Stella Assange, the wife of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, demanded yesterday Saturday that the British government not implement the court's decision to extradite him to the US, ruling that his fate now depends on a "political decision" that "will have an impact across Europe".
On Wednesday, the British judiciary officially gave the green light for the 50-year-old Australian to be handed over to US authorities, who want to try him for espionage because of the release of thousands of confidential and secret diplomatic and military documents mainly about US activity in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It is now up to Britain's Home Secretary, Pretty Patel, to decide whether to sign the extradition order. "We have four weeks to forward our comments to Priti Patel before she makes her decision. If she signs the order () we are in a position to appeal on fundamental issues that have not yet been appealed, such as freedom of the press or the political motive for the prosecution," Mrs Assange explained during an interview with Agence France-Presse on the sidelines of a demonstration in support of her husband in Brussels.
"The grounds for appeal in the UK are very limited, and the extradition agreement tips the scales too far in favour of the US, without allowing the US charges to be examined (). We will go all the way to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary," added the South African lawyer.
"This is a European problem: the heart of democratic values is at stake; what will be decided will have an impact all over the world, for journalists, everywhere in Europe," she insisted, considering that a "window" has been opened to raise public awareness and for "political arguments" to be appreciated in London.
If convicted of espionage, Mr Assange risks a 175-year sentence. He remains imprisoned in the United Kingdom at Belmarsh Maximum Security Prison. The WikiLeaks founder was arrested by British police in April 2019, after the then government of Ecuador revoked the political asylum it had granted him for seven years, and imprisoned.
For Stella Assange, her husband's fate is a "completely political" issue - it always has been. So as not to displease Washington, London "confined itself to saying it would let justice decide. Now that the court has confirmed the extradition order, there is no longer any pretext: the British government is being asked to decide for itself in the coming weeks whether to extradite Julian," he stressed.
While "the British government () condemns war crimes in Ukraine", it is being asked "to show whether it is ready to proceed with the extradition of a journalist for denouncing war crimes", he observed.
Source: CNA
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
Source
