and was therefore an offense under Australian law. But, after a 17-day investigation by the Australian Federal Police, it was established that none of WikiLeaks' actions were in fact illegal. In a quasi-apology Gillard was forced to announce the AFP's finding that WikiLeaks had not broken Australian law, but again denounced their actions as "grossly irresponsible" and declared, "It’s clear that the theft of those documents is an illegal act." Of course, these vilifying comments were being stacked on top of those by U.S. politicians, such as Vice President Joe Biden's labeling of Julian Assange as a "high-tech terrorist" and political candidate Sarah Palin's belief that he is an "anti-American operative with blood on his hands" who should be "pursued with the same urgency [the U.S. pursues] al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." Senator Scott Ludlam has since asked if Gillard apologized to WikiLeaks or formally retracted her false claims, to which her representative replied she hadn't.

Recently, on the eve of Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict being handed down, the attacks have resurfaced. In response to a citizen letter concerning Julian Assange's extradition, Australian official Anna Harmer wrote on behalf of Attorney-General Nicola Roxon that WikiLeaks' release of U.S. diplomatic cables was "reckless, irresponsible, and potentially dangerous." The U.S. Ambassador to Australia Jeffrey Bleich echoed the claims of irresponsibility and added that WikiLeaks had also acted "destructively" and "was not a force for good." In earlier statements, Bleich also called WikiLeaks "unhealthy [...] dangerous, and immature." To this day, there is still no evidence of physical harm coming to any persons based on WikiLeaks' releases.

The attacks go far beyond verbal and written statements. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has delayed the release of Australian diplomatic cables relating to Julian Assange requested under the Freedom of Information Act (at least six times, according to Senator Ludlam) until at least late May, after it is decided whether or not he'll be extradited to Sweden. When asked about the delays, Senator Chris Evans acting as representative for Prime Minister Gillard only stated that the FOI request had been received and "the response is being worked on by DFAT." The Australian Government also refuses to give straight answers regarding both the alleged sealed indictment the U.S. has against Julian Assange and the secret Grand Jury which has been in existence for over a year.

Beyond this, two new laws have emerged in Australia which make it more difficult for organizations such as WikiLeaks to operate within legal boundaries. The first is a bill, informally known as "the WikiLeaks amendment," which significantly expandes ASIO's (Australian Security Intelligence Organization) powers to spy on Australian citizens. Patrick Emerton, senior lecturer in the Faculty of Law at Monash University, commented that, while the bill couldn't be used to spy on Julian Assange in London, it could conceivably be used to spy on communications he had sent to Australia, e.g. a letter or e-mail. The second is an extradition law created to "streamlin[e] the extradition process and [cut] delays." It broadens the possibility of extradition on both minor and political offenses. It also allows nationals to be prosecuted on Australian soil if the government declines to have them extradited. A third law, the Cybercrime Legislation Amendment Bill, which would allow access to more information by Australian and overseas agencies, has passed through the Lower House but is yet to become full law.

With all this in mind, Australia's hostility towards WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange is evident. The majority of Australians support WikiLeaks and Assange, a statistic that has remained constant since 2010. Therefore it is only right for the Australian Government to stand up for Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, not only because he is their citizen, but because it is in the interest of the public to do so.

2012-04-03 #WikiLeaks financial blockade and protecting our right to spend

Authored by @Nicsha

If you spend five minutes watching commercial television or flicking through a mainstream magazine, you would think spending money is not only our birthright, but a move that is encouraged and welcomed.

We can buy almost anything from anywhere. We have the freedom to invest, bank online, and support innumerable charities and organisations across the globe; whether it's helping to protect animals, join the fight against cancer, advocate human rights or even speaking out to save a lake.

Unless of course, you are WikiLeaks.

Most people probably know that from the 7th of December 2010 (just after WikiLeaks began publishing the US diplomatic cables), MasterCard, Visa, Bank of America, PayPal and Western Union decided to stop their customers from making donations to WikiLeaks.

No longer contented with their own business, the major banks have launched a covert mission to invade ours by means of a financial blockade that prevents us from using their products towards causes we support.

What right does a company or foreign Government have to tell me, an Australian citizen, about how to spend my money? And, on what criteria do the bank and credit card companies determine who will be blockaded?

While many may have thought the financial blockade would only last a few weeks,almost eighteen months have passed and donations to WikiLeaks have dropped by 95 per cent, according to their estimates. In July 2011, WikiLeaks lodged a complaint with the European Commission for infringement of the EU Anti Trust Laws. We are still waiting for their decision.

In October 2011, growing impatient with waiting for common sense to prevail, I decided to lodge complaints with my bank in Australia and with MasterCard.

I contacted MasterCard five times by email and telephone. I received absolutely no response. They didn't even acknowledge my complaint.

Three different staff members from my bank worked on my complaint - one from the complaints, cards, and merchant areas.

The first assured me no section of my credit card terms and conditions (T&Cs) covered this situation and they would ask for it to be added (an interesting admission as T&Cs are supposed to be legally binding).

The second was more aggressive, and clearly annoyed at my persistence and my refusal to accept their decision that there was nothing they could do about a MasterCard decision. I was particularly intrigued by his reaction following my request for the bank to provide feedback to MasterCard, where he stated: "[We] have not provided feedback to MasterCard and we do not intend to do so. They are the owners of the product and you need to clarify directly with them." When I advised that I had tried on multiple occasions to contact MasterCard, to no avail, he didn't bother to respond.

In a conversation with the third staff member, it became clear that the bank excuse de jour was that WikiLeaks did not having a merchant facility. So, the reasoning goes, neither the bank, nor MasterCard are at fault. But, I asked, how could WikiLeaks be expected to have a merchant facility when the transaction blockade renders one useless?

In the end the staff member notified MasterCard about my complaint and even advised them that "their brand was at stake."

I also contacted the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) who rejected my complaints; the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), who couldn't help as my complaint wasn't employment related; the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), who don't cover banking practices and referred me to my bank or APRA; the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), who don't regulate MasterCard and referred me to the RBA who regulate payment systems; the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), who don't look at individual disputes and referred me to the ACCC; and finally, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), who referred me back to my bank before rejecting my complaint twice.

Despite rejecting my own and other people's complaints, the ACCC had the audacity to advise Senator Scott Ludlam during Senate estimates in February 2012 that they hadn't received any complaints. They later corrected themselves, and admitted they had.

The ACCC then kindly referred me to my bank, saying my complaint related to my Terms and Conditions (T&Cs). They also referred me to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

When I emailed the ACCC a graph showing the 95 per cent drop in donations to WikiLeaks after the blockade, the ACCC advised, "It cannot be established that MasterCard and Visa have acted 'in concert'".

Which begs the question, whether the ACCC actually investigates any complaints, or if it demands Australian citizens to provide their own evidence of corporate deceit before launching an investigation.

The FOS eventually escalated my complaint to their legal counsel, who rejected it on three grounds:

They are "unable to review actions of any third parties to the dispute or the actions of an organisation which is not a member of our service."
My bank "is not obliged to know who will accept payments made through MasterCard or what decision MasterCard will make in the provision of its service."
"That it appears I had not suffered any financial loss due to the issue". They also stated they were unable to compel my bank to amend the wording of their credit card T&Cs.

So, I decided to seek legal counsel, and was advised that a class action suit brought by cardholders against MasterCard and Visa would face several hurdles, including: Who has suffered the actual financial loss? If WikiLeaks has suffered the actual financial loss, who bears the adverse cost risk if the action failed? But, I asked, with the blockade in place how could WikiLeaks ever hope to pay legal costs for the banking giants MasterCard and Visa, where proceedings would likely last many years?

In an attempt to determine what was driving the inaction of the various regulatory bodies, I lodged Freedom of Information (FOI) requests with the ACCC, ASIC, APRA and the RBA.

My request was deliberately broad asking for documentation relating to the WikiLeaks financial blockade, and included any rules, guidelines, practices, and precedents relating to decisions regarding complaints, enquiries and recommendations regarding the decision by MasterCard, Visa, PayPal, Western Union and American Express to block donations to the organisation WikiLeaks.

I also requested general statistics about how many enquiries and complaints were received and their outcomes.

The ACCC, APRA and the RBA all responded advising that they refused my request "under section 24A(1) of the FOI Act on the basis that the document does not exist."

Interesting statement considering the length of my ACCC complaint process and that other complaints they themselves admitted they had received.

The lack of documentation from these bodies reflects appalling record keeping practices and accountability. The RBA did, however, confirm it had received one complaint regarding the blockade - which I am certain was my own.

So where does this leave us today?

My months of complaints and enquiries revealed that MasterCard and Visa are outside of any and all regulation and accountability in Australia.

They are empowered to arbitrarily and indiscriminately restrict the facilitation of funds to companies and organisations from individuals, like myself, and this appalling breach of consumer rights worldwide must end.

For more information on what you can do, visit http://righttospend.com.

2012-04-05 #WikiLeaks News Update: Collateral Murder anniversary; #Assange Leveson Inquiry submission; Other news

WikiLeaks has been financially blockaded without process for 489 days.
Julian Assange has been detained without charge for 486 days.
Bradley Manning has been imprisoned without trial for 683 days.

WikiLeaks News:

Today marks the two-year anniversary of WikiLeaks' release of "Collateral Murder."

Global Intelligence Files revelations:
- Azerbaijan leadership is "terrified" by the prospect of an attack by Armenian military forces.
- American private security firm SCG International has been helping the Syrian opposition in its efforts to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Cablegate revelations:
- Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, banned in Australia late last year for national security reasons, was being examined as far back as 2008 by Australian intelligence agencies.
- Democratic Republic of the Congo envoy believes Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono profiteered from his actions at the height of Zimbabwe's economic crisis.
- With the announcement of Omar Suleiman's run for Egyptian presidency, WikiLeaks Press sent out a series of tweets linking to related cables, including his involvement in torture. Al Jazeera also cited a related WikiLeaks cable in a recent article on Suleiman.
- Cuban spies supportVenezuelan President Hugo Chávez' regime.
- WikiLeaks cables confirm claims that the UK sold the Storm Shadow cruise missile to Saudi Arabia.

WikiLeaks supporters all over the world have been donating $5 or more today in an effort to "Beat the Blockade" that's been straining donations for nearly 500 days now.

GOP candidate Mitt Romney called on Obama to release notes and transcripts of his meetings with world leaders, but believes WikiLeaks' release of diplomatic cables was "treason."

Kristinn Hrafnsson spoke at a SKUP 2012 whistleblowing panel alongside Annie Machon and Smári McCarthy, giving a detailed presentation on WikiLeaks.

Salon's Glenn Greenwald authored an article on the excessive secrecy in the U.S. Government, commenting that this is why "WikiLeaks is such a vital and important movement."

Friends of WikiLeaks is almost ready for "Phase 2."

A forum on WikiLeaks and Julian Assange was held in Newcastle, Australia, with speakers Christine Assange, Andrew Fowler, Jim Jose, and Kellie Tranter. Video of the event is available.

You can now subscribe to WikiLeaks Press updates via Google Currents on your Android or Apple phone or tablet.

Julian Assange News:

Julian Assange challenged the UK's press coverage of his extradition struggle in a submission to the Leveson Inquiry. 75 complaints had been filed to the Press Complaints Commission, mostly relating to false statements that he has been charged. Assange says the libelous statements cause harm to WikiLeaks globally, including contributing to a hostile media climate. His submissions are available in PDF format at the Leveson Inquiry's website.

Julian Assange's talk show "The World Tomorrow" premieres next week. The first promo video has been released:

Julian Assange authored an editorial note on change:
We live in the world that we perceive. Our limits are the limits of our perceptions. This generation knows more than any previous generation. Its actions will eclipse those of previous generations. We change the world by observing its behavior, thinking about our observations and acting on our thoughts. To observe we must open our eyes. To think we must open our minds. To act, we must open our hearts. Our eyes have never been so wide. Our minds never so trained. And the courage in our hearts spreads like a contagion.

Justice for Assange is looking for Swedish speakers to help with a project. See link for contact details.

An article at Rixstep reveals new information in the Assange case, including Claes Borgström's history of authoring 'screenplays' for plaintiffs and waiting until chief prosecutor Eva Finné was off the case before changing SW's testimony.

Geoffrey Robertson QC was on ABC RadioNational Law Report discussing Julian Assange's extradition case. He noted that the Supreme Court has just gone into recess, so the verdict is now expected in May. But WikiLeaks has since tweeted that the verdict is actually expected the week of April 16.

When asked about Julian Assange's run for senate, U.S. Ambassador to Australia Jeffrey Bleich commented, "Whoever Australia wants to elect to its legislative positions is up to Australians to decide," but followed by saying he believed WikiLeaks acted irresponsibly, dangerously, and "has not been a force for good."

Bradley Manning News:

Bradley Manning won People's Choice for Global Exhange's 10th Annual Human Rights Award.

A political cartoon by Malcolm Evans depicts the shift in treatment of whistleblowers from Daniel Ellsberg to Bradley Manning.

Bradley Manning's defense has filed four motions including the dismissal of the "aiding the enemy" charge and dismissal based on unreasonable multiplication of charges.

Truth-out has published an in-depth analysis of how the U.S. Government is railroading Bradley Manning, covering everything from his pre-trial confinement to the latest motion hearings.

WikiLeaks Press has created a fact sheet which covers all of Bradley Manning's legal proceedings to date.

Antiwar.com reviewed the upcoming book, "The Passion of Bradley Manning" by Chase Madar.

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Upcoming Dates & Events:

April 12-28: Performances of "The Radicalization of Bradley Manning" held between these dates in schools across Wales.

April 16: Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict expected to be handed down this week.

April 17: WikiLeaks' 500th day of financial blockade without process.

April 19: "WikiLeaks, Assange, and Defending Democracy" panel at BMW Edge in Melbourne, 6:30PM, with Christine Assange, Scott Ludlam, Lizzie O'Shea, Bernard Keane, and Greg Barns.

April 20: Julian Assange's 500th day of detainment without charge.

April 23: Bradley Manning's 700th day of imprisonment without trial.

April 24-26: Bradley Manning's next set of pre-trial hearings.

April 24: Bradley Manning "Surprise Party" at City Hall in Portland, Oregon, 11AM.

April 27-28: Kristinn Hrafnsson to speak at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia, Italy at panels "Whistleblowers and anonymous leaks: can the media do without them?" (27/4) and "Dossier WikiLeaks. Segreti italiani" (28/4).

May 23: Julian Assange to speak at Enterprise Information Management Congress 2012 in The Netherlands.

May 27: "Incident in New Baghdad" to air on The Documentary Channel, 8PM.

2012-04-11 #WikiLeaks News Update: Cablegate coverage; New Assange interviews; Other news

WikiLeaks has been financially blockaded without process for 494 days.
Julian Assange has been detained without charge for 491 days.
Bradley Manning has been imprisoned without trial for 688 days.

WikiLeaks News (Releases):

Cablegate coverage:
- Invisible Children, the makers of the viral Kony2012 video, were informers for the Uganda People's Defense Force, leading to the arrest of multiple suspected opponents of the regime. While Invisible Children initially denied the claims, they have now confirmed their involvement.
- Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is undergoing extensive treatment for an unnamed condition, though cables released by WikiLeaks suggest he is battling terminal prostate cancer.
- Journalist Seymour Hersh revealed that the Bush administration secretly trained Iranian opposition group Mujahideen-e-Khalq, or MEK, which has been listed as a foreign terrorist group since 1997. In an interview with Democracy Now!, Hersh mentioned WikiLeaks cables which show the U.S. helped Yukiya Amano get elected as Director General of the IAEA to ensure pressure on Iran.
- A report released by the Environmental Investigation Agency shows that more than 20 American companies have played roles in the steady flow of illegal hardwoods from the Peruvian Amazon. The report is partially based on information from State Department cables released by WikiLeaks.
- In February 2011, The Telegraph analysed WikiLeaks cables on Omar Suleiman, who has now formally entered the Egyptian presidential race.
- The Chinese Government recently gifted a $35 million stadium to the Bahamas, which The New York Times related to WikiLeaks cables showing diplomats being increasingly worried about Chinese presence in the area.

The UK is exporting surveillance technology to repressive nations. Many brochures, presentations, and marketing videos detailing these technologies were released in WikiLeaks' Spy Files.

A blog covering the WikiLeaks Grand Jury has published a two-part series about revelations from Stratfor emails. WikiLeaks recently tweeted that the Grand Jury has been sitting for nearly 18 months and a verdict is expected.

WikiLeaks Press has released a news review for the week of March 8-14.

WikiLeaks News (Genereal):

Julian Assange's submissions to the Leveson Inquiry are now available at the WikiLeaks website.

WikiLeaks lawyer Geoffrey Robertson and Australian Attorney-General Nicola Roxon are among the guests for next week's Q&A. You can submit a question via the Q&A website.

Patricia Bellia, Law Professor at University of Notre Dame, has written an 80-page essay entitled "WikiLeaks and the Institutional Framework for National Security Disclosures," which details legalities and comparisons to the Pentagon Papers.

EFF writes that the proposed CISPA bill (Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011) would be a "powerful weapon to use against whistleblower websites like WikiLeaks." You can take action against CISPA at the EFF's website.

An article in Global Research looks at how the Obama administration is using the guise of "cybersecurity" to open new backdoors for intrusive government surveillance and how this could be detrimental for WikiLeaks.

The U.S. State Department IT chief Susan Swart gave an interview about changes in cyber security after WikiLeaks release of diplomatic cables, nearly 18 months ago.

OFCOM is continuing its investigation into the documentary, "WikiLeaks: Secrets and Lies." Channel 4 has now admitted that The Guardian's David Leigh was a secret paid production member.

Professor Ferrada de Noli has updated his article detailing how WikiLeaks has buried the myth of Sweden's neutrality.

A Swedish blogger has been analyzing Expressen editor Thomas Mattsson's smears and mudslinging against WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.

During a book reading in Portland, Oregon, political activist Ralph Nader responsed to a question on WikiLeaks by criticizing the Obama administration for going after whistleblowers and saying he agreed with Ron Paul: "We need more WikiLeaks."

George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed teenager Trayvon Martin, has opened up a support fund which accepts donations from credit cards and Paypal. This has caused multiple Twitter users to ask why one is allowed to donate to Zimmerman but not WikiLeaks.

The list of Christine Assange's Talking Points has been updated and now contains 90 facts about WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.

Twitter user @SomersetBean has created 80 posters addressing Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr with facts about WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.

Julian Assange News:

New Internationalist has published an exclusive interview with Julian Assange, in which he discusses surveillance, communications, and how he had to become the 'fall guy' for WikiLeaks.

El Telégrafo also published an exclusive interview with Julian Assange, where he discussed such things as the Swedish extradition case, Australia's political situation, attacks against WikiLeaks, market regulation, and the expulsion of the U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador.

There is a new section at Justice for Assange which covers irregularities in the conduct of the Swedish prosecution in the investigation against Julian Assange.

An article in Business Insider gives an overview of the Assange case and notes that by looking at the "Agreed Statement of Facts and Issues," Marianne Ny does not seem to be an impartial judicial authority.

In the upcoming TEN TV movie, "Underground: The Julian Assange Story," Alex Williams is cast as Julian Assange, Rachel Griffiths as his mother, and Anthony LaPaglia as Detective Ken Roberts.

Bradley Manning News:

Support events for Bradley Manning are planned worldwide during the dates of his next hearings, April 24-26.

An article in Salon (authored by Charles Davis, filling in for Glenn Greenwald) looks at how most American liberals have betrayed Bradley Manning by attacking his character and failing to stand up for him.

The Bradley Manning Support Network published an article written for the two-year anniversary of "Collateral Murder," which calls on people to discuss the video and join in their campaigns to free Bradley Manning.

Chase Madar's book "The Passion of Bradley Manning" will be released tomorrow.

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Upcoming Dates & Events:

April 12-28: Performances of "The Radicalization of Bradley Manning" held between these dates in schools across Wales.

April 16: Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict expected to be handed down this week.

April 17: WikiLeaks' 500th day of financial blockade without process.

April 19: "WikiLeaks, Assange, and Defending Democracy" panel at BMW Edge in Melbourne, 6:30PM, with Christine Assange, Scott Ludlam, Lizzie O'Shea, Bernard Keane, and Greg Barns.

April 20: Julian Assange's 500th day of detainment without charge.

April 23: Bradley Manning's 700th day of imprisonment without trial.

April 24-26: Bradley Manning's next set of pre-trial hearings. Support events planned worldwide.

May 23: Julian Assange to speak at Enterprise Information Management Congress 2012 in The Netherlands.

May 27: "Incident in New Baghdad" to air on The Documentary Channel, 8PM.

2012-04-14 #WikiLeaks News Update: Assange TV show premiere date; Other news

WikiLeaks has been financially blockaded without process for 497 days.
Julian Assange has been detained without charge for 494 days.
Bradley Manning has been imprisoned without trial for 691 days.
A secret Grand Jury has been active in the U.S. without transparency for 577 days.

Julian Assange News:

WikiLeaks announced that the first episode of Julian Assange's 12-part talk show, "The World Tomorrow," will premiere April 17 on RT, 11:30AM GMT (see below for times worldwide). Here are some highlights of the announcement:
- Official website for "The World Tomorrow."
- Official video page for "The World Tomorrow."
- The official hashtag on Twitter is #ExpectAssange.
- The opening and ending themes have been composed by award-winning British-Sri Lankan hip hop artist M.I.A.
- RT interviewed Julian Assange about his decision to create the show and the philosophy behind it.
- WikiLeaks asked, "Any bets on who The World Tomorrow's first mystery guest(s) are?" From information collected via WikiLeaks, Twitter, and interviews, confirmed guests are believed to be: Tariq Ali, Moazzam Begg, Noam Chomsky, Alaa Abd El-Fattah, David Horowitz, Anwar Ibrahim, Moncef Marzouki, and Nabeel Rajab.
- Premiere times for the show are as follows: 4:30AM in Los Angeles, 7:30AM in New York, 12:30PM in London, 1:30PM in Zurich, 3:30PM in Moscow, 5:00PM in New Delhi, 8:30PM in Tokyo, and 9:30PM in Sydney.
- Due to mainstream media often misreporting this fact, it must be reiterated that RT is the broadcaster and is not involved in the production. "The World Tomorrow" is produced by Quick Roll Productions, a company owned by Julian Assange, in partnership with Dartmouth Films.
- Watch the second trailer below:

An Op-Ed in Sydney Morning Herald discusses how Julian Assange is not guilty of sexual assault nor treason, yet he faces the threat of extradition to the U.S.; all for exposing crimes, not committing them.

WSWS has written an article detailing how the Australian Government has reinforced its conspiracy against Julian Assange in the days leading up to his Supreme Court verdict.

In a new interview, Christine Assange discussed how Julian's situation represents a larger issue of global exploitation and intimidation by the U.S. Government.

An article in WSWS covers the ruling by the European Court of Human Rights to allow the extradition of five men on terror-related charges to the U.S. and looks at the implications this carries for Julian Assange's case.

WikiLeaks News:

Cablegate Coverage:
- An article in Al Jazeera analyses the failed war on drugs, citing multiple WikiLeaks cables which show how "complex, fraught and internationalised" the drug war has become.
- An article in Wall Street Journal discusses the upcoming U.S.-Iran talks, referencing multiple ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) threat assessments released by WikiLeaks.

Harvard Law School professor Yochai Benkler has published a 69-page draft of his essay, "A Free Irresponsible Press: WikiLeaks and the Battle over the Soul of the Networked Fourth Estate," which covers why the battle over WikiLeaks is so vital.

A smear campaign against Atanas Chobanov of Balkan Leaks, WikiLeaks' Bulgarian media partner, has begun. Julian Assange commented, "I denounce the smears against Atanas Chobanov. Balkan Leaks is an official WikiLeaks partner, and Chobanov is an honorable man."

An article by Harry Blutstein details an event in 1772 where Benjamin Franklin anonymously received and circulated letters by Thomas Hutchinson about colonial rights, causing outrage in Boston and forcing Hutchinson to flee. Blutstein compares these events to modern times with WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, and Bradley Manning.

A batch of letters from Australian MPs and Senators sent in response to questions regarding WikiLeaks and Julian Assange have been posted. See also how MPs and Senators rank in their support for WikiLeaks at OzWikiWatch.

In 2011, Anne Ramberg, the head of the Swedish Bar Association, issued a statement in which she discussed the importance of WikiLeaks and calls on Sweden to stand up for the organization and Julian Assange.

A WikiLeaks supporter described a conversation with a MasterCard executive who said they had blocked WikiLeaks donations on instructions from the Australian PM and Attorney General. After this began spreading via Twitter, MasterCard stated this information was false and the decision to block donations was theirs alone.

The WikiLeaks Forum is calling on people to help translate the Global Intelligence Files.

A new video in the ongoing WikiLeaks support series, "Did You Have Any Idea?," has been released, featuring peace activist Gail Malone.

Twitter user @SomersetBean has created posters for the upcoming 500th day of detainment without charge for Julian Assange (April 20), and the 700th day of imprisonment for Bradley Manning without trial (April 23).

Bradley Manning News:

A U.S. federal court has ruled that employees must actually be involved in hacking to be prosecuted under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act anti-hacking statute. This is important for Bradley Manning's case as he is accused of breaching the CFAA, although the prosecution does not allege he broke into any computer systems.

During an April 12 fundraiser, GOP Candidate Ron Paul stated that he would have Bradley Manning protected under the Whistleblower Act.

"The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning," a play detailing the soldier's life, began touring Wales on April 12. You can still reserve a spot to watch a live-streamed version of the play. A video clip of the play is available at the BBC.

The Nobel Peace Prize, for which Bradley Manning is a nominee, will be announced on October 12.

April 20 is the deadline to raise funds for a campaign to put up 21 Bradley Manning support ads around the Washington DC Metro subway system.

The New Inquiry has published an excerpt of Chase Madar's new book, "The Passion of Bradley Manning,"

The Bradley Manning Support Network has posted an excerpt about Bradley's motion hearings from the new book by Greg Mitchell and Kevin Gosztola, "Truth and Consequences: The U.S. vs Bradley Manning."

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Upcoming Dates & Events:

April 14-28: Performances of "The Radicalization of Bradley Manning" held between these dates in schools across Wales.

April 16: Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict expected to be handed down this week.

April 17: Julian Assange's talk show, "The World Tomorrow," premieres on RT, 11:30AM GMT..

April 17: WikiLeaks' 500th day of financial blockade without process.

April 19: "WikiLeaks, Assange, and Defending Democracy" panel at BMW Edge in Melbourne, 6:30PM, with Christine Assange, Scott Ludlam, Lizzie O'Shea, Bernard Keane, and Greg Barns.

April 20: Julian Assange's 500th day of detainment without charge.

April 23: Bradley Manning's 700th day of imprisonment without trial.

April 24-26: Bradley Manning's next set of pre-trial hearings. Support events planned worldwide.

May 23: Julian Assange to speak at Enterprise Information Management Congress 2012 in The Netherlands.

May 27: "Incident in New Baghdad" to air on The Documentary Channel, 8PM.

2012-04-14 Julian Assange's 'The World Tomorrow' 17 April

The long awaited television series 'The World Tomorrow' hosted by Julian Assange will begin airing worldwide this coming Tuesday 17 April at 15:30 Moscow time on both cable TV and online. The news has been meet with considerable speculation as to who Assange's mystery guests will be and has also been met with the now familiar 'Kremlin mouthpiece' dismissal from the mainstream media.

Transcripts of the interviews will also be made available online.

The series has been co-produced by Julian's own production company Quick Roll Productions together with Dartmouth Films, the company behind The War You Don't See.

Julian Assange The World Tomorrow 17 April 2012

15:30 MCK (Moscow time) equates to 4:30 in Los Angeles, 7:30 in New York, 12:30 in London, 13:30 in Zurich, 17:00 in New Delhi, 20:30 in Tokyo, and 21:30 in Sydney. For all other times see the following link.

After the initial broadcast, it will subsequently be broadcast every 2 hours for 24 hours.

http://timeanddate.com/worldclock/meeting.html

For more information on how to access RT in North America with Time Warner, Comcast Cable, Cablevision, Verizon, Cox, RCN, Dish, and others, see the link below.

http://rt.com/usa/where-to-watch/

'Frank and irreverent'

Julian's promised the show will have a 'frank and irreverent' tone.

My conviction is that power can only be transformed if it is taken seriously - but ordinary people must resist the temptation to defer to the powerful.

The music for the series has been composed by British-Sri Lankan artist M.I.A. aka Maya Arulpragasam, ranked by both Esquire and Time as one of the world's most influential people. Arulpragasam has previously released the mixtape Vicki Leekx in support of WikiLeaks and is currently enjoying success with her hit single 'Bad Girls'.

Frequently asked questions

The WikiLeaks website hosts a series of 'frequently asked questions' about the coming show.

Who produced the show? How can one license it?
The show was being produced by Quick Roll Productions, a company established by Julian Assange. The main production partner is Dartmouth Films, a UK producer of independent films. Indispensable help and advice has been received from friends and supporters of WikiLeaks. Those interested in licensing the show can contact the distributor, Journeyman Pictures.

What is RT's relationship with the show?
RT became the first television corporation to licence broadcasting rights for the first release of 26-minute edits of each of the episodes in English, Spanish, and Arabic. No one from RT was involved in the production of the show, all editorial decisions being made by Julian Assange himself.

Will the full material recorded during the interviews be made available?
WikiLeaks will make available as much material as possible within the constraints of Julian's circumstances. Longer edits of the episodes will be released in due course, and transcripts of the interviews will be published on the show's independent website worldtomorrow.wikileaks.org.

Anniversaries

The week including 17 April is also a week of several notable anniversaries and important dates for WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, and others.

17 April is also the 17 month anniversary of WL Central.
18 April is the 17 month anniversary of Marianne Ny's second arrest warrant for Julian Assange.
It's likely Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict will be handed down the same week.
17 April is the 500th day of the financial blockade against WikiLeaks.
20 April is Julian Assange's 500th day of detainment without charge.
23 April is Bradley Manning's 700th day of imprisonment without trial.
24-26 April: the next set of Bradley Manning pretrial hearings.
27-28 April: Kristinn Hrafnsson will be speaking at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia Italy.

'Kremlin mouthpiece'

Dismissals of RT as 'Kremlin mouthpiece' have been heard once again. TVNZ wrote that RT 'is considered a key Kremlin exercise in image enhancement by critics' without stating who those critics are, something that wouldn't be allowed on sites like Wikipedia. Those who frequent RT and its many regular shows of course would beg to differ. And the Alyona Show dealt with this matter already in January when the Assange show was announced.

Mystery guests

Several news outlets have claimed the first guest will be none other than MIA, although this can very well be a mistake on the part of one outlet that got quickly copied to others, All Things Digital being an example of this proliferation.

Cablegate journalist Phillip Dorling wrote the following for the Sydney Morning Herald.

Other interviewees understood to be included in what Assange described as an 'eclectic array' include American conservative writer and policy advocate David Horowitz, a prominent exiled Iranian opposition leader, an Egyptian revolutionary also under house arrest, and, in what appears to be a journalistic coup, a prominent figure in a major political group listed as a terrorist organisation in the US, Britain and Australia. The identities of all participants are yet to be publicly disclosed.

The list of interviewees remains a closely guarded secret.

Promotional videos

Five promotional and related videos have been released so far.

http://youtu.be/tSsrkB7Vbos
http://youtu.be/zacWhPT-Ngo
http://youtu.be/TMIDuLA57Kg
http://youtu.be/B0BS23BlZxY
http://youtu.be/SGTueyYY6w4

RT would seem to have also set up a promotional account at Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/WorldTomorrow

Further links

http://worldtomorrow.wikileaks.org/

http://rt.com/on-air/
http://rt.com/programs/schedule/
http://rt.com/programs/alyona-show/
http://rt.com/on-air/rt-america-air/

http://assange.rt.com
http://www.facebook.com/WorldTomorrow
http://rt.com/news/assange-world-tomorrow-premier-date-time-934/

Julian Assange's TV show The World Tomorrow gets launch date
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/julian-assanges-tv-show-g...

Assange set to release TV talk show
http://www.smh.com.au/national/assange-set-to-release-tv-talk-show-20120...

RT: Where to watch
http://rt.com/usa/where-to-watch/

2012-04-14 Polish, and other complicity in the CIA rendition and torture program

From late 2002 on, the CIA showed a sudden interest in a remote part of the Masovian countryside. Apart from its beautiful lakes and low population density, this area is only known for hosting a large military installation, containing a training center of the Secret Service. It consists of a cluster of several buildings, and a stretch of woods, which is enclosed by high barbed wire fences. From a distance, antennas can be seen overtowering the trees. An aerial photograph shows several clearings forming symmetrical patterns.

Over the years, a number of news outlets and other organizations have published evidence and witness accounts shedding light on these activities. They present a disturbing narrative:

- The CIA operated a covert flight network on European soil. (Council of Europe report)

- These flights were operated by subcontractors. A recent legal dispute over expenses exposed a wealth of information to the public. (Washington Post)

- Szymany air traffic control logged the CIA flights, but added a remark that flight plans were issued for Warsaw airport. (Rzeczpospolita)

- High ranking Polish border patrol traveled from Warsaw to Szymany to process the CIA flights, even though Szymany airport had own staff. (Airport staff member Mariola Przewlocka interviewed by the Guardian)

- Military vans with tinted windows arrived when a 737 from Kabul en route to Guantanamo landed. The airport was not equipped to handle such large aircraft. It was ordered that as few staff as possible was present at this time. (Airport staff member Mariola Przewlocka interviewed by the Guardian and the BBC.)

- At one occasion, a US diplomat was present, and turned her back when Polish military vans arrived. (Airport staff member Mariola Przewlocka interviewed by the Guardian)

- Landing fees were paid by Polish individuals in plain clothes. In one instance, he paid for de-icing of the run way, which should have been covered by the airport. They always paid three or four times the usual price. (Airport staff member Mariola Przewlocka interviewed by the Guardian)

- High ranking airport staff was told that the 'international flights' would be met by officials from the 'unit'. (Airport director Jaroslaw Jurczenko interviewed by the Guardian)

- The military installation in Stare Kiejkuty consists of two areas, a large training center, and a stretch of woods with limited access. This second area has separate road access, leading to a villa in the middle of the woods, about 600m away from the training center. It was also used to host high profile guests such as former presidents Lech Wałęsa and Aleksander Kwaśniewski. (TVP)

- Polish Secret Service drove the prisoners from Szymany to Stare Kiejkuty, dropping them off at the villa. (Gazeta Wyborcza)

- A prisoner describes snow on the ground when he arrived at an unknown airport. He says he was later on offered a water bottle with a Polish address on it. (Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in an interview with the Red Cross, as quoted by the BBC)

- The CIA operated a prison in an old riding school in Lithuania. (BBC)

- The CIA operated a prison in Bucharest. (AP and ARD)

- Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner Thomas Hammarberg stated that he has seen evidence on a CIA prison in Poland (TVP).

- US diplomatic staff liaised with Polish government officials regarding the press coverage of the CIA prison. (WLC according to Cablegate)

- The Polish Secret Service handed over files about collaboration with CIA to the prosecutor's office. (TVP and Gazeta Wyborcza)

Everything points to the fact that a CIA prison existed on Polish soil. This would have involved a complicity of the military branch of the Secret Service, who made one of their buildings available to the CIA. Moreover, higher ranks of border patrol services would have known about the incoming private flights with diplomatic status, and their rather unusual route. Equally, the US embassy would most likely have been informed about these flights, even if they were not provided with the full facts. Lastly, a larger number of European countries were complicit by allowing for CIA flights to operate discretely.

Some other aspects of the workings of the CIA prison remain obscure, and could potentially provide an avenue for investigation. For instance, deliveries of food supplies could have left an auditable money trail, if they were delegated to a subcontractor.

It also remains to be seen, which part of the Secret Service assisted the CIA with the transfer of prisoners to and from the airport, and with payment of the airport fees. Moreover, it is unclear how close the collaboration in fact was. This last issue is even more important as some evidence suggests that the role of the Polish agencies may not have been limited to practical tasks related to the prison itself:

A report in Rzeczpospolita claims that the Secret Service lent twenty analysts with a special expertize in the Near and Middle East to the CIA, based on Polish sources. A CIA source later confirmed this to Spiegel (however, the Spiegel article does only speak of "agents" without specifying their background). Rzeczpospolita says that they were given tasks by the US, and paid with credit cards without a limit. These tasks involved using their contacts and sources for American interests. Sources told Rzeczpospolita that the collaboration stemmed from the good impression Polish intelligence made when they provided the US with crucial evidence before and after the 9/11 attacks.

If such a collaboration indeed existed, the level of complicity between Poland and the US would be much higher than previously thought. This could in turn make Poland appear as an associate of the United States.

Over the past year, a number of high ranking officials commented on the case. Former PM Leszek Miller said that those investigating the CIA prison "invited al-Qa'ida into the country". It was also recently suggested by a parliamentary committee that Polish agencies should monitor the Arabic media for negative press coverage, to protect Polish citizens abroad from reprisals. According to Cablegate documents covered by WLC Iran had already threatened Poland with a dossier on the prison in 2006.

2012-04-15 How free speech becomes terrorism: The Tarek Mehanna case and the implications for WikiLeaks and Julian Assange

I am indebted to Glenn Greenwald who posted an article here on the Tarek Mehanna case.

Greenwald outlines the case:

Tarek Mehanna, an American Muslim, was convicted this week in a federal court in Boston and then sentenced yesterday to 17 years in prison. He was found guilty of supporting Al Qaeda (by virtue of translating Terrorists’ documents into English and expressing “sympathetic views” to the group) as well as conspiring to “murder” U.S. soldiers in Iraq (i.e., to wage war against an invading army perpetrating an aggressive attack on a Muslim nation)

In a link by Greenwald to Julia Spitz of MetroWest Daily News, further details emerge:

He was a 'serious young man' who wanted to 'exemplify Islam,' said the judge, but became consumed by a fervor that led him to support al Qaeda by translating materials from Arabic into English and 'proselytizing' to recruit others to embrace his views.

Embrace his views or incite others to violence? (one might ask). As I wrote here, about incitement on the subject of certain Americans inciting others to kill Julian Assange:

There is no automatic 1st Amendment protection per Brandenburg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444 (1969):
Freedoms of speech and press do not permit a State to forbid advocacy of the use of force or of law violation except where such advocacy is directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action

The Brandenberg 'test' therefore appears no longer to be 'good' US law, unless the prosecutor at trial managed to adduce evidence that Mehanna was directed by Al Queda to do as he did, in which case the bare elements of a conspiracy are made out. There appears to be no evidence that Mehanna did conspire with Al Queda and the information at hand strongly suggests Mehanna engaged only in independent advocacy against the US's propensity to wage wars on Muslim nations and kill innocent civilians in large numbers, without the command structure in any way being held accountable, (excepting for example, as history has recorded, prosecutions of the lowest ranking soldiers for torture at Abu Ghraib in Iraq.)

I suspect that the jury may have been misdirected in the Mehanna case by the judge on points of law, but even if that is incorrect, it seems apparent that in terrorism cases around the world, juries can be so easily prejudiced against those who hold repugnant views such that it is becoming impossible to conduct fair trials in 'terrorism' cases. (The US is not alone in this respect and this writer and lawyer is an equal opportunity critic of an Australian case where certain things happened during the trial where the jury was/must_have_been influenced by certain events that should have seen the jury discharged and the trial aborted. That case, I believe is/should be wending its way to the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.)

At sentence Mehanna, in part read this to sentencing Judge O'Toole:

All those videos and translations and childish bickering over ‘Oh, he translated this paragraph’ and ‘Oh, he edited that sentence,’ and all those exhibits revolved around a single issue: Muslims who were defending themselves against American soldiers doing to them exactly what the British did to America. It was made crystal clear at trial that I never, ever plotted to “kill Americans” at shopping malls or whatever the story was. The government’s own witnesses contradicted this claim, and we put expert after expert up on that stand, who spent hours dissecting my every written word, who explained my beliefs. Further, when I was free, the government sent an undercover agent to prod me into one of their little “terror plots,” but I refused to participate. Mysteriously, however, the jury never heard this.

So, this trial was not about my position on Muslims killing American civilians. It was about my position on Americans killing Muslim civilians, which is that Muslims should defend their lands from foreign invaders – Soviets, Americans, or Martians. This is what I believe. It’s what I’ve always believed, and what I will always believe. This is not terrorism, and it’s not extremism. It’s what the arrows on that seal above your head represent: defense of the homeland. So, I disagree with my lawyers when they say that you don’t have to agree with my beliefs – no. Anyone with commonsense and humanity has no choice but to agree with me. If someone breaks into your home to rob you and harm your family, logic dictates that you do whatever it takes to expel that invader from your home.

But when that home is a Muslim land, and that invader is the US military, for some reason the standards suddenly change. Common sense is renamed ”terrorism” and the people defending themselves against those who come to kill them from across the ocean become “the terrorists” who are ”killing Americans.”...

The right to self defence (or to argue for self defence?) is necessarily enshrined in domestic law. For an adversarial system example :

(1) A person is not criminally responsible for an offence if the person carries out the conduct constituting the offence in self-defence.
(2) A person carries out conduct in self-defence if and only if the person believes the conduct is necessary:
(a) to defend himself or herself or another person, or
(b) to prevent or terminate the unlawful deprivation of his or her liberty or the liberty of another person, or
(c) to protect property from unlawful taking, destruction, damage or interference, or
(d) to prevent criminal trespass to any land or premises or to remove a person committing any such criminal trespass,
and the conduct is a reasonable response in the circumstances as he or she perceives them.

While this is domestic law the principles are similar and apply to international armed conflicts. (The only complications that occur is when non state actors become involved, but that does not necessarily deny the right of self defence, however those exercising it are obliged to comply with the laws of armed conflict and safeguard civilian lives.)

What Mehanna did (apparently) was to support the principle of self defence as exercised by Al Queda against the US military, (what is commonly believed by jurists around the world to have been an illegal war). While Al Queda is clearly an odious and murderous group with much innocent blood on its hands, (among others) its killing of invaders from the USA in Iraq was not necessarily contrary to the laws of armed conflict. Mehannah's advocacy of the right to self defence however came against the US's quasi-legal view that anybody who opposes them militarily is a prima facie terrorist, or terrorist supporter.

The Wikileaks Dimension.

The concern I have is that the Mehannah case does not auger well for the future and the probability that Julian Assange will at some stage be extradited to the USA. Readers will recall VP Biden's statement that Assange is a "hi-tech terrorist" for example. The climate in the USA, given the level of the sycophantic media inspired near hysterical outrage against Wikileaks and Julian Assange in particular: is palpable.

Judges in my jurisdiction give great attention to instructing juries that they must only judge a case on the evidence before them, and that to seek outside information is not only highly improper but attracts sanctions; that as members of the jury panel and if prejudiced against the defendant they must declare that prejudice and be excused. In the US climate, given the depth of anti Wikileaks attacks; corporate withholding of financial services crippling Wikileaks to a highly significant degree; smears by former media partners including the New York Times; outright lies that Julian Assange has been charged with sex offences (when he has not): would all make problematic a fair trial of Julian Assange on whatever indictment was presented. To the adage that a grand jury will indict a ham sandwich, could be added that a US jury will convict a ham sandwich indicted for terrorism or terrorist related offences.

The common thread of such an indictment, (as it was for Mehanna) is of course about free speech or lack thereof. We can readily imagine, or predict what DOJ prosecutors will present in an opening address, "...aiding and abetting the enemies of the USA members of the jury..."..."material support for TERRORISTS TERRORISTS, members of the jury, don't forget that important part of the prosecutions case (subtext: convict this dude and rest easy in your beds)!!!").

Such aiding and abetting simply boiled down, being of course the release of damaging evidence that inadvertently (and irrelevantly) caused groups like Al Queda to either gloat or laugh at the US's expense. So much for the rights of the First Amendment.

Whatever part of the Espionage Act that a US indictment of Julian Assange contains, we can be sure of one thing, Julian Assange, like Bradley Manning, would be in custody for years before the case ever came to trial. And it's probably correct to say that that's the way the US government would want it to be.

A final thought on what people might say or believe were Julian Assange extradited and put on trial in the USA:

1) US domestic law trumps any or all international law.
2) The Australian government on current trends, washing their hands in true Pontius Pilate tradition would be found wanting.

2012-04-17 #WikiLeaks News Update: WikiLeaks on Q&A; The World Tomorrow; Other news

WikiLeaks has been financially blockaded without process for 500 days.
Julian Assange has been detained without charge for 497 days.
Bradley Manning has been imprisoned without trial for 694 days.
A secret Grand Jury has been active in the U.S. without transparency for 580 days.

WikiLeaks News:

Today marks the 500th day of the unlawful financial blockade against WikiLeaks by MasterCard, Visa, PayPal, Bank of America, and Western Union. WikiLeaks has lost 95% of their revenue because of this blockade. Find out how you can donate at the WikiLeaks website.

WikiLeaks lawyer Geoffrey Robertson QC and Australian Attorney-General Nicola Roxon were among the panelists on Australian TV show "Q and A" last night, where WikiLeaks and Julian Assange was discussed. An audience poll showed 79% believe the Australian government is not doing enough to support Julian Assange. At one point, Roxon falsely stated that Julian Assange had fled from Sweden. Watch the full segment below.

Firedoglake's Kevin Gosztola has written an article about the Obama administration's indifference towards Pakistan's opposition of unmanned drones, referencing WikiLeaks cables containing comments by Pakistani officials on the subject.

A new poll shows that support for Australian PM Julia Gillard is waning. Only 44% of Australians find her trustworthy, down from 61% in 2010, and dissatisfaction with her rose to 62%. Gillard previously called WikiLeaks "illegal," a false statement she was later forced to redact.

Chase Madar, author of the new book "The Passion of Bradley Manning," wrote an article about WikiLeaks, war crimes, and the poverty of international law.

Julian Assange News:

Julian Assange's talk show, "The World Tomorrow," premieres today at 11:30AM GMT and will subsequently air every 2 hours for a 24-hour period. RT's editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan said she has "no doubt" that Assange's controversal first guest will "lead to calls to shut [RT] down." See our article for worldwide premiere times and how you can watch it.

RT has released their full 20-minute interview with Julian Assange about "The World Tomorrow." Watch the interview below or read the transcript from RT.

Episodes of "The World Tomorrow" will be available at the exclusive, authorized YouTube channel shortly after broadcast on RT.

WikiLeaks announced that "The World Tomorrow" has been licensed by a major group for Italian broadcast. This is on top of English, Spanish, and Arabic broadcasts via RT.

In an article at New Matilda, legal scholar Max Atkinson analysed the High Court's ruling in the Assange case that a Swedish Prosecution Authority is a judicial authority, the point which is currently being challenged at the Supreme Court.

An article in The New American discussed the lack of due process and fundamental civil liberties in Julian Assange's case. The article also contains quotes from an interview they conducted with Christine Assange.

Bradley Manning News:

bmfalkvingesm

Rick Falkvinge, founder of the Swedish and first Pirate Party, has joined the "I Am Bradley Manning" photo campaign.

An Op-Ed in The Guardian detailed the Obama administration's hostility towards whistleblowers, including Bradley Manning.

Craig Murray, former UK Ambassador to Uzbekistan, gave a lecture at Cardiff University in support of Bradley Manning. Beforehand, he was interviewed by BBC Radio about his support for whistleblowers.

............................................

Upcoming Dates & Events:

April 17-28: Performances of "The Radicalization of Bradley Manning" held between these dates in schools across Wales.

April 17: Julian Assange's Supreme Court verdict expected to be handed down this week.

April 17: Julian Assange's talk show, "The World Tomorrow," premieres on RT, 11:30AM GMT..

April 17: WikiLeaks' 500th day of financial blockade without process.

April 19: "WikiLeaks, Assange, and Defending Democracy" panel at BMW Edge in Melbourne, 6:30PM, with Christine Assange, Scott Ludlam, Lizzie O'Shea, Bernard Keane, and Greg Barns.

April 20: Julian Assange's 500th day of detainment without charge.

April 23: Bradley Manning's 700th day of imprisonment without trial.

April 24-26: Bradley Manning's next set of pre-trial hearings. Support events planned worldwide.

May 23: Julian Assange to speak at Enterprise Information Management Congress 2012 in The Netherlands.

May 27: "Incident in New Baghdad" to air on The Documentary Channel, 8PM.

2012-04-18 Christine Assange Demands Attorney General's Resignation

In an emotional ABC radio interview today, Christine Assange, mother of WikiLeaks founder and editor-in-chief Julian Assange, has demanded the resignation of Australian Attorney General Nicola Roxon.

The demand came after Ms Roxon appeared with other panelists, including WikiLeaks lawyer Geoffrey Robertson QC, on an Australian political TV show, "Q And A", on Monday 16th April 2012.

Christine Assange says Ms Roxon "has just point blank unblinkingly lied to the Australian people all the way through that Q And A session."

Ms Roxon's appearance on the show was eagerly awaited because since December 2010 there has been almost complete silence on Assange and WikiLeaks from both major Australian political parties. Radio presenter Phil Kafcaloudes replayed the following segment from the Q and A show:

Roxon: "There isn't something at the moment where we can intervene. We've made representations about proper processes, we've done all of the things that you should. He is not in a country that has doesn't have a legal system that operates properly. Ah, even I, as I said at the beginning, think it's an odd process, that you can keep someone detained for this period of time without there being a charge -"

Host: "Have you protested about that?"

Roxon: "We have made our views very clearly known to the - "

Robertson: "Not to the Australian public you haven't."

Roxon: "- to the Americans. Well, I'm here doing an interview today. This is a very public thing to be doing."

Robertson: "Good. What have you said to the Americans?"

(clapping, laughter)

Roxon: "Well we've said lots of things to the Americans."

Robertson: "Have you said we want him to come home first before you try to extradite him for an offence that you claim he has committed outside America?"

Roxon: "As you know, I don't make - Firstly, I don't make a claim about whether he's committed an offence, but other countries are able to make those assertions. If you are in another country or breaking the laws of another country, we have made very clear that we want all of the proper processes to apply. We have made very clear that he's an Australian and he's welcome to come home to Australia..."

Christine Assange began by denying that the Australian government has provided proper representation for her son. She said they did nothing until she stood outside former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's office on a Tuesday, and then a letter was sent out on the Wednesday.

She also denied that Sweden has "a legal system that operates properly".

"Sweden has breached all its own laws on this case from Day One," she said. "And the Australian government has said nothing. Flagrant abuses, abuses of not only police and prosecutorial procedure but human rights as well."

Ms Assange has previously tweeted a lengthy list of over 90 talking points about her son's legal problems, including embarrassing details about the Swedish government's handling of the case.

"Now Nicola Roxon knows full well the list of all the breaches because there was a cross-bench meeting on 2nd March 2011 where all of those breaches were listed by [WikiLeaks lawyer] Jennifer Robinson, in her submission to parliament."

"And just to make sure that they got it, I then emailed it to Nicola Roxon. In fact I emailed all the submissions, the briefs about the illegal breaches, and the politicization of the case, to every MP and every Senator. And Nicola Roxon got it as well."

Ms Assange said that Ms Roxon "has lied, continually, about the breaches."

PK: "Did you get a reaction from Nicola Roxon?"
CA: "Nothing."
PK: "Have you ever had any contact with Nicola Roxon?"
CA: "No."
PK: "Has she ever contacted you?"
CA: "No. No.. In fact they refused to even answer Julian's lawyers' letter for about five weeks, until I started jumping up and down with the media over it."

Ms Assange claimed to have noted "about 18 different lies" from Ms Roxon and cited several of them before the interviewer cut her off:

1. Roxon claimed not to know that it is easier to extradite Julian from Sweden than from the UK. In fact the US-Swedish bilateral treaty includes a Temporary Surrender Regime, which makes extradition much easier, while UK courts and the media are currently in an uproar over several high profile US extradition cases. Greens Senator Scott Ludlum made this very clear to the Australian Senate, but both major parties blocked Ludlum's motion "to at least cut off that particular process".

2. Asked whether the so-called ASIO WikiLeaks amendment "lowers the bar" for Assange to be extradited to the USA, Roxon told the Q And A audience, "No I don't think it does." The amendment significantly expanded ASIO's powers to spy on WikiLeaks and other Australians engaged in activism overseas. Changes to the extradition act have also recently been made by Roxon's department.

Ms Assange noted that US Ambassador Bleich said a week before President Obama visited Australia (16th November 2011) that Australia's extradition obligations needed to be changed. Former Attorney General Robert McLellan was replaced by Ms Roxon less than a month later (14 December 2011).

"The extradition amendments DO impact on Julian," said Ms Assange. "She's lied there again."

3. At one stage (15:50+ mins into the Q and A show) Geoffrey Robertson was discussing the Swedish allegations against Assange when Ms Roxon interjected to state: "he fled from Sweden." Robertson angrily replied, "No he didn't!"

(This erroneous public statement from Roxon follows Prime Minister Julia Gillard's earlier assertion that WikiLeaks was "illegal". Both women are trained lawyers.)

"She said that Julian fled Sweden," said Christine Assange. "Now she well knows that that is a lie. And she also knows that that is what they are doing to smear him. Julian was given permission to leave Sweden by the Swedish prosecutor."

An audience poll during the Q And A show found that 78% of respondent believe the Australian government is not doing enough to support Julian Assange. Host Tony Jones asked Ms Roxon: "Do you want to comment?"

Roxon replied with a nervous laugh: "Not particularly."

2012-04-19 #WikiLeaks News Update: "The World Tomorrow" premiere; Other news

WikiLeaks has been financially blockaded without process for 502 days.
Julian Assange has been detained without charge for 499 days.
Bradley Manning has been imprisoned without trial for 696 days.
A secret Grand Jury has been active in the U.S. without transparency for 582 days.