2022-11-07
For how much longer do we let this human rights issue fester ‒ until it is too late?
By Beverley Dight, Green Issue Co-editor
Julian Assange is one of Australia's most noble and courageous citizens. He has dedicated his life to bringing truth to the world.
In 2011 the Sydney Peace Foundation awarded Julian its Gold Medal for Peace with Justice. The Citation read "for exceptional courage and initiative in pursuit of human rights."
Julian responded by saying "With Wikileaks we are all engaged in a struggle, a generational struggle, for a proposition that citizens have a right and a duty to scrutinize the State."
Transparency is necessary for the democratic process. It gives voters an informed choice. It also encourages politicians to act with more integrity if they realize their decisions will be known.
Sadly, Julian's life is in peril after being confined for more than ten years, much of it in solitary confinement, left alone to ponder a possible grim future of imprisonment until death in harsh conditions, forever separated from his beloved wife, Stella, and their two young sons, Max and Gabriel.
Recently Stella reported that Julian is "suffering profoundly". His health is declining every day. He has just had Covid and "we just don't know how much longer he will last."
It is up to us, the people of Australia, to bring Julian home to where he belongs, in the love and care of his family. Our Prime Minister needs to be informed of what we expect from him. To have the courage and compassion to phone President Biden, and request that Julian be pardoned, immediately, before it is too late.
Header photo: Julian Assange 2010. Credit: Espen Moe, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
[Opinions expressed are those of the author and not official policy of Greens WA]