Julian Assange should be freed

The return of Assange to Australia should be cause for our own politicians. Former UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and a group of UK Labour MPs have long been among the champions of Assange's cause.

Australian Labor Party politicians who support Assange are few, as is the lack of support from the government. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne held talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently, but did not mention Assange's plight. Together with Prime Minister Scott Morrison, she has maintained a stony silence in response to journalists' requests for comment on the UK verdict.

Even Barnaby Joyce Deputy Leader of the Government, believes he should be brought back to Australia. Ms Bridget Archer, a Tasmanian Liberal, said she believed Assange should be "released and returned to Australia" and she would "continue to advocate for diplomatic action for that to occur". She has the support of Jason Falinski, a NSW Liberal. Yet our government refuses to act.. Michael Griffin, head of the Law enforcement Commission states:

Assange has done the time for the crime. He has effectively been deprived of his liberty for a decade and faces many more years in the US, a sentence that far exceeds a proportionate penalty. What is critical is the public's view

Many international politicians even French politicians, support Assange. Amnesty International, the Council of Europe, The American Civil Liberties Union, Reporters Without Borders and Human Rights Watch have long advocated for amnesty for Assange, citing the dangerous precedent any extradition would set for journalists around the world.

The assertion of this writer is simple, Wikileaks released information that the people of the United States, and of the world, had the right to know. Julian Assange believed that also; he did no wrong. He should be freed. Our government should act on his behalf.