In London, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is trying to defend himself against being extradited to the USA. His supporters are also protesting loudly – and have allies in politics.
On Press Freedom Day, the Washington Post podium suddenly became uncomfortable. Star journalist David Ignatius and Secretary of State Antony Blinken were talking about journalists in Russian custody when a protester came onto the stage: “Sorry, we had to use this day to demand freedom for Julian Assange.” She was escorted out and then things continued.
That was last May and since then the protests in the USA have become louder and more visible. More and more voices are calling on the US government not to prosecute Assange – including politicians from his home country of Australia. Barnaby Joyce, a former deputy prime minister, traveled to Washington. Not “to argue, but to present a case and advocate for an outcome,” he told Australian television.
A danger to journalism
In November, the Assange case brought together very different US politicians. Marjorie Taylor Greene from the Trump camp and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from the left wing of the Democrats wrote to President Biden together with other MPs. And just a few days ago, almost 40 law professors signed a letter to the Justice Department.
Because it’s not just about Assange, says co-signatory Gregg Leslie, a professor at Arizona State University: “You might think it’s just about stopping one person. But it would affect a lot of legitimate reporting.”
Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, published secret documents on military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2010. Therefore, after his extradition, he will be charged in the USA under the Espionage Act of 1917. The law is ridiculously broad, says Gregg Leslie, and applies to people who publish information but have no intention of espionage.
If you think you have to prosecute him because he took sensitive information and published it, then “you endanger investigative journalism if it’s somehow about national security,” says Leslie.
“Enemy of the people” Assange
What Assange does – speaking to sources, uncovering and publishing secret government information – is the core business of investigative journalism, says Seth Stern from the Freedom of the Press Foundation. And if Assange is convicted because of this, every other journalist could also be convicted because of this.
President Obama saw it similarly and refrained from indicting Assange. President Trump, on the other hand, has repeatedly described journalists as enemies of the people and initiated the process. But why doesn’t President Biden stop it? Possibly because WikiLeaks published Hillary Clinton’s emails during the 2016 election campaign and they damaged the candidate.
There are many people in the Democrats who still resent Assange and therefore have no pity, says Seth Stern. But you have to understand that this is not about Assange personally, but about freedom of the press in the USA.
Because the next president could be called Trump again. And he has already announced that he wants to lock up unpleasant journalists – especially those who publish leaked information.