Australian government must intervene to stop Assange's extradition to US

2019-11-06

Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale has once again called upon the Australian Government to intervene to ensure that Julian Assange is not extradited to the United States, following comments from the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture that Assange is showing acute signs of exposure to psychological torture.

“We have all seen the serious deterioration in Julian Assange’s health at his recent court appearances, and now the UN Special Rapporteur has warned that his life is at risk. This situation cannot be allowed to continue," Di Natale said.

“Regardless of what you think about Assange as an individual, he is facing extradition to the US on charges relating to his work to shine a light on potential war crimes – an act that won him Australia’s highest honour for journalism.

"He is being held in isolation by the UK authorities at severe cost to his physical and mental health and it is well past time for the Australian Government to intervene and ensure that Assange is brought back to Australia, not extradited to the very country whose wrongdoing he exposed.”