Julian Assange is arrested by British police

[Heathen Hammer]

LONDON – In breaking news, WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange has been arrested by British authorities. Ecuador has decided to suspend diplomatic asylum from activist Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, according to a statement from Ecuadorean President Lenin Moreno, released today.

“Today, I announce that the disrespectful and aggressive conduct of Mr. Julian Assange, the discourteous and threatening declarations of his allied organization against Ecuador, and, above all, the transgression of international treaties have brought the situation to a point where asylum for Mr. Assange is unsustainable and unfeasible,” said Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno.

Assange, who was born in Australia, created WikiLeaks as a vehicle for people to publish secret materials anonymously. It gained enormous attention in 2010, releasing troves of classified United States documents and videos about the wars in Afghanistan and in Iraq, and confidential cables sent among diplomats, The New York Times reported.
The files documented the killing of civilians and journalists and the abuse of detainees by forces of the United States and other countries, as well as by private contractors, and it aired officials’ unvarnished, often unflattering views of allies and of American actions. It also revealed the identities of people working with coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, which United States officials said put their lives at risk, the report continued.

https://www.fort-russ.com/2019/04/br...ecuador-video/
Although official statement from Ecuador blames Assange himself, one can hardly buy the whole narrative about "disrespectful and aggressive" conduct of a man trapped in building for 7 years for doing his job (journalism), so Ecuador must have been pressured by US and/or other powers to hand him over.
In the days of mainstream media mainly working as propaganda outlet for political and financial elites, Assange and Wikileaks somewhat became symbols of actual journalism. So what will happen to Assange now? Will he be able to find his way to safety like Snowden, or will he "commit suicide" or end up extradited into US for a show trial? If the latter occurs, how would public react?

[Aexodus]

I thought the deal was that the US couldn’t extradite him for whistleblowing? He didn’t take asylum for the wikileaks thing in the first place. Somethings not right here.

[Aexodus]

Correction, he never leaked anything. He’s not a whistleblower, he published what already been leaked, which was the truth of what the US was up to in the Middle East such as deliberatly shooting civilians, which shouldn’t be a crime. This is the same thing the Washington Post did when it published the Pentagon Papers detailing the horrific things America was doing in Vietnam. So were the Wash Post criminals too?

[Bethrezen]

Covering true terrorism is a crime.

[mongrel]

Correction, he never leaked anything. He’s not a whistleblower, he published what already been leaked, which was the truth of what the US was up to in the Middle East such as deliberatly shooting civilians, which shouldn’t be a crime. This is the same thing the Washington Post did when it published the Pentagon Papers detailing the horrific things America was doing in Vietnam. So were the Wash Post criminals too?

Is he not a foreigner who allegedly raped some Scandinavian women? That was the original reason why he went into hiding. Given the number of foreigners raping Scandi threads posted on this forum, I would have thought some people would be delighted.

[Gallus]

Although official statement from Ecuador blames Assange himself, one can hardly buy the whole narrative about "disrespectful and aggressive" conduct of a man trapped in building for 7 years for doing his job (journalism), so Ecuador must have been pressured by US and/or other powers to hand him over.

Not exactly, wikileaks published some undesirable facts about the president of Ecuador. That's why he's no longer welcome.

[mongrel]

Not exactly, wikileaks published some undesirable facts about the president of Ecuador. That's why he's no longer welcome.

What a plonker he is.

[Cookiegod]

Is he not a foreigner who allegedly raped some Scandinavian women? That was the original reason why he went into hiding. Given the number of foreigners raping Scandi threads posted on this forum, I would have thought some people would be delighted.

Behold:
A troll with zero arguments.

Not exactly, wikileaks published some undesirable facts about the president of Ecuador. That's why he's no longer welcome.

No, that's not it. Lenin (that name alone should be a red flag ) Moreno campaigned on the basis that he'd continue the policies of his predecessor Rafael Correa. The second Moreno got into office, he made a complete U-turn. It's far bigger than Assange, a complete shift in foreign policy especially, and everything else is just pretense.
They tried to make Assange leave by making his life as miserable in the embassy as possible. Once they realised that wouldn't work, they finally went ahead and accepted the PR-desaster.
Note that this even includes compromising their own embassy's security to enable complete surveillance of him.

What a plonker he is.

You have close to 16000 (!!!) posts on this forum.
I have to ask: Is there even a single one of them that isn't complete garbage? Any post where you actually contributed with something substantial, said something intelligent?
Could you point me to just one example?

[Abdülmecid I]

Cookiegod has hit the nail on the head. To sum up, in the last presidential elections, Rafael Correa, the known center-leftist leader of Ecuador and generally verbally hostile to American interests in Southern America, refused to participate. Correa claimed that he wanted to retire from politics, but he was also barred from prolonging his presidential tenure by the Constitution. The Constitution had been amended to abolish the term limit, but the changes could not take place immediately, unless a popular referendum demanded otherwise. In my opinion, it is more probable that Correa planned to return to politics, in the future, as he wanted to evade the controversy of circumventing the laws of Ecuador, while his reputation as a proponent of democracy had already suffered. However, his successor and former-vice president, Lenín Moreno, attacked the legacy of Correa and drastically changed* the course of the country's foreign policy. Correa is essentially exiled in Belgium, while the second-in-command, Jorge Glas is imprisoned for corruption. Meanwhile, Correa has restored the relations between Ecuador and the United States, as even Pence visited the country, while the removal of Assange from the embassy is a clear sign of goodwill towards Washington.

Many pundits suggest that the reason for this dramatic U-turn is the treasury's terrible state, despite the previous administration succeeding in reducing both absolute poverty and overall inequality. The increased debt has forced Ecuador to ask for a loan the International Monetary Fund, so the government is obliged to impose neo-liberal policies, undermining the reforms of Correa, while a diplomatic overture towards the wealthiest country in the Earth also seems wise. Economy might have played a role, but, in my opinion, the crux of the matter lies in the struggle inside the ruling party. Moreno was obviously supposed to assume power only temporarily, but instead he has attacked the party's elite and even its legendary symbol, which means that he desperately lacks allies. He probably tries to form a new basis of support among centrists, who dislike Correa's radicalism, in order to maintain his presence in the Ecuador's supreme office. Ousting Assange is a clever strategy of gaining potential allies, both domestically (from the conservative establishment and the upper segments of the society) and externally.

What a plonker he is.

Why such hostility? The rape charges in Sweden are clearly invented, as even the narrative of the alleged victim is self-contradictory and subject to rapid change. WikiLeaks has provided a great service to journalism, the public and even historiography, by publishing confidential documents, therefore sabotaging government propaganda and helping voters and scientists to better evaluate the true nature of political, financial, social, military amd religious events around the world. I agree that WikiLeaks has gradually evolved into a more partisan organisation, when it comes to American politics, but let's not forget that the spark that ignited the fire was the decision of the Obama administration, despite its pretenses to progressivism and leniency, to ruthlessly persecute both WikiLeaks and the whistblowers, who were punished harshly enough to discourage any potential imitators. Even the fact that the evidence released by WikiLeaks (which, by the way, has never altered the content of the information it propagates) can be manipulated by other actors, does not mean that any citizen who values human rights and opposes state authoritarianism should insult Assange and his contributions.

*Jacobine Magazine is obviously biased in favour of Correa, but you get the gist.

[Himster]

Another victory for totalitarianism.
I would quite like to see this turn into a show trial. The outcry from it would be deafening. The rapid advance of totalitarianism in western politics is not sustainable... I hope. Perhaps this'll be the straw that breaks the monstrous camel's back.

[Vanoi]

Little exaggerated don't you think Himster? Don't like sensitive government, diplomatic, and military files and you fine.

[Kyriakos]

[Gallus]

Another victory for totalitarianism.
I would quite like to see this turn into a show trial. The outcry from it would be deafening. The rapid advance of totalitarianism in western politics is not sustainable... I hope. Perhaps this'll be the straw that breaks the monstrous camel's back.

The reality is that most people simply don't care. At least not enough to try to change something. Because we've seen what trying to do that does. No, it's better not to care. Otherwise you might just end up like Assange.


First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out
Because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.

[Vanoi]

WikiLeaks did way more than just expose some illegal acts.

Like leaking the names of Afghan informants something Julian himself admitted did wrong.

[Cookiegod]

Many pundits suggest that the reason for this dramatic U-turn is the treasury's terrible state, despite the previous administration succeeding in reducing both absolute poverty and overall inequality. The increased debt has forced Ecuador to ask for a loan the International Monetary Fund, so the government is obliged to impose neo-liberal policies, undermining the reforms of Correa, while a diplomatic overture towards the wealthiest country in the Earth also seems wise. Economy might have played a role, but, in my opinion, the crux of the matter lies in the struggle inside the ruling party. Moreno was obviously supposed to assume power only temporarily, but instead he has attacked the party's elite and even its legendary symbol, which means that he desperately lacks allies. He probably tries to form a new basis of support among centrists, who dislike Correa's radicalism, in order to maintain his presence in the Ecuador's supreme office. Ousting Assange is a clever strategy of gaining potential allies, both domestically (from the conservative establishment and the upper segments of the society) and externally.

Just want to highlight the IMF-aspect. The US controls the IMF and the IMF thus grants loans to whomever and whenever the US sees fit. We have plenty of recent examples for that.
It is a very very safe bet the US would not have deemed Ecuador fit for that loan, if it hadn't been for that exact change of policy.

Though I personally believe this foreign policy shift is not purely driven by a need for cash, but is also instrumental for the elimination of the Correa faction in the government. You correctly state that Correa had merely envisaged Moreno as his placeholder for one term to then be likely reelected due to his rather solid popularity. Moreno does not want that, he wants to stay. And to stay you need to replace untrustworthy elites with those you can trust.

The rape charges in Sweden are clearly invented, as even the narrative of the alleged victim is self-contradictory and subject to rapid change.

It is also not coincidental that he was accused of sexual misconduct, not of burglary, fraud, or anything of that sort.
Most criminal charges place the burden of proof on the accuser. But if you're facing rape charges, you're guilty until proven innocent.
Everything that can be abused will be abused - especially when politics get involved.

Little exaggerated don't you think Himster? Don't like sensitive government, diplomatic, and military files and you fine.

So you say journalists don't have the right to publish sensitive files that were leaked to them? Boy what a great fan of democracy you are.

[Vanoi]

So you say journalists don't have the right to publish sensitive files that were leaked to them? Boy what a great fan of democracy you are.

Democracy is a form of government not journalists being able to help leak and publish any sensitive documents including documents that endangered people's lives. Cry me a river.

[mongrel]

Behold:
A troll with zero arguments.

His alleged sex offences are a matter of record in real life, or has some magic wish fairy spirited them away without my noticing?

You have close to 16000 (!!!) posts on this forum.
I have to ask: Is there even a single one of them that isn't complete garbage? Any post where you actually contributed with something substantial, said something intelligent?
Could you point me to just one example?

That's a bit obsessive, if not creepy. If you are checking my posting history how on Earth did you miss the one consistently well-controlled thread in the Pit? The one which may now be extended to Halloween.

I am free to knock Ass-ange in an Ass-ange thread, especially given his reported dodgy beliefs. Your interjections on the other hand are off-topic.

As regards WikiLeaks itself, I'm with Mike Pompeo. He said it was "a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia'

[Aexodus]

Is he not a foreigner who allegedly raped some Scandinavian women? That was the original reason why he went into hiding. Given the number of foreigners raping Scandi threads posted on this forum, I would have thought some people would be delighted.

the two women concerned never accused him of rape

WikiLeaks has provided a great service to journalism, the public and even historiography, by publishing confidential documents, therefore sabotaging government propaganda and helping voters and scientists to better evaluate the true nature of political, financial, social, military amd religious events around the world. I agree that WikiLeaks has gradually evolved into a more partisan organisation, when it comes to American politics, but let's not forget that the spark that ignited the fire was the decision of the Obama administration, despite its pretenses to progressivism and leniency, to ruthlessly persecute both WikiLeaks and the whistblowers, who were punished harshly enough to discourage any potential imitators. Even the fact that the evidence released by WikiLeaks (which, by the way, has never altered the content of the information it propagates) can be manipulated by other actors, does not mean that any citizen who values human rights and opposes state authoritarianism should insult Assange and his contributions.

Another victory for totalitarianism.
I would quite like to see this turn into a show trial. The outcry from it would be deafening. The rapid advance of totalitarianism in western politics is not sustainable... I hope. Perhaps this'll be the straw that breaks the monstrous camel's back.

I can’t emphasise how much I agree with both of you.

[Coughdrop addict]

WikiLeaks did way more than just expose some illegal acts.

Like leaking the names of Afghan informants something Julian himself admitted did wrong.

Democracy is a form of government not journalists being able to help leak and publish any sensitive documents including documents that endangered people's lives. Cry me a river.

The problem is that so many leaders have fed their people the "The US is responsible for all of the world's problems and your own personal problems." excuse as a scapegoat and distraction from their own corruption/incompetence for so long that many of these people reflexively side with anyone who harms or opposes the US in any way. Assage harmed the US, therefore he is a saint and that is the sole amount of thought they will give to the matter. Then they throw around scary-sounding words like "totalitarianism" and "show trial", which are about as meaningful as anytime someone on the right tries to scare people with "socialism". They are just buzzwords for "anything I don't like".

The difference between the wikileaks cables and the Pentagon Papers was they should never have been classified in the first place. Nixon did so as a desperate last attempt to save himself. Had it gotten to the SC making them classified would almost certainly have been struck down. The cables on the other hand contained actual secrets that could actually do more than embarrass the US. It could be argued that he was helping the Taliban but outing those informants.

EDIT: How in the hell did I confuse the Pentagon Papers with the Nixon Tapes?

His alleged sex offences are a matter of record in real life, or has some magic wish fairy spirited them away without my noticing?

Simple answer, they like what he did, so the woman must be liars. It's the same with people who still defend Michael Jackson.

[Aexodus]

The rape charges are invented