From Free Assange NZ + Candles 4 Assange

The ‘Assange precedent’ means state powers will be able to rip foreign journalists from their country to silence them, and as a result, journalists have become too frightened to tell the truth.

Thousands of people have now pledged to surround the British parliament building this Saturday, October 8th, by forming a ‘Human Chain’ that will extend across the Thames river, along a portion of the south bank and back. The action, led by the “Don’t Extradite Assange” Campaign, includes many institutions, human rights groups, lawyers and concerned doctors calling for the immediate release of journalist, Julian Assange.
There are solidarity events in 18 cities worldwide including Washington DC, where there is an action at the Department of Justice, as well as events in Melbourne, Canberra, Byron
Bay, Bendigo, Ottawa, Victoria, Toronto, Paris, Hamburg, Berlin, Pretoria, Tulsa, San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, Mexico, Rio and our very own Wellington.

Many who refer to corporate media for their world news, will be surprised that the fate of one man could muster such worldwide passion and support, when so many other serious issues dominate the airwaves, but they fail to understand that the legal precedent being set here, will guarantee our young generation has no ability to hold power to account, and journalism will be entirely replaced with stenography, if it hasn’t already.

Whatever issue your passion is directed to in these current times, without a functioning fourth estate, without journalists willing to report news that conflicts with a government’s
preferred narrative, we have effectively already enslaved and neutered our civilisation. There will be very little hope for your pet topic, unless your “elected officials” feel exactly
the same way as you do on the issue.

Consider Jacinda Ardern’s United Nations speech this week, condemned widely around the world, where she called to regulate free speech as a ‘weapon of war’! In response journalist Glen Greenwald wrote: “This is the face of authoritarianism – even though it looks different than you were taught to expect. And it’s the mindset of tyrants everywhere. This is someone so inebriated by her sense of righteousness and superiority that she views dissent as an evil too dangerous to allow”.

California’s Legislature on Monday approved a dangerous bill that would allow regulators to punish doctors for spreading “false information about Covid-19 vaccinations and
treatments”, but considering the fact-checkers are largely funded by the industry that stands to benefit financially, can we be sure the medical specialists are indeed spreading
false information?

Free press is essential to the proper working of a democratic society. Julian Assange has been publicly tortured and smeared for more than a decade which has undoubtedly caused a “chilling effect” on investigative journalism in the West. Senior CIA officials during the Trump administration discussed abducting and even assassinating Assange, according to both a US report and a Spanish court case, yet British “Justice” have
agreed to send a journalist to the very state that made this threat, despite the fact he never worked there. Are we prepared to allow any state to rip foreign journalists from
their countries to silence them? How about Saudi Arabia?

The US government is attempting to use the 1917 espionage act in order to imprison Assange for a 175 year sentence to turn him into an example yet, Julian published accurate material that was wholly in the public interest and has won numerous international journalism awards for his work. Indeed, this is the first time a journalist has ever been charged under the Espionage Act.

This Saturday, 8th October, there is a New Zealand-based solidarity action for Assange “TellTheTruthMSM – Human Chain For Assange”‘ at the Beehive, NZ Parliament Lawn at 12 Noon. There will be information exchange, open mic for speeches, music and we will display #YellowRibbons4Assange around the grounds to spread awareness. Details for events around the world can be found at “Candles4Assange” on Twitter, Facebook,
Instagram as well as a website of the same name.

Alex Hills
Free Assange NZ + Candles 4 Assange