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UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

bbc.co.uk

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Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#81

Post by elemeno »

vidarh wrote: post #70
k-mcgrady wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the article: "The law which Britain is threatening to invoke in the Assange case is the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act 1987. It allows the UK to revoke the diplomatic immunity of an embassy on UK soil, which would potentially allow police to enter the building to arrest Mr Assange." If they do that it wouldn't be an act of war, it would be legal. It definitely sets a terrible precedent though and even if i…

Whether or not it is legal would be pretty much irrelevant, I'd think - it would be something every regime that dislikes Britain would pay close attention to for the purpose of pointing to the moment they decide they want to pick someone up from a British embassy. I can't imagine Britain would be willing to risk the integrity of its own embassies in that way over Assange. It sounds like sabre-rattling, nothing more.…

The Libyan case doesn't really apply - the suspected gunman was a diplomat and a Libyan national and there's a whole extra set of legal issues involved that don't apply to someone seeking asylum in an embassy for a non-political crime.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#82

Post by Karunamon »

mechnik wrote: post #61
smokeyj wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They must really want to know if Assange used a condom.

If he did, he could not very well be the leaky wick.

That was bad and you should feel bad.

But damnit, I giggled like an idiot.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#83

Post by barking »

youngtaff wrote: post #57

About time we started applying the pressure... Assange is taking his supporters for a ride, if he's not guilty why doesn't he go back to Sweden and face the questions? As for this "I offered to talk to the Swedes in the UK" business it's bollocks, since when has law-enforcement done things at the convenience of the 'accused' The whole extradition to the US is a red-herring - have you seen how easy it is to extradite…

Yes, I don't know if he's guilty of rape or not (there seems to be a whiff of women scorned about it) but the Swedish justice system has as good a reputation as any.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#84

Post by TillE »

youngtaff wrote: post #57

About time we started applying the pressure... Assange is taking his supporters for a ride, if he's not guilty why doesn't he go back to Sweden and face the questions? As for this "I offered to talk to the Swedes in the UK" business it's bollocks, since when has law-enforcement done things at the convenience of the 'accused' The whole extradition to the US is a red-herring - have you seen how easy it is to extradite…

Given the way the US government has behaved over the past ten years, the fear is not irrational. Also, we're talking about the possibility of extradition to the US from Sweden, not from the UK.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jun/20/julian-a...

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#85

Post by brudgers »

mindcrime wrote: post #2

Isn't that basically an act of war? Or something just short of it? I can't remember another time when one country threatened to enter another country's embassy without an invitation... Have there been other cases like this in recent history??

Precedent for storming another country's embassy?

Sure. Tehran, November 4, 1979.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#86

Post by AManWithOpinion »

It is important to notice that when someone started shooting from Libyan embassy in the 80s and killed a British policewoman the UK's government did not enter the embassy. However, now in a case of far less importance(basically a case whether a condom broke on its own or did Assange do it on purpose) they consider doing it? Something is seriously not right here.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#87

Post by tokenadult »

How rapidly people forget their history. Britain has a specific law on the subject because of an incident that occurred in Britain within my memory, a shooting of a police officer from within the grounds of the Libyan embassy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Yvonne_Fletcher

No, harboring Julian Assange is not just like shooting at police officers outside the embassy, but preventing the host country from continuing to follow the steps of its agreements about accused defendants with another country is also not the normal activity of a diplomatic representative. There is a long tradition of dissidents seeking asylum in foreign embassies, and that tradition seems to be longest in Latin America, but that can also have consequences for the embassy's relationship with the host country.

AFTER EDIT:

By the way, it has been a very, very long time (since before I was born) since the United States federal government has imposed capital punishment for the crimes of treason or espionage (which, yes, could be a basis for capital punishment under federal law).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_by_the_Unite...

http://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/tit...

Nowadays, it is routine for persons who revealed secret information to the harm of the United States to be imprisoned, sometimes for a term of years rather than for life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_American_spies#American...

Simply put, even IF Julian Assange were to have to leave Sweden after going from Britain to Sweden for questioning, and even IF Julian Assange were then charged with espionage by the United States, and even IF he were then convicted of espionage, it is quite doubtful that Assange would be executed. Most likely, he would just (if ALL of the hypothetical events happened) end up spending a lot of time in the Supermax prison in Colorado.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Penitentiary,_Flo...

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#88

Post by Flow »

philwelch wrote: post #16
mindcrime wrote: post #2

Isn't that basically an act of war? Or something just short of it? I can't remember another time when one country threatened to enter another country's embassy without an invitation... Have there been other cases like this in recent history??

I can't remember another time when a country used the diplomatic immunity of their embassy to harbor a fugitive from rape charges. We're in fairly uncharted territory.

He isn't charged AFAIK.

Re: UK threaten to enter Ecuadorian embassy and arrest Julian Assange

#89

Post by guelo »

cobrausn wrote: post #34

Did anyone not see this coming? Does he actually think they won't go after him to the full extent they are capable? The thing about being a martyr for a cause is that they usually don't walk away from the experience unscathed. I think this man thought he was untouchable and acted accordingly, deciding to be a celebrity instead of a quiet hero. Well, the hammer is dropping. Good luck, Julian, you completely unlikable…

I like him. I guess we've probably swallowed different propaganda.
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