High chance to be killed in US jail: Assange

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   pisean282311posted 13 years ago

   WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange said in an interview published Thursday there was a "high chance" he would be killed in a US jail if he were to be extradited from Britain on espionage charges.
   
   The Australian is on bail in Britain fighting a bid by Sweden to extradite him over sex assault claims, but Washington is believed to be considering how to indict him over the leaking of thousands of US diplomatic cables.
   
   Assange told The Guardian it would be "politically impossible" for Britain to send him across the Atlantic, adding that the government of Prime Minister David Cameron would want to show it had not been "co-opted" by Washington.
   
   "Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception," he said.
   
   He said US authorities were "trying to strike a plea deal" with Bradley Manning, the US army soldier suspected of providing WikiLeaks with the cables.

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      pisean282311posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      no comments?

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         C.J. Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         If Assange was brought to the states, tried and convicted. He would NOT be put in the general population of a Federal Pen. I would imagine he would be brought to Levenworth. Further he would be in protective custody. No, don't think his life would be in danger. However, if he manages to elude "justice" he will more than likely not survive very long. The Russians have pretty much said...kill him. I'm pretty sure the rest of the world is watching the UK, the Swiss and the US on this. If they don't take care of the issue the rest will take care of it another way.

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            china manposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            The US record on this would support Assange' view.  You kill your good Presidents, Civil Rights Leaders, you drop plastic remote missiles on the homes of people who you suspect of terrorism killing families and children and you still have that human rights abomination of Guantanemo running.
            
            It is a world standard that people are innocent until found guilty and yet the US feels it can be judge jury and executioner at will in many parts of the world.  Good luck to Assange in helping to make public the dubious workings of the system.

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               C.J. Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               Your reply makes no sense in the context of my comments. I spoke directly to the OP. You seem to want to compare the Human rights record of the US to China? Right. Great argument.

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      uncorrectedvisionposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Really, as deadly and unbalanced as we Americans are supposed to be, with all of our guns and religion and patriotism, haven't killed him by now I doubt he would be killed.  Besides, though I think he is an annoyance and is indeed guilty of espionage, he is not alone in his crime. The US government has the real traitor in custody and are afraid to execute him.
      
      Sgt. Manning is in violation of his oath and is a traitor but he is also a homosexual rights advocate and that is what scares the cowards that often populate governments.

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   Rishy Richposted 13 years ago

   Most Americans have formed some sort of hatred for Assange. They usually avoid this topic & when they participate, they just blame him. Its true that among the leaked info, some are very sensitive & could create problems for their government. What I dont understand is that Assange is only offering the truth. He is only publishing what was Actually done by the US Govt.
   
   But the People, instead of taking action against their government, kept blaming Assange! Amazing!

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      kirstenblogposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Well said, and marry christmas
      
      (browser opened up with this window in, I had had every intention of coming back online last night but didn't)

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         Rishy Richposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Looks like it was ur Christmas gift from us
         
         Marry Christmas!

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            kirstenblogposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            
            A weird gift from HP, thats for sure
            
            I have another weird one, a free fractal app but I have not opened it yet to see if it works on the computer (if its the right version) as I don't want to wind up crashing the computer just yet
            
            Merry Christmas to you too!!

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      paarsurreyposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      
      
      Amazing!

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   Pcunixposted 13 years ago

   I would agree. We specialize in dumb and violent over here and we are very good at it.

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      pisean282311posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      

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   iantoPFposted 13 years ago

   Yet what has Assange done? He, and Wikileaks, received classified files mostly of a non-military nature. They partnered with newspapers to ensure that what was published would not compromise national security. Of the 250,000 files received they have published about 800.
   What have they done that was any different to the Washington Post during Watergate? Yes Wikileaks has embarassed government officials but that happens to all of us when we talk trash behind someone's back and then have to confront our statements. I too fear for the life of Julian Assange. I suspect that the British authorities are only holding him until they can find out what he's got on them, then they'll cut him loose.

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      pisean282311posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      hmmm...good point...

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   Cagsilposted 13 years ago

   Any person who goes to jail has a high chance to be killed, much less "who" it is that goes.

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   Amanda Severnposted 13 years ago

   I feel sorry for Julian Assange. There's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide even if he were free to do so. I agree with Ianto. His crimes don't seem as heinous as any other perpetrated by the media in the wider sense. Are the charges against him genuine, or have they been trumped up? I feel that whatever I read or hear about this man may at the very least be skewed, and at the worst, completely fictional.

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   Shil1978posted 13 years ago

   Just goes on to show what happens when you decide to take on the might of the most powerful democracy in the world. Is is frankly appalling to me that they've chosen to so openly and shamelessly go after this man.
   
   Agree with Ianto - what has he done that's so criminal? I am surprised at the media's role in all of this. What would have happened, I wonder, if the Chinese had gone after a man who exposed Chinese secrets? Would the media's reaction be the same? Something to ponder over!!

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   psycheskinnerposted 13 years ago

   I am not sure why Assange would be tried in the US.  And unless they can somehow show he actively solicited the leak he would not be found guilty.

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      C.J. Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Are you sure? I'm not so sure that is the standard. It would seem he only needed to know that the information was NOT released by it's originator or that the release of the information itself was prohibited.

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         psycheskinnerposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         That is the standard.  So long as material is provided to you unsolicted it is legal to run it.  Something done in this case not only by Wikileaks but dozens of media outlets.  He is in legal trouble only if he solicited, encouraged or conspired to get the material (e.g. if he asked for it or paid for it).  And nothing suggests that he did anything by receive it more or less out of the blue.

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            C.J. Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            So, do you think the argument will be that by setting up the site itself, Wikileaks, was encouraging? You explanation does seem to explain the subsequent charges of rape.

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