Assange's Stay In Embassy Has Cost British Taxpayers $17 Million
Harriet Alexander reports in The Telegraph that Julian Assange's three-year stay in the Ecuadorian embassy has cost British taxpayers more than $17 million for around the clock. police surveillance at the embassy. The Metropolitan Police refused to discuss how many policemen were deployed to the embassy, but they did confirm the cost. The Met said the figure included $10.3m of what they termed "opportunity costs" – police officer pay costs that would be incurred in normal duties – and $4.3m of additional costs such as police overtime. A further $1.7m was put down to "indirect costs" such as administration. Assange challenged his extradition order to Sweden through the courts, but when his appeals failed he absconded and sought refuge inside the embassy of Ecuador – a country whose president has spoken publicly of his support for the 43-year-old computer hacker. Ecuador granted him asylum in August 2012, but as soon as he sets foot outside the building Britain will deport him to Sweden. He has been indoors ever since.
The Swedish director of public prosecutions, Marianne Ny, has grown impatient. In March she said that she would consent, reluctantly, to interview Assange inside the embassy – because the statute of limitations for some of the alleged crimes runs out in August. "Now that time is of the essence, I have viewed it therefore necessary to accept such deficiencies to the investigation and likewise take the risk that the interview does not move the case forward, particularly as there are no other measures on offer without Assange being present in Sweden."
WikiLeaks Publishes New Sony Documents and Saudi Cables
WikiLeaks has added 276,394 new Sony documents to its online searchable database. The site has also uploaded 61,205 documents and cables leaked from the Saudi Arabia Foreign Ministry:
The dump "Sony Files Part 2," appears to coincide with a major social media push from WikiLeaks regarding the three-year anniversary of its founder Julian Assange's stay at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he is remaining to avoid extradition.
The entire library of files in now searchable on WikiLeaks' site where users are able to delve through though all of the emails and documents.
Shortly after publishing the new data, WikiLeaks tweeted a helpful hint to those scouring the documents for information, pointing its Twitter followers to a collection of files that it said showed evidence of "legal entanglements" for Sony Pictures, "including an investigation for bribery."
A press release on WikiLeaks asserted that the 61,205 documents and cables leaked Friday would be the first publication of many for "The Saudi Cables." The group, led by Julian Assange, says it will release over half a million documents in batches over the upcoming weeks.
"The Saudi Cables lift the lid on a increasingly erratic and secretive dictatorship that has not only celebrated its 100th beheading this year, but which has also become a menace to its neighbours and itself," said Assange in the press release.
WikiLeaks announced that internal reports from Saudi government organizations and communications between Saudi embassies across the globe will be included in the documents. The press release states the Saudi Cables "provide key insights into the Kingdom's operations and how it has managed its alliances and consolidated its position as a regional Middle East superpower, including through bribing and co-opting key individuals and institutions."
The group did not attribute the documents to a source directly. The press release did note that the Saudi Foreign Ministry acknowledged a computer network breach in May, and a group called the Yemeni Cyber Army afterward began releasing "sample" classified material to various websites.
Previously:
WikiLeaks Publishes "The Sony Archives"
WikiLeaks Publishes Transcripts of German Inquiry into NSA and BND
Original Submission
Related Stories
PBS has postponed a third season of "Finding Your Roots" following an investigation into the editorial process of the pop genealogy TV program. The show is hosted by Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (the same professor who was invited to a "beer summit" by President Obama in 2009), and tracks the family history of celebrities and other public figures using historical documents as well as Y-chromosome DNA, mitochondrial DNA, and autosomal DNA analyses.
The show's editorial process came under scrutiny after an email exchange between Gates and a Sony executive was discovered within the Sony emails and documents posted by WikiLeaks. Gates asked for advice on how to deal with actor Ben Affleck, who was pressuring producers to omit the fact that one of his ancestors owned slaves:
"We've never had anyone ever try to censor or edit what we found," Mr. Gates wrote to a Sony executive, Michael Lynton, in July 2014. Mr. Gates added that this would violate PBS rules, and "once we open the door to censorship, we lose control of the brand."
When the episode was broadcast in October, it did not mention the slave-owning ancestor. After the emails were posted to WikiLeaks, Mr. Gates said that producers had discovered more interesting ancestors from Mr. Affleck's family, including a relative from the Revolutionary War and an occult enthusiast. Mr. Affleck said in April that he was "embarrassed" when he discovered that he was related to a slave owner. "I didn't want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves," Mr. Affleck wrote on Facebook.
In the investigation, PBS said that producers violated network standards by letting Mr. Affleck have "improper influence" and "by failing to inform PBS or WNET of Mr. Affleck's efforts to affect program content." The network said that before the third season of "Finding Your Roots" can broadcast, the show needs to make some staffing changes, including the addition of a fact checker and an "independent genealogist" to review the show's contents. PBS also said that it had not made a decision about whether to commit to a fourth season of the show.
In other recent WikiLeaks news, the Saudi govt. is telling citizens to ignore "fabricated documents", such as those describing diplomatic immunity fueling Bahrain booze runs in the "dry" country, and the belief that Iran shipped centrifuges to Sudan in 2012.
Wired declares that "WikiLeaks Is Back" following Espionnage Élysée. French President François Hollande has held an emergency meeting to discuss claims that the U.S. spied on French Presidents from 2006 to 2012.
Original Submission
WikiLeaks has published "The Sony Archives," a searchable database containing 30,287 documents and 173,132 emails leaked from Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE). The WikiLeaks press release portrays the archive as newsworthy and in the public interest:
WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Julian Assange said: "This archive shows the inner workings of an influential multinational corporation. It is newsworthy and at the centre of a geo-political conflict. It belongs in the public domain. WikiLeaks will ensure it stays there."
Sony is a member of the MPAA and a strong lobbyist on issues around internet policy, piracy, trade agreements and copyright issues. The emails show the back and forth on lobbying and political efforts, not only with the MPAA but with politicians directly. In November 2013 WikiLeaks published a secret draft of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) IP Chapter. The Sony Archives show SPE's internal reactions, including discussing the impact with Michael Froman, the US Trade Representative. It also references the case against Megaupload and the extradition of its founder Kim DotCom from New Zealand as part of SPE's war on piracy.
The connections and alignments between Sony Pictures Entertainment and the US Democratic Party are detailed through the archives, including SPE's CEO Lynton attending dinner with President Obama at Martha's Vineyard and Sony employees being part of fundraising dinners for the Democratic Party. There are emails setting up a collective within the corporation to get around the 5,000 USD limit on corporate campaign donations to give 50,000 USD to get the Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo elected as "Thanks to Governor Cuomo, we have a great production incentive environment in NY and a strong piracy advocate that’s actually done more than talk about our problems."
Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton is on the board of trustees of RAND Corporation, an organisation specialising in research and development for the United States military and intelligence sector. The Sony Archives show the flow of contacts and information between these two major US industries, whether it is RAND wanting to invite George Clooney and Kevin Spacey to events, or Lynton offering contact to Valerie Jarrett (a close advisor to Obama) or RAND desiring a partnership with IMAX for digital archiving. With this close tie to the military-industrial complex it is no surprise that Sony reached out to RAND for advice regarding its North Korea film The Interview. RAND provided an analyst specialised in North Korea and suggested Sony reach out to the State Department and the NSA regarding North Korea's complaints about the upcoming film. The Sony documents also show Sony being in possession of a brochure for an NSA-evaluated online cloud security set-up called INTEGRITY.
Additional coverage at BBC and LA Times. Sony has condemned the document dump:
"The attackers used the dissemination of stolen information to try to harm SPE and its employees, and now WikiLeaks regrettably is assisting them in that effort," said a Sony Pictures spokesperson in a statement. "We vehemently disagree with WikiLeaks' assertion that this material belongs in the public domain and will continue to fight for the safety, security, and privacy of our company and its more than 6,000 employees."
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @01:39AM
(Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @07:06AM
That's no way to talk about Carly!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @08:16AM
I really really really really really really like Jepsen.
(Score: 5, Informative) by Gravis on Sunday June 21 2015, @01:57AM
Assange's Stay In Embassy Has Cost British Taxpayers $17 Million
you got it all wrong! let me fix this for you:
British Government Spent $17M To Deny Julian Assange Freedom For The Last Three Years
not a fan of Julian Assange but this is far closer to reality than anything else put forth.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Sunday June 21 2015, @02:07AM
You pretty much took the words out of my mouth. The title is indeed wrong.
I'm not a great fan of Assange, but I am a lesser fan. Rarely today do journalists of any stripe stand up for the freedom of the press. Julian has done an admirable job, in that respect. In virtually all respects, he has acted as a journalist first and foremost. Publish the news, and let the chips fall where they may.
The whole thing with the "rape" of two women is nothing more than a contrivance. Both women seduced Assange, both women kept Assange overnight in their own homes, and both women acquiesced to having sex again the morning after, despite the absence of a condom on the mornings after. Both women, in interviews, have clearly stated that no "rape" happened. At the very most, Assange might be guilty of some minor impropriety as defined by local culture, but the man clearly committed no crime.
I'm disgusted that three (or more) nations have stooped to such low levels to deny a man his freedom. It's all political.
We're gonna be able to vacation in Gaza, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran and maybe Minnesota soon. Incredible times.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:13AM
> despite the absence of a condom on the mornings after.
Proof?
(Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Sunday June 21 2015, @05:35AM
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/dec/07/rape-claims-julian-assange [theguardian.com]
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193641/Julian-Assange-rape-claim-Is-photo-clear-him.html [dailymail.co.uk]
That wasn't exactly what I was looking for. I've read interviews of the women involved, but I can't find them right now. Poor search terms? Or, has the internet been "sanitized" by someone? Still searching . . .
Here we go: http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article12435432.ab [aftonbladet.se]
"It is wrong to say that we were afraid of Assange and therefore didn't want to raise charges," says the woman. "He is not violent and I do not feel threatened by him."
Oh - this one is new to me: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/mar/10/julian-assange-police-sex-assault-accuser [theguardian.com]
The whole case is a sick, twisted perversion of justice. We might easily conclude that Assange was foolish to be dipping his wick at every opportunity, but the fact is, he was set up.
BOTH Miss A AND the "investigating officer" openly colluded prior to the "rape" to put white men in their place.
We're gonna be able to vacation in Gaza, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran and maybe Minnesota soon. Incredible times.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:18PM
ruaway1956, thank you for you attention to detail in your writing. It's refreshing to see this calibre of thought and expression on a public forum.
(Score: 2) by TheGratefulNet on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:23PM
its as if C.F. from the 'other site' had penned this highly misleading summary title.
not good, soylent. not good at all!
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(Score: 2) by wantkitteh on Monday June 22 2015, @09:19AM
It is not the fault of Soylentnews if the source article's publishers choose the headline "Julian Assange's three-year stay in Ecuadorean embassy has cost taxpayer £11.1m"
(Score: 3, Interesting) by frojack on Sunday June 21 2015, @02:18AM
It it is true the statute of limitations expires in Sweden in August, the British will certainly find some local charges to take their place, such as ignoring court orders etc.
You would think it would be best for British interests just to let him board on a private jet to Ecuador and be done with the nonsense.
They run the real risk of keeping him captive when nobody wants him anymore. The US has decided not to pursue him.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Sunday June 21 2015, @02:42AM
Ahem... that's what she [wikipedia.org] said
https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by TheRaven on Monday June 22 2015, @10:38AM
It it is true the statute of limitations expires in Sweden in August, the British will certainly find some local charges to take their place, such as ignoring court orders
There is no need to find local charges. Assange is wanted in the UK for violating the terms of his bail granted on December 2010 (for £293,500, mostly paid by Wikileaks supporters, who lost the money). That is the only reason that he is wanted in the UK. The Swedish authorities are willing to interview him in the UK now, so perhaps he'll come out, be interviewed, have the charges dropped, and then go to prison in the UK for bail violation. I doubt that would make him happy though - he could have just agreed to be interviewed in Sweden (whose extradition treaty with the UK prevents him from being further extradited to the UK) and had the charges dropped quickly if he hadn't decided that there was more publicity to be gained in playing the political refugee card.
You would think it would be best for British interests just to let him board on a private jet to Ecuador and be done with the nonsense.
I don't think that it's in the British interests at all for it to be seen by criminals that the police won't go after you for bail jumping if it is expensive.
sudo mod me up
(Score: 5, Touché) by Runaway1956 on Sunday June 21 2015, @02:50AM
"My view has always been that to perform an interview with him at the Ecuadorian embassy in London would lower the quality of the interview"
What does that even mean? The authorities in the embassy won't allow waterboarding?
We're gonna be able to vacation in Gaza, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran and maybe Minnesota soon. Incredible times.
(Score: 5, Funny) by c0lo on Sunday June 21 2015, @03:06AM
Would you blame them? Do you know how expensive is bottled water in London?
What?... Of course not, London tap water would be a cruel and unusual punishment.
(large grin)
https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @01:54PM
I know this was meant as a joke but tap water quality in London and for that matter most of the UK is pretty damn good, which kinda makes the joke fall flat on its face for me. Most of the time I would actually prefer tap water over bottled water. You have a point about the cost of bottled water in London though.
And here is a link to back up my point on London water quality:
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/official-london-tap-water-is-the-best-in-britain-6835465.html [standard.co.uk]
(Score: 3, Interesting) by c0lo on Sunday June 21 2015, @02:15PM
Water quality and water taste are two different things. Just google for "london tap water taste" (my experience: google offers immediately the "tastes horrible" suggestion)
Well, I guess one can get used to it after a while. Its hardness is high, lotsa calcium ions, chalky taste with a hint of good vintage chlorine, a specific flavour that's remarked and found unpleasant by many Aussies or even your would-be-secessionists highlander neighbours [bbc.com].
https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Monday June 22 2015, @04:05AM
Very often it's not the water at fault, but old corroded pipes.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by TheGratefulNet on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:26PM
look, if you want higher quality, then just use a lossless codec!
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:47AM
I don't care about the cost to the British taxpayers. How much has he cost Ecuador? The man must eat.
(Score: 2) by isostatic on Sunday June 21 2015, @06:32PM
Say £20 a day, so about £20k.
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Tuesday June 23 2015, @10:13PM
That's pretty cheap for such good PR.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 5, Insightful) by janrinok on Sunday June 21 2015, @07:17AM
There is no need to pay overtime to the police for this job. He has been there for over 3 years. Why don't they plan the work schedule around that fact and not say 'we have nobody available - we must pay overtime!'? If they are worried about their budget, ask the politicians to stump up because they are the reason he is there.
[nostyle RIP 06 May 2025]
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Monday June 22 2015, @04:08AM
Seriously, isn't this an area they'd patrol to start with, due to being an embassy?
I wonder if they added up the salaries of everyone whose normal beat is around the Embassy, and declared that the cost.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by mojo chan on Monday June 22 2015, @07:39AM
People take time off for illness etc. with little warning, and because of cuts to the police budget there are no longer enough officers to cover them without someone having to do overtime.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
(Score: 2) by janrinok on Monday June 22 2015, @08:33AM
True - but that is not a cost attributable to Assange. It is a cost incurred by sickness, and Assange's captivity is in no way responsible for that sickness. It should, therefore, be included in the overall cost of running the force. To do otherwise is best described by the title of these comments.
It is just as bad to describe the cost of the administration as being £1.7m. If it costs over £0.5m per year to administrate the small number of police guarding the embassy then the administrators should be fired, and replaced by somebody more competent.
[nostyle RIP 06 May 2025]
(Score: 3, Funny) by mojo chan on Monday June 22 2015, @09:52AM
Of course, but this is the Metropolitan Police we are talking about. They lie about everything. Any number they give is highly dubious.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 21 2015, @04:29PM
If the statute of limitations is going to run out, why would Assange agree to any interview? Just let the clock run out then the vindictive bitch gets nothing. If he grants the interview, she'll use it to trump-up some phoney charges.
Julian, stay put, stay quiet.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 22 2015, @05:28PM
Doing the math, let's take just the simplest of the costs: $10,300,000 "opportunity costs." No need to count overtime here since they apparently accounted that separately. Let's take a fictitious $2,000,000 off for equipment costs - even though it is not clear that this is needed. (Let's say 2 police cars, a prisoner transport van, and $500,000 of radios, cell phones, and other doohickeys.)
Then let's divide the $8,300,000 up by three, for three years. Then, and I have no idea what a cop in London makes, let's just take a stellar figure of $75,000 per year per average officer. (And that assumes that some of the cops get $60,000 and some make $85,000 per year.) I come out with 36.8 persons. Even dividing that by four shifts means nine cops available 24/7. All for one person holed up in an embassy. I'd think two would do nicely, and four would be overkill.
And here I thought England would produce people who do better math than those of us here in the States... So, any other bullshit they want to try to sell us?