Assange case

Sweden: If Assange faces death row in US we won’t extradite him

The Swedish government will not extradite Assange to the US should he face the death penalty there, as any possible extradition request from Washington is then subject to strict conditions, an official from the country’s Justice Ministry declared.

RT,

22 August, 2012

“We will never surrender a person to the death penalty,” the deputy director of the Service for Criminal Cases and International Cooperation of Sweden’s Justice Ministry said in an interview with the Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper on Tuesday.

This means there should be strict guarantees from the US government that “the prisoner will not be executed in any case,” added Cecilia Riddselius. But, she added, so far her country has not received any extradition request from Washington. 

In June, Cecilia Riddselius admitted there were opportunities for countries to request different types of guarantees in relation to extradition. Sweden may request that an extradited person will not be sentenced to the death penalty, he or she will not be tortured, should not be prosecuted for offences other than those which he or she was delivered for and not to be charged before a special court. 

However, Riddselius then stressed, Sweden cannot guarantee in advance that Assange will not be extradited.

The WikiLeaks founder is wanted in Sweden for questioning over sexual misconduct. He and his supporters, however, fear that if extradited to Sweden, he may be further extradited to the United States, where he could then face the death penalty for espionage following the publication of thousands of classified documents, including secret cables of the US State Department. 

Last week, the Ecuadorian government announced it has granted the world-famous whistleblower political asylum. The decision came almost two months after Assange took refuge in the country’s London embassy seeking protection from extradition to Sweden.

The decision has already become the epicenter of a diplomatic row between Ecuador and Great Britain, with London threatening to storm the embassy. Ecuador has already taken the issue to the Union of South American Nations(UNASUR), which unanimously backed the country’s right to grant Assange asylum and condemned British threats to raid a sovereign state’s embassy in order to arrest him.

Ecuador also promised to appeal to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) if the UK refuses to grant Julian Assange safe passage out of the country.

According to WikiLeaks, all of this could be avoided if they managed to obtain a guarantee of no re-extradition from Sweden.

A spokesperson for WikiLeaks stressed that Assange would “gladly go to Sweden for questioning if they were able to guarantee that [he] wouldn’t be extradited to the United States”.

While deciding on Assange’s political asylum Ecuador also offered Sweden the chance to question him at the embassy, but Stockholm brushed away the possibility.

Correa: Storming embassy to seize Assange would be UK’s 'political suicide'

The Ecuadorian president has warned Britain not to enter the country’s embassy to seize Julian Assange. Rafael Correa said that doing so would be an act of “political suicide” that would leave UK embassies vulnerable the world over.

RT,

22 August, 2012

Correa said that if British authorities forced their way into embassy to arrest the WikiLeaks founder, then other people could enter British diplomatic premises all around the world and the UK “wouldn’t be able to say a thing.”

During his statement on Monday, he condemned Britain for threatening to invade the embassy, in a move he described as “intolerable.”

"While the United Kingdom hasn't retracted nor apologized, the danger still exists. Remember that David beat Goliath. And with many Davids, it's easier to bring down a number of Goliaths,” Correa said to Ecuador TV.

“So we’re hoping for clear and coherent backing because this violates all inter-American law, all international law, the Vienna Convention and all diplomatic traditions of the last, at least, 300 years on a global scale,” Correa continued.

Assange is wanted in Sweden for questioning on sexual assault allegations. He denies the claims, and fears being extradited to the US if he travels to Stockholm to contest the accusations.

Supporters of the whistleblower fear Assange has been secretly indicted by a grand jury in the US, after WikiLeaks published secret American diplomatic cables in 2010.

Ecuador has granted Assange asylum because neither Britain nor Sweden would offer a guarantee that they would prevent his extradition to the United States.

Correa says he believes there is sufficient cause to believe Assange would be denied due process in the US and could face life in prison or the death penalty.

Tensions between Quito and the UK remain high, two months after Assange sought refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy.

Despite Ecuador’s offer of asylum, Assange cannot leave for the airport because the British Foreign Office (FCO) refuses to grant him a safe passage.

"We will not allow Mr Assange safe passage out of the United Kingdom, nor is there any legal basis for us to do so," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement.

On Sunday, Assange made his first public appearance since entering the embassy, calling on Washington to “renounce its witch-hunt” against WikiLeaks.

The 41-year-old Australian also thanked Ecuador for taking a “stand for justice.”

Other South American countries have endorsed Ecuador’s asylum decision, including Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Argentina.

Foreign Ministers from across South America are urging dialogue between Quito and London.

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