2023-10-25 17:14:57
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and James McGovern (D-MA) are circulating letters in the House urging their colleagues to join them in demanding that President Biden drop charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, reported Fox News Digital on Monday.
In the letter to their fellow House members, Massie and McGovern ask them to join them in “strongly encouraging the Biden administration to withdraw the US extradition request currently pending against Australian publisher Julian Assange and halt all legal proceedings.” against him as soon as possible.”
Assange, who has been held in London’s Belmarsh prison since April 2019, faces up to 175 years in prison if he is extradited to the United States and convicted of exposing American war crimes. He has been charged under the Espionage Act for publishing classified documents he received from a source, a standard journalistic practice, meaning his conviction would have serious implications for press freedom in the United States and around the world. world.
In April, seven House Democrats led by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland calling for the Justice Department to drop its pursuit of Assange. Massie and McGovern mention Tlaib’s effort in her letter that she will send to President Biden once signatures are collected.
“Last April, several members of Congress argued to Attorney General Merrick Garland that ‘every day that the prosecution of Julian Assange continues is another day that our own government needlessly undermines our own moral authority abroad and rolls back freedom of expression. press under the First World War. Amend at home,’” Massie-McGovern’s letter reads.
The bipartisan effort comes as Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in Washington and is expected to push for an end to the persecution of Assange, who is an Australian citizen. The Australian government has stepped up its lobbying efforts to secure Assange’s freedom in recent months. In September, a cross-party delegation of members of the Australian parliament visited Washington to press the issue.
Massie-McGovern’s letter warns of the danger to press freedom that the persecution of Assange entails. “It is the duty of journalists to seek sources, including documentary evidence, to inform the public about government activities,” the letter says. “The United States should not initiate an unnecessary process that risks criminalizing common journalistic practices and therefore chilling the work of the free press. We urge you to ensure that this case comes to an end as soon as possible.”
Taken from AntiWar.com
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