Julian Assange, the mind behind WikiLeaks and the man who had been confined within the Ecuadorian Embassy for over 7 years, was arrested this past Thursday. Despite this, his future is relatively unknown, with multiple countries looking for his extradition and multiple paths for his life to go down. As such, it is pertinent to look at what he has done and what affect those things had, to understand where he may go next.
Assange, as many know, is the founder and current director of Internet site wikileaks. This site has been host to hundreds of documents, leaked from around the world, which work to undermine or otherwise provide evidence towards the sometimes criminal things the elite of the world do. The site itself is mainly focused on the US and its actions, having leaked documents on the Iraqi war, Guantanamo Bay and most recently, the Vault 7 leaks, which detailed the new ‘spying’ methods which the CIA undertakes. However, while wikileaks itself has been responsible for this, Assange himself has been away from any decent internet connection for a long while by his own account and has been monitored day and night, if the reports by Wikileaks are true.
As such, what Assange has actually done isn’t as impressive as one could be lead to believe. The most significant leaks in which Assange did have a hand in are the 2010 leaks, such as the collateral murder leak which revealed previously unreleased footage of a 2007 Baghdad airstrike, the Afghan war diary and Iraqi war logs which detailed the unknown and unpublished involvements of the USA in those wars, and the leak of classified US diplomatic cables. At the same time, Assange also can be attributed to the Guantanamo Bay leaks, which occurred in 2011.
While these leaks certainly established Wikileaks are potent online force and revealed a decent chunk about the USA that many did not know, Assange’s arrest in 2012 means he cannot lay claim to assisting much in further Wikileaks leaking endeavors. So why exactly is he so important to the US and their intelligence community?
The answer is simple. Assange has become a figurehead and a symbol towards online freedom and governmental transparency. His early actions and subsequent 7 year stint in the Ecuador Embassy, in defiance of the UK and USA has become symbolic with resistance against ‘American imperialism and intrusion into people’s lives.’ Therefore, its not a simple reason as to why the USA so desperately wants him extradited. To them, the man stands as a thorn in their side and as a symbol of ‘revolution’ against their cause.
So where to from here for the man? While he currently lies in the UK and will most likely have to face court for going against bail conditions, the USA has continually looked towards his extradition. However, as the Labour opposition has opposed his extradition and the UK government has assured Ecuador that Assange would not face the death penalty, this is looking more and more unlikely by the day. On the other hand, the Swedish prosecutors on the sexual assault allegations against Assange have looked to reopen the case and request his extradition to Sweden. Finally, Assange’s father has personally called for him to be brought back to Australia, though this does seem unlikely.
The most likely path for Assange now is jailtime in the UK and possibly an internet ban. For the nations most threatened by his symbolic nature, death row or life in jail would only work to make him a martyr, who fought against them. By jailing him for a short while and ensuring he is out of the public eye and unable to converse to the internet, he would possibly fade away from public thought, the best ending these nations could wish for. In the end, only time will tell if the USA and UK view Assange’s symbolic nature as too dangerous to keep around.
PoliticsBuff 