Founder of Wikileaks has been in prison since 2019. President had already said that “Assange should have been rewarded for revealing secrets of the powerful instead of being imprisoned”.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva celebrated, this Tuesday (25), the release of the Australian journalist and founder of Wikileaks Julian Assange, 52 years old. “The world is a little better and less unfair today. Julian Assange is free after 1,901 days in prison. His release and return home, albeit late, represent a democratic victory and the fight for freedom of the press”, wrote Lula in a post on social media.
Assange has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain and disclose classified information in a plea agreement with the US courts. The activist is accused by the US courts of 18 crimes, including espionage, over the publication in 2010 of military and diplomatic documents that revealed war crimes and human rights abuses that occurred in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He was detained in 2019 in the United Kingdom where he was serving a sentence for violating the conditions of his parole when he took refuge, in 2012, in the Ecuadorian embassy, in London, to avoid extradition to Sweden. At the time, Sweden requested the extradition of the activist due to accusations of sexual crimes.
According to Wikileaks, Assange left Belmarsh maximum security prison this Tuesday morning (25) and has already embarked for Australia, his final destination.
On different occasions, President Lula spoke out about the journalist’s situation, classifying his arrest as “a shame” and saying that Assange should have been rewarded for revealing “secrets of the powerful” instead of being imprisoned.
Assange’s wife campaigns to pay for travel expenses
Julian Assange’s wife, Stella Moris-Smith Robertson, organizer of the Free Assange campaign, published a post on the X network asking for contributions via crowdfunding to pay the debt of 520 thousand dollars with the Australian government. This is the amount charged for the jet that took him to Australia, where he will continue his life in freedom alongside his partner.
“Julian’s journey to freedom comes at a huge cost: Julian owes $520,000, which he is obliged to pay to the Australian government for the charter flight VJ199. He was not allowed to fly on commercial airlines or routes to Saipan and onwards to Australia. Any contribution big or small is greatly appreciated,” says Stella.
Source: https://www.ocafezinho.com/2024/06/25/lula-comemora-julian-assange-livre-vitoria-da-luta-pela-liberdade-de-imprensa/
