Wikileaks: Ecuador Revokes Assange Citizenship

grarpamp grarpamp at gmail.com
Thu Jul 29 03:41:23 PDT 2021


https://twitter.com/amnestypress/status/1419608296496013313
https://www.capradio.org/news/npr/story?storyid=1021687617

Free Julian Assange!


Ecuador Abruptly Revokes Julian Assange's Citizenship On Suspicions Of Fraud

Ecuador this week took the major step of revoking WikiLeaks founder
Julian Assange's citizenship at a moment he's languishing in London's
high-security Belmarsh prison while awaiting further US extradition
request legal proceedings.

The Australian had initially received Ecuadorian citizenship in
January 2018 as part of a failed bid of then-President Lenín Moreno,
an avid supporter of Assange's, to get him classified as a diplomat so
that he could safely walk out of the Ecuadorian embassy.

That attempt failed, of course, as on April 11, 2019 UK police were
invited into the embassy after his asylum was abruptly revoked. He's
remained in Belmarsh ever since, following his seven years holed up in
the embassy, at the end of which he had frequently clashed with
Ecuadorian staff and officials.
Julian Assange during his time in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

Assange was reportedly notified of the nullity of his naturalization
in a letter, with the WikiLeaks organization on Wednesday vowing to
fight the decision as it was done without representation and due
process, according to his legal team. "On the date (Assange) was cited
he was deprived of his liberty and with a health crisis inside the
deprivation of liberty center where he was being held," Assange's
lawyer said in a press statement.

Ecuador reportedly based its decision on what government authorities
say was a possible fraud in the way the documents for naturalization
were prepared. Previously a vocal political enemy of Assange,
then-Foreign Minister José Valencia, had charged that "false claims"
were made in his naturalization application documents.

"A naturalization is considered damaging when it is granted based on
the concealment of relevant facts, false documents or fraud," The
Associated Press writes of the government's position. "Ecuadorian
authorities say Assange's naturalization letter had multiple
inconsistencies, different signatures, the possible alteration of
documents and unpaid fees, among other issues."

Assange is still facing potential extradition after the US prosecutor
was able to appeal the prior decision of a London court which refused
to extradite, with the UK judge saying he would face "oppressive" and
possibly torturous conditions inside the US supermax prison he would
likely end up in. The US has since sought to assure the London court
it will not send him to a supermax facility.

    US promises not put #Assange in a maximum security facility or
subject him to Special Administrative Measures BUT reserves the right
to break this promise.

    "This undermines the intn'l prohibition on torture" @JuliaHall18
tells @fattoquotidiano’s @SMaurizihttps://t.co/juNpZISn0t
    — amnestypress (@amnestypress) July 26, 2021

That appeal will only drag out the legal proceedings, and at the same
time he'll stay in prison, which WikiLeaks supporters say is precisely
the point - to drag things on indefinitely while legal limbo keeps him
locked up.


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