[LINK] Fwd: An open letter to the PM re Julian Assange

Tue Dec 7 23:20:03 AEDT 2010

Ummmm ...

Haneef and Hicks occurred on the Coalition Watch ... and the offshore 
solution was created by Howard and the lads as well.

That said, Labor have been almost as diligent in catering to the 
bigoted and prejudiced elements in the electorate as the Lib/Nats 
were. Politicians never fail to disappoint in their race to the 
bottom ... ably assisted by pollsters, low end populists, bottom of 
the pond scum sucking media and lobbyists who also cater to these 
detestable elements of our society.

On refugees, my only hope is that the economy goes into meltdown, and 
the government (whether they be Labor or Coalition) suddenly sees the 
need to economise and not spend more than a million dollars per 
refugee to gain whatever transient legal advantage they think it's 
gonna gain them ... and that even the narrow minded and bigoted 
racists realise that it's costing real tax dollars and benefits that 
could be applied elsewhere.

On Assange and WikiLeaks ... this is just the vindictive, short 
sighted reaction of a bunch of populist politicians and bureaucrats 
(including our own gutless Labor Party, pathetic Australian 
Government, the contemptible Coalition), sycophantically cuddling up 
to a major power, and abandoning a citizen of this country who as far 
as I can work out hasn't committed any of the crimes these countries 
(except maybe Sweden) have accused him of. (And the Swedish 
prosecution really rests on shaky ground anyway, if you take into 
account the published statements of the alleged victim  - it 
involves, consent, consensual sex, oops condom broke, don't consent, 
oops ... which IMHO will make it hard to sustain a rape or even a 
sexual assault conviction.)

What would be really sad would be if Assange was surrendered to the 
Swedish authorities who, (SURPRISE! SURPRISE!) suddenly realise that 
they have a shaky case, and turn him over to the Americans so they 
can run their witch hunt and introduce retrospective laws that allow 
them to burn foreign citizens at the stake.

If that happens ... nothing will save Gillard and the Labor Party in 
the next election, because they have been an instrumental part of 
this witch hunt.

Now ... given that an Australian passport isn't worth anything, and 
if I do do anything overseas the Australian government will instantly 
presume I'm guilty of something and actively assist whatever loon 
wants to nail me, I'm gonna investigate acquiring Irish and UK 
passports. I'm entitled through my mother ... and it would give me a 
lot more security when I travel than the Australian government is 
ever likely to do.

Lucky Country ... right.

Australians ... we can get trampled by anyone and our government 
won't lift a finger - and if the Bali 9 are indicative, they'll help 
people execute you. I mean, they're just there to do whatever anyone 
from other more powerful countries wants them to do, aren't they? Not 
to protect the rights and lives of their own citizens ... what a 
fanciful notion that would be.

						Regards,
---
At 8:11 PM +1100 7/12/10, Jon Seymour wrote:
>Nice sentiment, but can you recall the last time a Federal Labor
>politician ever expressed anything remotely resembling support for the
>Rule Of Law?
>
>Think Haneef, think Hicks. Think offshore detention regimes.
>
>jon.
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>From: Rick Welykochy <rick at praxis.com.au>
>Date: Tue, Dec 7, 2010 at 7:36 PM
>Subject: [LINK] An open letter to the PM re Julian Assange
>To: The Link Institute  <link at anu.edu.au>
>
>
>Linkers,
>
>The following open letter was lifted from the Unleashed area of the
>ABC website.
>
>The agreement with Assange and his his actions as well as many repeated
>calls for our PM to offer her support instead of joining the lynch mob
>are overwhelming (in the comments section).
>
>Aside: Pilger today pointed out in his interview with Adams on RN that
>the PM is placing herself in a delicate position by publicly declaring
>outside of parliament that Assange is a criminal through her allegation
>that he has acted illegally. The word slander or slanderous was raised
>by Pilger.
>
>
>http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/41914.html
>
>Editor's note: There's no doubt that WikiLeaks and its figurehead-on-the-run
>Julian Assange are among the hottest items for discussion on the
>planet right now.
>Feelings are running high, and many in this country take the view that the
>Australian Government ought do more to assist its vilified, 
>beleaguered citizen.
>Assange has become a cause celebre, as evidenced by the signatories 
>to this open
>letter, a who's who of sorts, from Noam Chomsky to Helen Garner...
>
>We wrote the letter below because we believe that Julian Assange is entitled
>to all the protections enshrined in the rule of law - and that the Australian
>Government has an obligation to ensure he receives them.
>
>The signatures here have been collected in the course of a day-and-a-half,
>primarily from people in publishing, law and politics. The signatories hold
>divergent views about WikiLeaks and its operations. But they are united in a
>determination to see Mr Assange treated fairly.
>
>We know that many others would have liked to sign. But given the urgency of
>the situation, we though it expedient to publish now rather than
>collect more names.
>
>If, however, you agree with the sentiments expressed, we encourage 
>you to leave
>your name in the comments section.
>
>
>
>
>Dear Prime Minister,
>
>We note with concern the increasingly violent rhetoric directed towards
>Julian Assange of WikiLeaks.
>
>"We should treat Mr Assange the same way as other high-value terrorist
>targets: Kill him," writes conservative columnist Jeffrey T Kuhner in the
>Washington Times.
>
>William Kristol, former chief of staff to vice president Dan Quayle, asks,
>"Why can't we use our various assets to harass, snatch or neutralize Julian
>Assange and his collaborators, wherever they are?"
>
>"Why isn't Julian Assange dead?" writes the prominent US pundit 
>Jonah Goldberg.
>
>"The CIA should have already killed Julian Assange," says John Hawkins on the
>Right Wing News site.
>
>Sarah Palin, a likely presidential candidate, compares Assange to an Al Qaeda
>leader; Rick Santorum, former Pennsylvania senator and potential presidential
>contender, accuses Assange of "terrorism".
>
>And so on and so forth.
>
>Such calls cannot be dismissed as bluster. Over the last decade, we have seen
>the normalisation of extrajudicial measures once unthinkable, from
>'extraordinary
>rendition' (kidnapping) to 'enhanced interrogation' (torture).
>
>In that context, we now have grave concerns for Mr Assange's wellbeing.
>
>Irrespective of the political controversies surrounding WikiLeaks, Mr Assange
>remains entitled to conduct his affairs in safety, and to receive procedural
>fairness in any legal proceedings against him.
>
>As is well known, Mr Assange is an Australian citizen.
>
>We therefore call upon you to condemn, on behalf of the Australian Government,
>calls for physical harm to be inflicted upon Mr Assange, and to state publicly
>that you will ensure Mr Assange receives the rights and protections 
>to which he
>is entitled, irrespective of whether the unlawful threats against 
>him come from
>individuals or states.
>
>We urge you to confirm publicly Australia's commitment to freedom of political
>communication; to refrain from cancelling Mr Assange's passport, in 
>the absence
>of clear proof that such a step is warranted; to provide assistance 
>and advocacy
>to Mr Assange; and do everything in your power to ensure that any
>legal proceedings
>taken against him comply fully with the principles of law and
>procedural fairness.
>
>A statement by you to this effect should not be controversial - it is a simple
>commitment to democratic principles and the rule of law.
>
>We believe this case represents something of a watershed, with 
>implications that
>extend beyond Mr Assange and WikiLeaks. In many parts of the globe,
>death threats
>routinely silence those who would publish or disseminate 
>controversial material.
>If these incitements to violence against Mr Assange, a recipient of Amnesty
>International's Media Award, are allowed to stand, a disturbing new
>precedent will
>have been established in the English-speaking world.
>
>In this crucial time, a strong statement by you and your Government 
>can make an
>important difference.
>
>We look forward to your response.
>
>(followed by over 180 signatories)
>
>. . . .
>
>
>
>cheers
>rickw
>
>
>
>--
>_________________________________
>Rick Welykochy || Praxis Services
>
>It's pretty sad when Pravda is lecturing the US on free speech,
>tolerance and respect for human rights
>      -- Mike Masnick at Techdirt
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