dagblog - Comments for "Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London"

It's not just extradition to

PeraclesPlease — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 06:44:51 +0000

It's not just extradition to worry about - it's "extraordinary extrajudicial renditions":

Ahmed Agiza (Arabic: أحمد عجيزة‎) and Muhammad Alzery (Arabic: محمد الزيري‎) (also Elzari, el-Zary, etc.) were two Egyptian asylum-seekers who were deported to Egypt from Sweden on December 18, 2001, apparently following a request from the United States Central Intelligence Agency.^[1] The forced repatriation was criticised because of the danger of torture and ill treatment, and because the deportation decision was executed the same day without notifying the lawyers of the asylum seekers. The deportation was carried out by American and Egyptian personnel on Swedish ground, with Swedish servicemen apparently as passive onlookers.

Sweden had negotiated guarantees from Egypt, which were found to be inadequate. There are strong allegations that both men were tortured, but Sweden has been unable to prove or disprove these allegations, due to refusal by Egyptian authorities to allow proper investigations. Alzery was released without charges after two years in prison, but was not allowed to leave his village, nor could he speak to foreigners. Agiza was sentenced to 15 years in prison in a military tribunal.^[2] He was finally released from prison on August 9, 2011.^[3] The process was not considered fair, and there is doubt as to the men's guilt.

Sweden alleges that the two men had been involved in acts of terrorism, but no basis for such beliefs have been disclosed. When pressed by reporters, Swedish authorities mentioned alleged earlier convictions in Egypt, but these allegations turned out to be patently wrong. As a complicating factor, the decision was made at cabinet level, by Foreign Affairs minister Anna Lindh, who was murdered in 2003, before the scandal broke loose.

The legal calculus behind

artappraiser — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 06:28:07 +0000

In reply to Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London

The legal calculus behind Assange's asylum request
Posted By Elias Groll, Passport @ ForeignPolicy.com, June 25, 2012

....According to media reports, a secret grand jury has been impaneled in Virginia to look into offenses carried out by Assange and his organization though the scope of the case is unknown.

....because the nature of that indictment remains unknown, Assange's decision to seek asylum is nothing short of a brilliant strategy of risk-minimization....

Sweden and the United States have a scant history of extraditions, and some observers have argued that if the U.S. sought to extradite Assange from Sweden, American authorities would be able to easily bully the Swedes into turning over the prized fugitive. On this point, recent history offers conflicting lessons....

Charging Assange under the Espionage Act will in all likelihood do nothing to get the man into an American courtroom. The Justice Department, presumably, is aware of this fact and will seek to bring more creative charges against Assange. But avoiding an explicit espionage charge, does not mean that Swedish authorities will grant the extradition request....

2nd of all, they never

PeraclesPlease — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 11:38:28 +0000

In reply to Cohen is an utter ass. He is

2nd of all, they never questioned Assange despite a month's opportunity, the ladies in question coordinated their stories, he's never been charged with a crime, and the warrant for questioning was produced just after he'd stepped on a plane to Berlin and had his checked laptops conveniently "lost" on a low-occupied flight.

Cohen is an utter ass. He is

jollyroger — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 10:58:29 +0000

In reply to Definition of paranoia:

Cohen is an utter ass. He is using. the language of due process for a government that has cast itself adrift from any suchu niceties. First Amendment? Give me a break, we continue holding 63 detainees (term of art) at Gitmo who were cleared for release. Furthermore, and not irrelevant, the "rape" in question was consensual sex during which the rubber broke..glad I've never gotten lucky in Sweden.

Definition of paranoia:

artappraiser — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 08:51:42 +0000

In reply to Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London

Definition of paranoia: supporters of Julian Assange
The right does not have a monopoly on paranoia, as the conspiratorial fantasies of the backers of Julian Assange show

By Nick Cohen, The Observer @ guardian.co.uk, June 23, 2012

Well, thank you, Jesus!

jollyroger — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 23:09:51 +0000

In reply to Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London

Well, thank you, Jesus! Looks like the good guys win for a change. You are invited to help defray the forfeited bail.

I'm sure the correspondant

jollyroger — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 02:49:53 +0000

In reply to Dear

I'm sure the correspondant believes that her "concern trolling " makes for cute journalism, but Assange is not currently in a position to parse the transparency commitment of a potential refuge. It is, as they. say, his ass that is at stake. I hope he has chosen well.

Dear

artappraiser — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 23:18:05 +0000

In reply to Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London

Dear Julian....

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/06/201262212304874114.html

The radical bloc wont mind

Resistance — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 13:37:55 +0000

In reply to He's not choosing Ecuador for

The radical bloc wont mind humiliating the US either.

Your free to speak if they agree with your position and it benefits thier cause.

He's not choosing Ecuador for

Donal — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 13:06:37 +0000

In reply to Julian Assange seeking asylum in Ecuadorian embassy in London

He's not choosing Ecuador for their record on free speech, he's choosing because they are less influenced by the US than many other nations. He must expect that after a brief hearing on rape charges, Sweden will just hand him over to the US.