Cambridge Must Now Stand Up For Julian Assange

23 May

Suren Pahlevan argues that it is now more crucial than ever for Cambridge students, staff, and departments to speak up against the political trial of WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange.

When I attended the protest outside the Royal Courts of Justice calling for the UK to free the Australian journalist and WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange in February this year, Andrew Wilkie, the first Australian MP to call for Assange's release, aptly told the crowd: “We have this madness. The man who told the truth, who provided hard evidence of US war crimes, he’s the one in front of the court. It should have been the pilots of that [US] helicopter.” I saw another protester wearing the Guy Fawkes mask from V for Vendetta while holding up a sign comparing the trial of Assange with the trial of Socrates in 399 B.C. The Julian Assange extradition case is truly the most important fight for press freedom and truth of our times. With ongoing violence and corruption across the globe, it is more important than ever that a platform like WikiLeaks exists to expose the secrets of the elite and powerful. We should come together to protect people like Julian Assange, who has been subjected to psychological torture for over a decade without ever being found guilty of a criminal offence.

At the time of writing this, the ruling on the 20th of May by the Royal Courts of Justice represents a glimmer of hope for Assange in his decade-long battle against extradition to the United States. Assange has now been held in solitary confinement in Belmarsh Prison for over five years while his extradition case has been ongoing, having spent over seven years in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. If extradited to the US, Assange faces charges under the Espionage Act that would result in a prison sentence of over 170 years. His ‘crime’ being his commitment to truth and justice on behalf of humanity, which resulted in his publishing of documents that exposed war crimes committed by the United States.

“If he is convicted, it is the beginning of darkness for us all. The attack on Julian Assange is an attack on us.” - Ben Westwood

On the 20th of May, the Royal Courts of Justice ruled Assange could appeal his extradition to the United States on the grounds that his journalistic work falls under the protections of the American Constitution’s First Amendment – thus dispelling the offence. Currently Assange remains a political prisoner, but for the first time in over a decade, the British justice system has begun to openly recognise that the extradition of Assange would set a dangerous precedent for press freedom in the UK, US, and for the rest of the world. As put by Ben Westwood, son of Vivienne Westwood, during the protest in February outside Downing Street after the hearing: “If he is convicted, it is the beginning of darkness for us all. The attack on Julian Assange is an attack on us.”

Earlier this year, the Australian Parliament, including the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, voted in favour of demanding the US to drop the charges against Assange. Just a few weeks ago, when Joe Biden was asked by a reporter about the Australian call for the US to drop the case, he replied “We’re considering it”. Last week, 31 MEPs called on the UK government to stop the extradition. Now, a cross party group of UK Parliamentarians consisting of Independent MP Jeremy Corbyn, Conservative MP David Davis, Labour MP John McDonnell, and Green MP Caroline Lucas have requested that an inquiry be conducted by the Justice Select Committee into the role of the Crown Prosecution Service in the Assange case.

I recommend that you read up on coverage of the case to find out what is at stake. Aside from the traditional media outlets, there is a lot of good and detailed independent coverage by journalists being done on Twitter and Instagram. The purpose of this article is to encourage the students and faculties of the University of Cambridge to speak up for Assange at this crucial moment alongside the Palestinian encampment. After the hearing’s positive result, Assange’s father John Shipton told the crowd that “The entire thing stands on your shoulders- the people and the supporters worldwide.” In other words, applying political pressure on this case is vital and necessary to help free Assange.

“In the end, the Palestinian struggle and the Free Assange struggle are one and the same: the struggle against the military-industrial complex.”

I have recently attended numerous protests in Cambridge and have held up my ‘Free Julian Assange’ placard amidst the Palestinian flags each time. (If you look closely at the main photo for the recent The Cambridge Students’ article by Mila Edensor about the Cambridge Encampment, you will even see my ‘Free Julian Assange’ placard poking out in the crowd.) My friends and followers on social media have been following my coverage of these events. It has been positively surprising to me to see the amount of people that have come up to me in Cambridge, in Instagram DMs, and even in college and faculty hallways and told me how they appreciate my activism with regards to Assange’s case. It seems, from those who have spoken to or messaged me, Assange is the one issue on which students from the entire political spectrum – including CULC, CULA, CUCA, and CYG – all seem to be in agreement*. Nonetheless, we need everyone to come together to support Assange. In the end, the Palestinian struggle and the Free Assange struggle are one and the same: the struggle against the military-industrial complex. Outside each of Assange’s court hearings numerous Palestinian flags have been present, just as dozens of journalists and political figures supporting the Free Assange campaign have highlighted the interconnectedness of the movements.

*Unabbreviated: Cambridge University Labour Club, Cambridge University Liberal Association, Cambridge University Conservative Association, Cambridge Young Greens

During the past few months, I’ve been raising questions regarding the Julian Assange case to relevant speakers at the Union, such as the Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsey Hoyle. I have realised that the more we speak up for Assange to those in power, the more difficult it becomes for this case to be swept under the rug by the establishment, Expectedly, Sir Hoyle refused to answer my question regarding the extradition on grounds of impartiality (he also had a rather amusing Freudian slip in which he stated “I don’t want to use my role as speaker to encroach on the war– law”). But in truth, the reason I raised my question was for the attention of the other 400 students sitting in the chamber. I wanted to remind the room of how politicised this case has become, and of the failure of the British establishment to defend and stand up for freedom of press on its soil. More people within the University community need to speak up for Assange!

Support for Julian Assange within the University is not a new phenomenon. In November of last year, Assange’s wife Stella Assange spoke at the Cambridge Union about the ongoing case against her husband, and in 2015, whilst in the Ecuadorian Embassy, Julian himself spoke via internet video call to a packed Cambridge Union chamber. I decided to watch Julian’s Union interview, and I found the most memorable part of the interview to be Julian explaining that when he spoke (through video call) to the Oxford Union in 2013, Oxford cut off the live stream and later edited out his background in their YouTube upload of the interview. Julian explains that this was because he had set his background to a photo from US Military camera footage that had been leaked by WikiLeaks and that Oxford had been too fearful to keep it in the final upload (whilst there would have been no consequences in doing so). Speaking on the matter to the Cambridge Union audience, Julian then half-jokingly says “Let’s see if Cambridge can beat Oxford in this respect, or are they going to edit this out?” - a question met by much applause and laughter from the audience. He then proceeded to show Cambridge the full video clip of classified camera footage from a US Apache helicopter revealing US military personnel joking and laughing while killing civilians in Baghdad in 2007, a video leaked by WikiLeaks in 2010. It seems Cambridge were much more on the side of Assange as both Julian’s background and the clip from the Apache remains in his Cambridge Union interview on YouTube. Before hosting the event, the Cambridge Union held a referendum for the first time in its 200 year old history to decide whether to invite Assange to speak, with Assange winning 76.9% of the votes (1,463 votes) in favour of him being invited.

“[I] learned that intelligent people can be cowards and that courage is a much rarer attribute than intelligence” - Julian Assange

Now, in 2024, it is more crucial than ever for Cambridge students, staff, and faculties to speak up for Julian Assange in what is the most important press freedom case of our times. The legal basis of the extradition has proven itself flimsy. The more we spread awareness, speak up for Julian Assange, and stand behind him, the more political pressure we exert on the justice system to let Assange go. The encampments have shown that Oxbridge remains a huge point of focus for the media across the country, and that our commitment to justice must remain a core feature of the University. At this University - where, indeed, so much of British philosophical and political history has been birthed - , “the best students and academics in the country” have a duty to defend freedom of press. In 2013, when Assange was asked what his biggest disappointment in life has been, he replied: “[I] learned that intelligent people can be cowards and that courage is a much rarer attribute than intelligence”. Today we must be courageous. Free Julian Assange!

Cambridge Must Now Stand Up For Julian Assange

“If he is convicted, it is the beginning of darkness for us all. The attack on Julian Assange is an attack on us.” - Ben Westwood

“In the end, the Palestinian struggle and the Free Assange struggle are one and the same: the struggle against the military-industrial complex.”

“[I] learned that intelligent people can be cowards and that courage is a much rarer attribute than intelligence” - Julian Assange

Suggested Reading/Watching:

Braverman Braves the Encampment: A Spectacle of Bad-Faith Reporting