WASHINGTON-A possible extradition to the United States of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange…
raises press freedom concerns and could have “chilling effects” on investigative journalism. This was stated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, who met with the Australian activist’s wife and lawyers on Thursday. Assange, detained since 2019 in Belmarsh maximum security prison near London, has appealed the British government’s decision to extradite him to the United States. The 51-year-old is wanted by U.S. justice for publishing more than 700,000 classified documents related to U.S. military activities, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan, on the WikiLeaks website in 2010. If convicted of espionage under a law prohibiting the disclosure of classified information, Assange faces spending the rest of his life in prison. “I am aware of the health problems that Mr. Assange has suffered while in detention and remain concerned about his physical and mental well-being,” Bachelet said, “Mr. Assange’s possible extradition and prosecution raises concerns about press freedom and the possible chilling effects on investigative journalism and whistleblower activities.” The former Chilean president then stressed “the importance of ensuring that Mr. Assange’s human rights are respected, in particular his right to a fair trial,” and assured that her staff would follow his case closely. Bachelet’s term as High Commissioner for Human Rights expires next Wednesday. The U.S.-based Assange Defense Committee said the meeting in Geneva between Bachelet, Stella Assange and lawyers Baltasar Garzon and Aitor Martinez lasted more than an hour. “Assange’s lawyers emphasized the legal and human rights implications while Stella Assange discussed the consequences of years of imprisonment on the health of Julian and his family,” the committee notes. The WikiLeaks founder had been arrested by British police in 2019 after taking refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for seven years. Meanwhile, the WikiLeaks founder has once again appealed the decision to extradite him to the United Kingdom’s High Court Administrative Court against the decision to extradite him to the United States, WikiLeaks reported. On June 17, British Home Secretary Priti Patel approved Assange’s extradition to the United States, where he faces a possible sentence of up to 175 years in prison. WikiLeaks called Patel’s decision a dark day for press freedom and British democracy and vowed to challenge his decree. “Julian Assange is filing the perfected grounds of his appeal before the Administrative Tribunal of the High Court of Justice. Those named are the U.S. government and the Secretary of State for the Interior, Priti Patel,” WikiLeaks said in a note.
