JULIAN ASSANGE – AS ‘DAY X’ APPROACHES, DO YOU REALLY WANT BE ON THE \u00a0WRONG SIDE OF HISTORY?<\/strong><\/p>\n Next week, jailed journalist Julian Assange will have an appeal hearing in London. It could be the last attempt to stop him being sent to the US, where he faces 175 years in prison. So, people are already mobilising to show solidarity and support with him. And if you\u2019re not \u2013 consider what side of history you\u2019re going to be on.<\/p>\n Assange\u2019s final chance?<\/strong><\/p>\n As campaign group\u00a0Free Assange wrote<\/a>:<\/p>\n The UK High Court has confirmed that a public hearing will take place on 20-21 February 2024. The two-day hearing may be the final chance for Julian Assange to prevent his extradition to the United States. If extradited, Assange faces a sentence of 175 years for exposing war crimes committed by the United States in the Afghan and Iraq wars.<\/em><\/p>\n The\u00a0Canary<\/em>\u00a0has\u00a0extensively documented Assange\u2019s case<\/a>. He has been confined in the high-security Belmarsh Prison since he was arrested on a US extradition request on 11 April 2019. Since then, it has become clear that his charges, his incarceration, and the US state\u2019s attempted extradition of him amount to not only a witch hunt and human rights violations, but an attempt to set a precedent regarding the freedom of journalists and publishers.<\/p>\n Multiple twists and turns<\/strong><\/p>\n Assange\u2019s case has had multiple twists and turns:<\/p>\n Protest in solidarity with Assange<\/strong><\/p>\n Now, Assange is facing his last chance to stop the extradition. That\u2019s why hundreds of people will be supporting him \u2013 protesting outside the Royal Courts of Justice during the hearing.<\/p>\n On Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21 February, people will gather from 8.30am. They will be witness to what\u00a0Free Assange says<\/a>\u00a0is a:<\/p>\n decisive stage in Mr Assange\u2019s appeals [which] will determine one of two outcomes: whether Mr. Assange will have further opportunities to argue his case before the domestic (UK) courts, or whether he will have exhausted all appeals without a possibility for further appeal in the UK and thus enter the process of extradition. An application before the European Court of Human Rights remains a possibility.<\/em><\/p>\n The campaign for freedom is supported by Amnesty International, the National Union of Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and virtually every civil rights, press freedom, and journalists\u2019 union in the world.<\/p>\n As John Rees from the Free Assange campaign said:<\/p>\n This is the most important press freedom case of the 21st century \u2013 we must ensure we don\u2019t lose any hard-won freedoms.<\/em><\/p>\n What side of history are you on?<\/strong><\/p>\n However, it is perhaps his wife Stella who summed the situation up best. She said:<\/p>\n The last four and a half years have taken the most considerable toll on Julian and his family, including our two young sons.<\/em><\/p>\n His mental health and physical state have deteriorated significantly.<\/em><\/p>\n With the myriad of evidence that has come to light since the original hearing in 2019, such as the violation of legal privilege and reports that senior US officials were involved in formulating assassination plots against my husband, there is no denying that a fair trial, let alone Julian\u2019s safety on US soil, is an impossibility were he to be extradited. The persecution of this innocent journalist and publisher must end.<\/em><\/p>\n You can find out more about the days of action\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n This is not a case just about Assange. The freedom of every independent journalist and publisher who are brave enough to challenge corporate, capitalist, and colonial powers is at stake. To stay silent now is to mark your place on the wrong side of history.<\/p>\n The Canary Workers\u2019 Co-op knows life is hard. The Tories are waging a class war against us we\u2019re all having to fight. But like trade unions and community organising, truly independent working-class media is a vital weapon in our armoury.<\/p>\n The Canary doesn\u2019t have the budget of the corporate media. In fact, our income is over\u00a01,000 times less than the Guardian\u2019s. What we do have is a radical agenda that disrupts power and amplifies marginalised communities. But we can only do this with our readers\u2019 support.<\/p>\n So please, help us continue to spread messages of resistance and hope. Even the smallest donation would mean the world to us.<\/p>\n Now, Assange is facing his last chance to stop the extradition. That\u2019s why hundreds of people will be supporting him \u2013 protesting outside the Royal Courts of Justice during the hearing.<\/p>\n On Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21 February, people will gather from 8.30am. They will be witness to what Free Assange says<\/a> is a:<\/p>\n decisive stage in Mr Assange\u2019s appeals [which] will determine one of two outcomes: whether Mr. Assange will have further opportunities to argue his case before the domestic (UK) courts, or whether he will have exhausted all appeals without a possibility for further appeal in the UK and thus enter the process of extradition. An application before the European Court of Human Rights remains a possibility.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/republicancommunist.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Julian-Assange-300x150.jpeg\")
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Protest in solidarity with Assange<\/h6>\n