Julian’s Dad, John Shipton & brother Gabriel, have been travelling the United States to encourage and inform the public of the plight of Julian Assange in their Home Run Tour.
They were joined by Roger Waters, Randy Credico, Chris Hedges & Aaron Mate in New York. John mentioned the irony of he and Gabriel being wandering advocates of the First Amendment while in the United States. Everybody in the Western World envies the US Constitution. In particular, the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights. (Which we do not have here in Australia.)
He said that leaks can and have stopped wars. Leaks bring justice. A company in Africa had been in charge of e-waste disposal. 144 people inhabiting the village died from the toxicity. Wikileaks revealed this and justice was brought to those that committed the crime.
The US wanted to install an air force base called Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands and remove the inhabitants to relocate in Mauritius. The Wikileaks files enabled the inhabitants to take a case to the international court of justice which they won. These are positive examples of what leaks can do to empower people and bring justice.
Chris Hedges speaking about Julian stated, “we honour him for his courage and his integrity, but the battle for Julian’s liberty has always been much more than the persecution of a publisher. It is the most important battle for press freedom of our era and if we lose this battle, it will be devastating not only for Julian and his family, but for us.”
Democracy thrives with a transparent and honest free press. Democracies do not torture, spy on and plot to kill journalists.
George Washington said, “If freedom of speech is taken away, then the dumb and silent may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” Let us not be dumb. Do not be silent. Stand up for Julian. His life is precious. His contribution to bring justice and peace is invaluable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF5XZqgNZUw&ab_channel=ConsortiumNews