Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

bbc.co.uk

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 120 posts

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#11

Post by Kiro »

smokeyj wrote: post #6
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

> I highly suspect Assange is actually just trying to avoid jail time, if he's going to these lengths to avoid going to Sweden for questioning on unrelated accusations of sex crime. He offered to be interviewed from the embassy. Isn't it suspicious that Sweden won't accept that, given that this man hasn't been charged with anything?

No, it's in accordance with Swedish bureaucracy.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#12

Post by gasull »

smokeyj wrote: post #6
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

> I highly suspect Assange is actually just trying to avoid jail time, if he's going to these lengths to avoid going to Sweden for questioning on unrelated accusations of sex crime. He offered to be interviewed from the embassy. Isn't it suspicious that Sweden won't accept that, given that this man hasn't been charged with anything?

This is something to remember: Assange hasn't been charged of anything yet, and still Interpol issued a red notice against him (while not even Gaddafi had a red one). Something smells fishy here.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#13

Post by ajanuary »

tjoff wrote: post #7
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

Assange have suggested that interviews could be held over video conference or in the UK, not an unreasonable request (and something that has been done in other cases so the only problem is this particular prosecutor). Even the defense lawyer for the women have suggested it. I believe Assange has reasons to be afraid and even if an extradition to the US might be unlikely it is his life that is gambled with. As a Swede…

My understanding is they don't just want to question him, they're at the stage they want to charge him. You can't really do that over video conference.

[edited to change 'prosecute' to 'charge']

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#14

Post by jusben1369 »

hnolable wrote: post #5
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

please read this comment on a previous HN story: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4391500 or this short post: http://www.ianwelsh.net/assange-and-wikileaks-the-basics/ or this documentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yu4WCskniEc inform yourself

I'm not sure Hnolable if you did the down vote on TazeTSchnitzel but either way it seems very inappropriate. You're taking a complicated situation and assuming you know all the facts and the motivations. That's presumptuous because it is impossible for you to know. There's nothing in the comments by OP that isn't a fair assumption.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#15

Post by Homunculiheaded »

smokeyj wrote: post #6
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

> I highly suspect Assange is actually just trying to avoid jail time, if he's going to these lengths to avoid going to Sweden for questioning on unrelated accusations of sex crime. He offered to be interviewed from the embassy. Isn't it suspicious that Sweden won't accept that, given that this man hasn't been charged with anything?

But according to Swedish law Assange cannot be charged until after this second round of questioning. If you search this document [0] for 'charge' you'll see that Swedish law is very different from US and UK laws where being formally charged happens very early in the legal process. From what I've gather in Swedish law once you are charge formally you go very quickly to court.

0. http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/Judgment...

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#16

Post by [deleted] »

ajanuary wrote: post #13
tjoff wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assange have suggested that interviews could be held over video conference or in the UK, not an unreasonable request (and something that has been done in other cases so the only problem is this particular prosecutor). Even the defense lawyer for the women have suggested it. I believe Assange has reasons to be afraid and even if an extradition to the US might be unlikely it is his life that is gambled with. As a Swede…

My understanding is they don't just want to question him, they're at the stage they want to charge him. You can't really do that over video conference. [edited to change 'prosecute' to 'charge']

[deleted]

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#17

Post by gasull »

ajanuary wrote: post #13
tjoff wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assange have suggested that interviews could be held over video conference or in the UK, not an unreasonable request (and something that has been done in other cases so the only problem is this particular prosecutor). Even the defense lawyer for the women have suggested it. I believe Assange has reasons to be afraid and even if an extradition to the US might be unlikely it is his life that is gambled with. As a Swede…

My understanding is they don't just want to question him, they're at the stage they want to charge him. You can't really do that over video conference. [edited to change 'prosecute' to 'charge']

EDIT: I didn't understand how Swedish law work. See AndrewDuck's reply. But still, they could interrogate him by videoconference (what Assange offered) or charge him in absence.

He hasn't been formally charged of any crime. If they want to prosecute him, they should charge him of something.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#18

Post by hnolable »

jusben1369 wrote: post #14
hnolable wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

please read this comment on a previous HN story: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4391500 or this short post: http://www.ianwelsh.net/assange-and-wikileaks-the-basics/ or this documentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yu4WCskniEc inform yourself

I'm not sure Hnolable if you did the down vote on TazeTSchnitzel but either way it seems very inappropriate. You're taking a complicated situation and assuming you know all the facts and the motivations. That's presumptuous because it is impossible for you to know. There's nothing in the comments by OP that isn't a fair assumption.

I'm a new account. I have 13 pts. I can't downvote.

His comment was very uninformed. So I pasted 3 links which are a quick way for him to get up to speed on the things that most people are not made aware of by the media covering the whole fiasco.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#19

Post by emckiernan »

TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

I agree, and can't help but question the claims he will be extradited to the US from Sweden, since if he was going to be extradited from anywhere it would be the UK.

Re: Julian Assange urges US to end Wikileaks 'witch-hunt'

#20

Post by vidarh »

TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #4

I don't think Julian jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy will do him any favours. Now the UK and Sweden are angry at him and Ecuador and Australia's embarrassed. Sure, the US does want to question him. But they haven't issued an extradition request, and by the looks of things getting him out of Sweden would be just as difficult as getting him out of the UK, if not more so. I highly suspect Assange is a…

He's spent more time struggling to avoid jail time than he would spend in jail in Sweden if convicted, in a relatively low security prison likely to have quite decent accommodation and amenities. This isn't like the US where he'd risk years in some horrible shithole.

I'd be surprised if he got more than 6 months if convincted - there's been people convicted for violent rapes in substantially worse circumstances that have gotten less than two years.

Maybe his ego won't allow him to face a possible conviction or something, or maybe he genuinely is afraid - whether justified or not - of being handed over to the US.

But it just doesn't make sense to go to this level of effort "just" to avoid a Swedish prison sentence given the relatively low level of the alleged crimes.

(EDIT: quiet => quite)

Post reply on HN