Since 2012 Assange has taken refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, the country that granted him the right to asylum. For a decade now, Assange has been the object of legal persecution and media harassment, largely under fabricated pretexts. Deep down, it is clear that Wikileaks is not forgiven for having divulged confidential information of great public relevance.
The revelation, in mid-November, that the US has made an accusation against the journalist, the content of which would only be made public when he is arrested, ratifies the fears of Assange and his legal team of an extradition to the US, where he could run the risk of the death penalty, which is the reason why he was granted asylum. The United Kingdom has confirmed that, if he leaves the Embassy, he will be arrested for violating probation six years ago.
The government of Ecuador, for its part, held Julian Assange incommunicado six months ago, arguing that his opinion on international political issues violates his condition as an asylum seeker. More recently, the embassy imposed new restrictions on the conditions of stay in the embassy through a "protocol," which conditions visits and prohibits him from carrying out journalist activities and expressing his opinions, under the threat of losing his asylum. Everything indicates that there is an intention to pressure the journalist to turn himself in.
All this is happening in the context of Lenin Moreno's government's rapprochement with the US. According to various sources, the granting of loans and the negotiation of a trade agreement between the United States and Ecuador would have as a condition the surrender of the journalist Assange to the British authorities.
The harassment of Julian Assange constitutes an eminent case of political persecution and censorship of free investigative journalism. It is unacceptable that the governments of the United States and Great Britain, which proclaim the defense of press freedom and transparency, maintain this persecution.
Ecuador, for its part, has been courageous in granting him asylum during these years, in difficult conditions. We urge the government to respect and guarantee the inalienable Right of Asylum and all of Mr. Assange's human rights and not to give in to the pressures to hand him over to the British authorities.
We call on journalists, intellectuals, social organisations, international and human rights bodies to speak out emphatically in defence of Julian Assange and in rejection of any attempt to hand him over to the British or American authorities.
No more political persecution of Julian Assange! The Right of Asylum must be maintained without restriction. To protect Assange is to protect the freedom of the press and of expression.
Foro de Comunicación para la Integración de NuestrAmérica (FCINA)
Signatures:
Carlos Motto, Docente, Argentina
Red de Radios Comunitarias y Software Libre, Ecuador
Comite de Solidaridad con América Latina, A Coruña, España
Pascual Manganiello, Agrup."Jorge Di Pascuale", Sindicato de Farmacia-ADEF, Argentina
Arantxa Alcaino Salas, Videasta, Chile
Yolanda Andersson, Movimiento Humanista, USA
Judith Arteaga Romero, México
ALBA TV, Venezuela
Robert Austin, Dept. of History, University of Sydney, Australia
David Barken, México
María Fernanda Barreto, Red de intelectuales, artistas y movimientos sociales en defensa de la Humanidad, Venezuela
Sarisol, Canales Organización de la Sociedad Civil, México
Gonzalo Carbajal, periodista, Argentina
Yves Carrier, Canadá
Centro de Derechos Humanos "Fray Francisco de Vitoria, O.P.", A.C., México
Ana Esther Ceceña, México
Centro de Estudios Humanistas de Córdoba, Argentina
Camille Chalmers, Haití
Susana Clares, México
Nestor Correa, Profesor-Dirigente AGD-UBA, Argentina
Coral Delgado, Socióloga/ Profesora, France
Arturo Escobar, Antropólogo, United States
María Fajardo, Comunicadora y docente universitaria, Ecuador
Virgínia Fontes, Historiadora, Brasil
Jeremy Fox, England, UK
Frente Patriótico Artiguista (FPA), Uruguay-Sur América
Maria Luiza Franco Busse, Jornalista, Brasil
Maria Garau, Colombia
Emiliano González de Urreta, Docente, Argentina
René González Sehwerert, Ex preso político en USA, Cuba
María Guadalupe Guadarrama Huerta, Analista, Inst. Invs. Económicas, UNAM, México
Marynez Guerra Briceño, Periodista, Venezuela
Pablo Imen, Argentina
Gilberto López y Rivas, Investigador del INAH, México
Iñaki Zelaia Eizagirre, España
Claudio Katz, Argentina
Jorge Alberto Kreyness, Partido Comunista de la Argentina, Argentina
Eloísa Xóchitl Le Riverend Morales, Investigadora titular, Inst Finlay (jubilada) Deputy Editor Belize Journal of Medicine, Cuba
Enrique Leff, Sociólogo/Filósofo, México
Patricia Legarreta, México
Julian López Mendieta, Arquitecto, Colombia
Luis Britto García, Escritor, Venezuela
Josep V Marín, Periodista, psicólogo social, España
Rev. Luis Carlos Marrero Chasbar, Teólogo, Cuba
Jorge Martín, Hands Off Venezuela, Reino Unido
Francisco Javier Martinez, Docente, México
Alexander Medina, Venezuela
Eduardo Mernies, Frente Amplio – Uruguay, Uruguay
Fernando Michelotti, Professor, Brasil
Carlos Monge Meneses, Costa Rica
Juan Moreno, Argentina
Rubén Olmo Gilabert, Valencia, España
Raúl Ornelas, Profesor Universitario, México
Carmen Peña, Secretaria do Observatorio dos Medios Galegos, Galiza, Spain
Rebeca Peralta Mariñelarena, Profesora, Bolivia
Partito della Rifondazione Comunista - Sinistra Europea (PRC-SE), Italia
Fátima Rallo Gutiérrez, Pta. Consejo Organizaciones Sociales y Populares del Paraguay, Paraguay
Viviana Ramírez, Profesora secundaria estatal (jubilada), Australia
Franco Reynoso, Empleado, México
Pastor Ricardez, Mexico
Radioliberada (RL), Venezuela
Rosa Rojas, Periodista, México
Fernando Sánchez Cuadros, México
Pablo Sepúlveda Allende, Médico, Venezuela
Dr. Rashid Sherif, Médico-siquiatra, Túnez
Pablo Siris, Periodista, Uruguay
Miguel Socolovsky, Investigador Instituto de Ciencias Nucleares, UNAM, México
Jose Luis Tagliaferro, Educador, Italia
Benjamín Tirado Hernández, Jubilado, México
Oscar Ugarteche, México
Armand Mattelart, Universidad de Paris, Francia
Laura Gabriela Velázquez García, México
José Antonio Villamizar Reyes, Colombia
Alberto Villarreal, Uruguay
Simona Violetta Yagenova, Profesora FLACSO, Guatemala
Sally Burch, Ecuador
Vera León, Ecuador
Alex Anfruns, periodista, Bruselas
Camila Piñeiro Harnecker, Universidad de La Habana, Cuba
Hugo Crosatto, Argentina
Pablo A.de la Vega M., Activista y defensor de derechos humanos, Ecuador
Maria Grazia De Nardi, Italia
Anssi, Haapala, Finland
Marta Albarrán, España
Raúl Andrés Casanova Sosa, Analista de sistemas, Venezuela
Maria Jesús Garcia, Trabajadora Social, España
Sergio Mastríaco, Argentina
Gonzalo Mendizabal, Uruguay
Victor Mercado, Maestro, España
Ana María Palos de Foronda, estudiante, México/España
Pedro Ribeiro de Oliveira, sociólogo, profesor, Brasil
Pablo Ruiz, Coordinador America Latina de SOAWatch, Chile
Richard Stallman, US
Carla Zambrano, Venezuela
Agencia internacional de noticias Pressenza
Asociación Bahia de Cádiz (ABdC) , España
Teresa Burgues Rius, bióloga, España
María Victoria Caro Bernal, España
Pedro Castillla Madriñan, España
M. Carme Catalan, España
Jorge Fonseca, España
Ana Ma. Francino, economista, España
Remedios García, España
José María García Goday, médico, España
Soledad Gato Velasco, jubilada, España
Moncho Leal, Galiza
Maria Ángeles Lorda Rosinach, Catalunya
Pablo Lozano, directora - www.TribunaHacker.com.ar, ArgentinaAlfonso Martínez, Galicia
Ramón María Reig Masana, arquitecto, Cataluña
Javier Rodriguez, maestro, España
Francisco Rubio, España
Elvira Siurana Zaragoza, editora, España
Giovanna Venegas, abogada, España
Mirko von Berner, Madrid
Elder Andrade de Paula, professor universitário, Brasil
José Poma, consultor independiente, Ecuador
De Nardi Maria Grazia, Italia
Claudia Tovar, Profesora Pontificia Universidad Javeriana
