It was suddenly reported that after five years in Belmarsh Prison – and seven years essentially under house arrest in the Ecuadorian embassy – Julian Assange was pleading guilty as part a deal to secure his release.
The reported terms of the deal are that Assange will plead guilty to an infringement of the US Espionage Act, in return for a five year time-served sentence and the freedom to return home to Australia.
A plane carrying Assange reported left the UK late last night, bound for the US protectorate of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific. After a hearing there, he will be flying to Australia.
Although his family/team have posted photos and video to social media, Assange has yet to make a public comment.
A potential plea deal looked on the cards when the mainstream attitude to Assange notably softened last month. It’s middle-ground between the outright conviction and much-talked-about pardon (although a pardon is still possible, even with a plea deal, and Stella Assange told the media they intend to pursue one.).
If all is as it appears, and Assange is indeed being freed after 12 years of confinement without conviction, that is a deserved victory for Assange and his family.
The question is, is it a victory in principle for free speech? After all, he has not been declared innocent. The plea deal still admits to wrong-doing, and still sets the precedent of convicting journalists and publishers simply for reporting facts.
That’s a bad precedent. Another in a line of bad precedents the Assange case has been used to push – from detention without trial to trials in absentia.
Whatever happens it will be interesting to see the story develop, and to see what role – if any – Julian Assange will look to take in the alt-media landscape moving forward.
But what do you think? Feel free to discuss in the comments below.
- Is this a victory for free speech? The establishment? Or neither?
- Will they genuinely let Assange go or is there another twist coming?
- If released will he return to public life or quietly retire?
- Is there still a chance at an official pardon? If so, from whom?
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Via Vox Populi:
Via CTH:
Full Julian Assange, Wikileaks, Plea Agreement Released
i.e. Don’t expect him to utter the words “Seth Rich”.
Lest he become a “Seth Rich”……
THEY won. They imprisoned him without trial for years and ruined his life. They showed us what they can and will do to us, if we do not comply.
The Assange story concludes another chapter. His story will be revived anytime they run out of other squirrel distraction stories.
The Assange story is one of several diversion/squirrel stories needed to cover up the non existant presidential campaign of Joe Buttons.
“They” keep revealing their true selves and motives. Yes, they picked on one guy but … what would they do with millions of us? Just try it!
They didn’t really get too miffed about the release of war crime evidence, but the DNC e-mails… different story. Especially Podesta talking about upcoming “wet work” immediately preceding the demise of Antonin Scalia. I 100% believe he was snuffed out with that pillow. The killer(s) left it on top of him as a message. Not only did they expect Obama to be able to pick his replacement (can you imagine that demon Garland on the court?), but even if the court were 4-4, they couldn’t have overturned a lower court – like the 3rd District Court of Appeals that they thought might end up ruling on a ballot-counting challenge out of Pennsylvania.
Assange is a paid government agent.
He comes from an acting family, but pursued hacking at a young age instead.
Ain’t no way in hell he wasn’t recruited by the government …to hack for them.
This whole whistleblower persecution story is simply to scare others from leaking info.
Manning is also in on this scam.
It is a story from the military.
Yet so many accepted it at face value as truth.
I hold out hope that at least one other soul on earth can have their eyes opened so I can have an equal.
WikiLeaks have been shared to many sites so Great deal for Assange.