During parliamentary proceedings yesterday, Independent Member for Clark, Andrew Wilkie, successfully moved a motion calling on the House of Representatives to recognise “the importance of the UK and USA bringing the matter to a close so that Mr Assange can return home to his family in Australia.”1
To their shame, all Opposition members present, except for the Member for Bass, Bridget Archer, voted against the motion. Nevertheless, the vote marks an unprecedented show of political support for Julian Assange by the Federal Parliament.
In his speech, Andrew Wilkie noted that on 20th and 21st February, the High Court of Justice in London will hear Julian Assange’s request for leave to appeal his US extradition. If this appeal is unsuccessful, British authorities could extradite Julian Assange to the United States within hours of the court’s decision being handed down.
Given the gravity of the situation, it is worth quoting at length from Andrew Wilkie’s speech:
Let’s not forget that in 2010 Julian Assange, through WikiLeaks, revealed hard evidence of US war crimes and other misconduct in Iraq, in Afghanistan and at Guantanamo Bay. Who could possibly forget the grainy image, provided to WikiLeaks by a brave whistleblower, that subsequently was released under the title ‘collateral murder’? It was footage of a US attack helicopter gunning down and killing innocent civilians and Reuters journalists in a street in Iraq. We only know of that because Julian Assange made us aware of it. He was doing his job. He was exercising every right he has as a journalist to tell us about wrongdoing.
The injustice of all this is absolutely breathtaking—absolutely breathtaking—as much as the attack on journalism is terrifying because if this matter runs to its shameful conclusion, then it will have set a precedent that applies to all Australian journalists. If ever any Australian journalist annoys a foreign government in any way, and if that government is a government that the Australian government is hoping to curry favour with, then who’s to say that the Australian government won’t be complicit in the extradition or the transport of that Australian journalist to that country?2
These fears have been consistently expressed by the campaign to free Julian Assange at home and abroad over many years.3
Julian Assange has been indicted under the Espionage Act of 1917, which has been described as a shameful chapter in American history that needs to be annulled.
Specifically, the founder of WikiLeaks is being prosecuted for having published the redacted content of thousands of classified US government and military cables, many of which exposed US war crimes committed in Iraq and Afghanistan. These cables were leaked to him by then army officer Chelsea Manning.
The US initially charged Assange with one computer hacking offence. It subsequently added 17 more charges from the Espionage Act of 1917. This indictment was then superseded by a US East Virginia District Court indictment in June 2020 which carries a 175 years imprisonment term.
Not only is the pursuit of Assange by the US a scandalous case of extraterritorial over-reach, but the use of the Espionage Act to punish journalism and suppress free speech is a serious threat to democracy.
The targeting of Assange by the US not only affects him, but as emphasised by Andrew Wilkie, it also has implications for all journalists and citizens seeking to understand the truth.
In an address to the National Press Club in May 2023, Stella Assange referred to these dangerous implications as “criminalizing public interest journalistic activity”:
(I)f you criminalize what Julian Assange did, which is what mainstream media organizations do all day every day, you are criminalizing journalism and that precedent will be used against others.4
Notes
1. Andrew Wilkie, Media Release, Feb 14, 2024.
2. Andrew Wilkie, Speech on a motion regarding Julian Assange, House of Representatives, Feb 14, 2024. Navigate to Motions/Assange, Mr Julian Paul. Other speakers to the motion included Josh Wilson MP (Labor), Bridget Archer MP (Lib) and Adam Bandt MP (Greens). Also view Andrew Wilkie’s speech in video above.
3. Democracy Now!, Free Julian Assange: Noam Chomsky, Dan Ellsberg & Jeremy Corbyn Lead Call at Belmarsh Tribunal, May 29, 2023. (Video duration: 59:04 mins).
4. Stella Assange, Speech to the National Press Club, May 22, 2023. (Video duration: 59:40 mins).