‘Ridiculous to say Assange
faces no threat’ – WikiLeaks
founder’s advisor to RT
WikiLeaks
founder Julian Assange © Peter Nicholls / Reuters
RT,
7
September, 2016
Comments
insisting that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange faces no threat
should he be extradited to Sweden are “ridiculous,” Sarah
Harrison, a WikiLeaks editor and Assange’s advisor, told RT
following a press conference by Swedish prosecutors on Wednesday.
According
to Harrison, who was present at the hearing, the prosecutors wanted
just to restate their position on the Assange case once again ahead
of a documentary that looks into this case and the prosecutors’
handling of it. She added that the documentary will be aired by the
Swedish SVT channel later Wednesday.
The
WikiLeaks editor lashed out at the Swedish prosecutors, saying that
it was “telling” that they began their press conference
by saying that they had no new information.
Swedish
prosecutor Marriane Ny said during the press conference that she has
no
reasons to believe that there is an actual threat to Assange’s
security in Sweden. At the same time, the prosecutors refused to
provide any guarantees that the WikiLeaks founder will not be
extradited to the US by saying that it will depend on the decision of
the Swedish government.
“There
have even been politicians talking about illegally droning Julian. So
to say
there is no threat is a ridiculous comment,” Harrison
told RT.
She
also said it is “sad” that the Swedish Prosecutor’s
Office continues to dismiss a report by the UN Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention, which ruled that Assange had been subject to
arbitrary detention by the UK and Swedish authorities.
Harrison
also stressed that any developments in Assange case in Sweden “will
not change the fact that [Assange faces] threats from the United
States and he will have to remain in that [Ecuadorian embassy] room
until the UK allows him a safe passage.”
Time
Assange spent in Ecuadorian embassy is not equivalent to prison term
– prosecutors
The
time that Julian Assange spent in the Ecuadorian embassy will not be
taken into account in determining his sentence, Swedish prosecutors
said during the Wednesday press conference, adding that the last
outstanding allegation against the WikiLeaks founder carries a
sentence that could amount to a prison term between 18 months and two
years.
Anastasia Churkina
Last standing allegation carries sentence of 18months to 2yrs, time #Assange spends in#Ecuadorean Emb not to be taken into account
The
statement was made despite the fact that the UN ruled in February
that Assange’s life in the embassy equals to arbitrary
detention “by the Governments of Sweden and the United
Kingdom.”
The
persecutors also stressed that, in case of rape, a perpetrator should
be prosecuted regardless of whether a victim reports the case or not,
adding that Assange is still suspected of “non-aggravated
rape.” The statute of limitations for this crime is 10 years
and the Assange case expires in 2020, they also confirmed once again.
They
also emphasized that Assange should be necessarily questioned by
Swedish prosecutors in person, adding that any other options,
including Assange being questioned by phone or by some other
prosecutors, would lead to inevitable “loss of quality.”
The
prosecutors also once again blamed the Ecuadorian embassy for the
delays with the Assange interview and stressed that all statements
concerning the fact that Assange made himself available for the
interview many times are wrong.
Ecuador
agreed to allow Sweden to question Assange in its London embassy on
August 10 after Sweden made a formal request, four years after the
initial offer from Ecuadorian authorities that say they have been
urging Swedish prosecutors to interview Assange since 2012.
The
WikiLeaks chief has been living at the Ecuadorian Embassy since June
2012, when he was granted political asylum by the government of
Ecuador. The UK police force, which used to watch over the embassy
day and night, ended its 24-hour guard last October, stating it would
use “overt and covert tactics” to detain Assange
instead.
Police
insist they are still committed to arresting Assange under a European
Arrest Warrant (EAW) issued in December 2010, which seeks Assange’s
extradition to Sweden to answer questions about rape allegations.
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