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posted by janrinok on Monday October 28 2019, @09:15PM   Printer-friendly
from the evil-is-what-evil-does dept.

Craig Murray of Information Clearing House writes about his observation at Westminster Magistrates Court:

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/52433.htm

Before I get on to the blatant lack of fair process, the first thing I must note was Julian's condition. I was badly shocked by just how much weight my friend has lost, by the speed his hair has receded and by the appearance of premature and vastly accelerated ageing. He has a pronounced limp I have never seen before. Since his arrest he has lost over 15 kg in weight.

But his physical appearance was not as shocking as his mental deterioration. When asked to give his name and date of birth, he struggled visibly over several seconds to recall both. I will come to the important content of his statement at the end of proceedings in due course, but his difficulty in making it was very evident; it was a real struggle for him to articulate the words and focus his train of thought.

Until yesterday I had always been quietly sceptical of those who claimed that Julian's treatment amounted to torture – even of Nils Melzer, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture – and sceptical of those who suggested he may be subject to debilitating drug treatments. But having attended the trials in Uzbekistan of several victims of extreme torture, and having worked with survivors from Sierra Leone and elsewhere, I can tell you that yesterday changed my mind entirely and Julian exhibited exactly the symptoms of a torture victim brought blinking into the light, particularly in terms of disorientation, confusion, and the real struggle to assert free will through the fog of learned helplessness.

I had been even more sceptical of those who claimed, as a senior member of his legal team did to me on Sunday night, that they were worried that Julian might not live to the end of the extradition process. I now find myself not only believing it, but haunted by the thought. Everybody in that court yesterday saw that one of the greatest journalists and most important dissidents of our times is being tortured to death by the state, before our eyes. To see my friend, the most articulate man, the fastest thinker, I have ever known, reduced to that shambling and incoherent wreck, was unbearable. Yet the agents of the state, particularly the callous magistrate Vanessa Baraitser, were not just prepared but eager to be a part of this bloodsport. She actually told him that if he were incapable of following proceedings, then his lawyers could explain what had happened to him later. The question of why a man who, by the very charges against him, was acknowledged to be highly intelligent and competent, had been reduced by the state to somebody incapable of following court proceedings, gave her not a millisecond of concern.

Now tell me some fine arguments justifying the legality and justness of such person destruction methodics, I wish to hear them.
 


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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 28 2019, @10:28PM (4 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 28 2019, @10:28PM (#912992)

    All that time he was in that embassy he was the same smug and arrogant ass that he had always been, but it seems when he finally wore out his welcome, then suddenly he is afflicted with a mental condition. This sudden health affliction does seem to strike many just as they go to trial, so yes, indeed, you can call me a skeptic. But perhaps it is real and his head broke when he realized that it isn't quite as pleasant being on the other side of things. It's one thing to encourage people to go to jail for you and your ego, but quite another thing when it is you. He would garner much more sympathy if one got the feeling that he believed in his cause rather than just using it as a vehicle to feed his ego and desire for celebrity.

    Yes, yes, fight the power and all that. (Just as long as they're not Russian, that is)

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 28 2019, @10:44PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 28 2019, @10:44PM (#913002)

    https://www.cnn.com/2017/01/04/politics/kfile-trump-wikileaks/index.html [cnn.com]

    The bigger concern is the people who have called for his death, directly or indirectly.

  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by c0lo on Tuesday October 29 2019, @02:24AM

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday October 29 2019, @02:24AM (#913094) Journal

    All that time he was in that embassy he was the same smug and arrogant ass that he had always been, but it seems when he finally wore out his welcome, then suddenly he is afflicted with a mental condition.

    One can sacrifice a lot when he knows he can still make a difference and bring whatever value they think they can (speaking of value: don't tell me that Assange's position wasn't a rather rare/unusual when compared with all this world population).

    Mental conditions will happen with most intelligent people** when they realize they lost any control over what matters to them in life.

    ---
    ** Absolute consumers don't need to apply, but it will happen to them too.

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 2) by Coward, Anonymous on Tuesday October 29 2019, @02:44AM

    by Coward, Anonymous (7017) on Tuesday October 29 2019, @02:44AM (#913103) Journal

    How can we tell if Assange is just acting? His father was an actor. The 1000-yard stare and slow, slurred speech would not be hard to fake.

  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday October 30 2019, @01:53AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday October 30 2019, @01:53AM (#913530) Journal

    But perhaps it is real and his head broke when he realized that it isn't quite as pleasant being on the other side of things.

    Sounds like you'd be in a similar situation, should someone toss you in the slammer. So what?

    It's one thing to encourage people to go to jail for you and your ego, but quite another thing when it is you.

    Again, so what? What is the crime here?

    He would garner much more sympathy if one got the feeling that he believed in his cause rather than just using it as a vehicle to feed his ego and desire for celebrity.

    But not from you, right?

    The real question is does this make the world a better place? I'd have to say that yes, Wikileaks and Assange's activities did, no matter the motive for them.