Julian Assange wins Sydney Peace Prize

[mellie]

Australian Human Rights Award for Julian Assange



The Sydney Peace Foundation’s gold medal will be awarded on 10th May in London to Julian Assange ‘for exceptional courage in pursuit of human rights.’


The Sydney Peace Medal acknowledges Assange’s courage and determination to increase the capacity of citizens all over the world to engage with democratic principles, emphasizing that truth is integral in any quest for justice.

This award is made in recognition of the need for greater transparency and accountability of governments. Director of the Sydney Peace Foundation and founding Director of the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Sydney, Professor Stuart Rees, says:

“By challenging centuries old practices of government secrecy and by championing people’s right to know, WikiLeaks and Julian Assange have created the potential for a new order in journalism and in the free flow of information. Instead of demonizing an Australian citizen who has broken no law, the Australian Government must stop shoring up Washington’s efforts to behave like a totalitarian state. The treatment of alleged whistleblower Bradley Manning confirms a US administration at odds with their commitment to universal human rights and intent on militaristic bullying.”

The award of the Sydney Peace Medal will be made by the highly respected veteran Australian broadcaster, member of the Australian Human Rights committee of inquiry, and former Chair of the Sydney Peace Foundation, Mary Kostakidis.

The Sydney Peace Foundation is supported by the City of Sydney.

For further information contact Melissa McCullough

Media and Publicity Officer
peace.foundation@sydney.edu.au
+61 432861653


http://www.sydneypeacefoundation.org.au/

To join ....

1998 - Professor Muhammad Yunus, the founder of the Grameen Bank for the poor
1999 - Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, former Nobel Peace Prize recipient
2000 - Xanana Gusmão, the poet-artist and president of East Timor
2001 - Sir William Deane, the former Governor-General of Australia
2002 - Mary Robinson, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
2003 - Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Palestinian academic and human rights campaigner
2004 - Arundhati Roy, Indian novelist and peace activist
2005 - Olara Otunnu, United Nations Under Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict from Uganda
2006 - Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International
2007 - Hans Blix, chairman of the UN Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission
2008 - Patrick Dodson, chairman of the Lingiari Foundation
2009 - John Pilger, Australian journalist and documentary maker
2010 - Vandana Shiva, social justice and environmental activist, eco feminist and author from India


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Now with Fairfaxes 'consolidated sub-division' with News Limited, I wonder if like in years gone past they will like the others ignore what they might have once given the front page treatment.

Lets sit back and wait to see who has the balls to publish it first.

Times are bad when a distinguished Australian cant even receive a peace prize in their own country.

[Jovial Monk]

Who says Assange is distinguished? He is facing charges of rape! His own life is completely secret and hidden.

That yankee soldier who copied the cables Assange’s organisation is publishing is much more worthy, he put his arse on the line and is in gaol because of it.

[mellie]

He didn't rape anyone, but it would be a rather convenient untruth for the US government if he had, wouldn't it.

Would a rapist poke holes in a condom on account of their not wanting to wear one?

This is what pissed off Washington, they had hoped the charges would stick so they could have him extradited.

It was to buy them some time, to see if they could find something else to stick to him.

Both alleged victims changed their stories after having got together to plan their MOA.

http://www.collateralmurder.com/

Surely, common sense should tell you there's a few holes in the condom story to begin with?

If a rapist wanted to have sex without a condom, then he would do just that.

Wake up!

[Robina]

You know for sure? Were you one of the women involved?

Fucking lunatic!

[mellie]

You know for sure? Were you one of the women involved?

Fucking lunatic!

The two woman changed their stories, ironically, this and were found to have lied, the first case was thrown out of court, then after the cable-leak, suddenly it was back on the table.

What rapist perforates his condom, all for the want of having unprotected sex?

Surely, common sense should tell you that a rapist would just not use a condom at all, if unprotected sex was his preferred Modus operand?

Twit.

[mellie]

http://www.ellsberg.net/archive/ellsber ... conscienceWikileaks logs show clear US war crimes in Iraq—Manning was reportedly motivated by conscience http://bit.ly/ie2jHo

[mantra]

What rapist perforates his condom, all for the want of having unprotected sex?

Surely, common sense should tell you that a rapist would just not use a condom at all, if unprotected sex was his preferred Modus operand?

Twit.

Of course it would, but Monk aka Robina doesn't understand what condoms are used for and knows nothing about sex - so you'll have to have patience with the idiot Mel.

[lisa jones]

What rapist perforates his condom, all for the want of having unprotected sex?

Surely, common sense should tell you that a rapist would just not use a condom at all, if unprotected sex was his preferred Modus operand?

Twit.

Of course it would, but Monk aka Robina doesn't understand what condoms are used for and knows nothing about sex - so you'll have to have patience with the idiot Mel.

Anyone care to tell me how the above relates to Julian Assange winning the Sydney Peace Prize??

[mellie]

WikiLeaks: grand jury hearing opens in US
The FBI has ordered a resident of Cambridge, Massachusetts to testify at a grand jury investigation into WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange, who faces the possibility of being charged with espionage in the United States.




The jury, which will decide if an indictment is brought, met in secret in Alexandria, Virginia. The subpoena, which was leaked to the news website Salon.com, indicated that the Department of Justice is seriously examining possible violations of the draconian 1917 Espionage Act.

Prosecutors are keen to show that Mr Assange and his organisation encouraged and abetted the leaking of a vast trove of American military and diplomatic documents, which has stunned and infuriated Washington.

Bradley Manning, a US army intelligence analyst, is suspected of leaking the information and is currently in military custody. Earlier reports said that two students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology had aided Mr Manning, though it is not clear if either was the man ordered to testify on Wednesday.

Journalists are not allowed to attend grand jury hearings, which often last more than a year and usually result in a prosecution. However, a non-government party has never been prosecuted under the Espionage Act.

Mr Assange is currently in Britain fighting an extradition order to Sweden for a sexual assault case. His lawyers have argued that Sweden would be merely a stop on the way to extradition in the US.



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... in-US.html


America have intentions of extraditing Assagne prosecuting him for espionage, .... Imagine if Australian soldiers removed their US issued uniforms on this day and burn them by the thousands?

What a statement this would be!

Sweden being a mere stop-over, (False rape charges) and what has this government of ours done to defend an Australian recipient of a Sydney Peace Prize in strife overseas?

Other than falsely accuse him of having engaged in criminal acts themselves?

Julia Gillard is absolutely disgusting, she and Bob Brown have made it clear, what the Australian public think of them is of no consequence.

Solution? Control the shit-splat, aka media.

Be it on the matter recent changes to our media laws, the carbon tax, or the blatant lack-of-regard for an Australian citizen being persecuted by a US government off shore.
http://govwin.com/anthonycritelli_blog/ ... ory/119226


So, the original 'said' leaker has been let off?


http://www.ellsberg.net/archive/ellsber ... conscience

[Jovial Monk]

So Assange is wanted on 2 sexual assault charges in Sweden. I thought women might have some sympathy for fellow women who may have been raped/assaulted.

Those charges precede the Swedish action re sexual assault.

The real hero is that US soldier who downloaded all that data.

Assange is no hero. He even expected Gillard would send commandos to rescue him and fly him home. Some fucking hero, more a spoiled brat!