December 23, 2020
Andrew Campbell
On December 22, Nils Melzer of the UN Special Rapporteur, also known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, openly asked the departing US President Trump to grant Assange's clemency. Melzer, serving Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, urged to pardon Assange and show justice, truth and humanity to the people in the US and abroad.
Assange has been formally charged by US authorities for conspiring to leak US classified materials on WikiLeaks in 2010. The first ruling in his extradition case for criminal prosecution up to 175 years in prison will be determined on January 4, 2021. However, Melzer attests Assange's health has seriously deteriorated and suffers from a documented respiratory condition. Melzer said Assange's release will save his life.
On December 4, Edward Snowden, US National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower, wrote on Twitter and asked US President Donald Trump to pardon Wikileaks’ founder Julian Assange. Earlier in early December a member of Australian parliament George Christensen also urged US President Donald Trump to pardon Assange. Before Trump leaving the White House, there are many requests to pardon Assange’s release. Julian Assange was arrested inside London’s Ecuadorian Embassy in April 2019 and is being held in Belmarsh Prison in southeast London of UK.
Photo:Webshot.