The court on Friday accepted the promise from the American authorities that the Wikileaks founder will not end up in an extra-security prison, and that he can serve a possible prison sentence in his homeland Australia. British Home Secretary Priti Patel is therefore free to extradite Julian Assange to the United States. According to his supporters, who were massively present at the court, Assange should be put on a plane to Norway to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
At the beginning of this year, a London judge blocked deportation, because she said there was a risk that the 50-year-old journalist would commit suicide after extradition. She expressed fears that Assange, who is accused of espionage by the Americans, will be held under tough conditions in the high-security ADX Florence prison in Colorado. After a two-day trial, the court overturned that verdict after Americans promised that the fugitive whistleblower would be properly cared for.
According to Lord Chief Justice Burnett, his colleague Vanessa Baraitser would have judged differently if she had been reassured by the US government at the time. Assange’s mental health, however, is fragile. He has been held in the maximum-security Belmarsh prison for two years, between terrorists and serious criminals. Before that, the Australian spent seven years locked up in the embassy of Ecuador, the country that offered him political asylum after he violated the terms of his bail in 2012. This hospitality lapsed after a change of power.
175 years in prison
The United States has been hunting for years for Assange, who revealed half a million confidential government documents 11 years ago. There are 18 charges pending against Assange. If found guilty, he could face a maximum prison sentence of 175 years. The US prosecutor must, among other things, demonstrate that by disclosing information about the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan lives have been endangered. According to Assange’s lawyers, there is no evidence for this.
Immediately after the verdict, his partner Stella Morris, who he married in prison, said the legal battle is far from over. In an emotional statement to the court, she claimed the Americans’ guarantees are “totally unreliable.” Wikileaks editor-in-chief Kristinn Hrafnsson said his predecessor’s life is in danger. “This case is about the right of a free press to publish without being threatened by a harassing world power,” the Icelander said.
The extradition case now goes back to an ordinary court, which has little choice but to follow the verdict of the high judges. After the legal battle, the political trajectory follows. It will then be up to the Boris Johnson administration to decide whether Assange should indeed be put on the plane. Although he has long since completed his sentence for violating the bail conditions, Assange remains in prison due to an alleged flight risk.
It is a difficult file for Minister Patel. The United Kingdom does not want to give the impression of being on the leash of the Americans. In the past, extradition requests have been rejected by the Americans, such as from Gary McKinnon, an autistic hacker. On the other hand, London would like a good working relationship with Washington, especially with a trade agreement in mind.
–
