The government of Ecuador granted political asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on August 16. The move came after a nearly two-year-long stalemate over Assange’s potential extradition from Britain to Sweden, and potentially to the United States ultimately.
Assange came into the cross hairs of the U.S. government after WikiLeaks’ 2010 release of over 250,000 classified U.S. government documents and video footage of potential U.S. war crimes.
Since that time the United States and its junior partners Britain and Sweden have done everything in their power to discredit Assange, thwart further exposures by WikiLeaks and intimidate other potential whistleblowers from coming forward. To date, the Obama administration has prosecuted more whistleblowers than any prior administration in U.S. history. (The New York Times, Feb. 26)
U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning has been languishing in solitary confinement in U.S. military prisons now for over two years from allegations of leaking classified U.S. government documents. Prominent international human rights organizations have condemned solitary confinement as treatment akin to torture. If Assange were extradited to the United States, it is almost certain that he would be subjected to similar conditions.
Referring to Assange as a victim of “political persecution,” Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño said: “Julian Assange’s actions are protected under freedom of speech and freedom of the press. If Assange ended up in the United States he would not get a fair trial.” (Democracy Now, Aug. 16)
Prior to Ecuador’s announcement, the British government had threatened to raid the Ecuadorian embassy in London, forcibly remove Assange and extradite him to Sweden, where he faces allegations of rape. (note—hyperlink here to our earlier article on the political use of the rape charge.)
Assange seeks asylum in embassy
Assange has been in a diplomatically protected status in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since June 19. If he were to be extradited to Sweden he would almost certainly be jailed immediately. Furthermore, he could ultimately be brought to the United States where he could face the death penalty under the Espionage Act of 1917.
While asylum in Ecuador can be seen as a positive step forward for Assange, it will still be necessary for him to gain safe passage out of Britain, something that will be exceedingly difficult considering Britain’s steadfast opposition to his release to Quito.
“We will not allow Mr. Assange safe passage out of the United Kingdom,” said British Foreign Secretary William Hague. “Nor is there any legal basis for us to do so.” (Belfast Telegraph, Aug. 16)
Under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations “rule of inviolability,” security forces are forbidden from entering embassies “without the express permission of the ambassador.” (The Guardian, Aug. 16)
However, the British Foreign Office has argued it has the power to revoke Ecuador’s diplomatic status under the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act of 1987, which would empower them to arrest Assange if he steps outside the Ecuadorian embassy at any time.
Spanish judge and human rights investigator Baltasar Garzón, who was recently assigned to Assange as an attorney, vehemently disagrees with this determination:
“If asylum is granted, Great Britain can’t say they won’t send him. Legally they can’t do it, because Ecuador is a sovereign state, a free democratic state exactly like the United States, nothing more nothing less.” (Democracy Now, Aug. 16)
Clearly hedging over the issue of the hidden hand of the United States in the affair, British Foreign Secretary Hague went on to say, “It’s important to understand that this is not about Mr. Assange’s actions at WikiLeaks, or the attitudes of the United States of America.” (Democracy Now, Aug. 17)
In response to the ongoing diplomatic crisis, the Organization of American States has overwhelmingly approved a special session scheduled for August 24. Twenty-three OAS member states voted in favor of the summit, while three stood in opposition, including the United States, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago.
US-led imperialism faces increasing challenges
As the leftward shift across Latin America has gained momentum, Correa’s government in Quito has increasingly followed an independent course.
During his 2006 campaign, Correa said he would not renew an agreement to allow the U.S. military to operate from an air base in the city of Manta. In the summer of 2008, Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry officially notified the United States that it must evacuate the base by November of the following year.
“There isn’t any problem with a U.S. base being set up in Ecuador,” Correa jokingly said in response to the resultant controversy. “We can give the go ahead as long as we are granted permission to set up an Ecuadorian military base in Miami.” (Atlantic Monthly, Aug. 16)
Regarding a failed 2010 coup attempt against his government, Correa again jokingly commented in a recent interview with Julian Assange that the only country in the world that “can be sure never to have a coup d’etat is the United States, because it hasn’t got a U.S. embassy.” (Russia Today, May 22)
In April 2011, Correa’s government expelled an increasingly hostile U.S. ambassador from Quito. Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Patiño said he requested that U.S. Ambassador Heather Hodges leave the country as soon as possible. (BBC, April 5, 2011)
In response to the latest controversy regarding the asylum declaration for Assange, Correa called the British government “out of touch”: “Who do they think they’re dealing with? Can’t they see that this is a dignified and sovereign government which will not kneel down before anyone?” (Chicago Tribune, Aug. 18)
Clearly, the attempt to silence critics of the U.S.-led global imperialist agenda is becoming more and more difficult to sustain, as an increasing number of formerly colonialized countries assert their independence—from Ecuador to Venezuela, from Cuba to Bolivia and beyond. Ecuador’s willingness to grant political asylum to Julian Assange is only the latest development in this growing trend.
