Wikileaks is a Non-profit Media organisation that was set up in 2006 by Australian editor, online activist and talented computer hacker Julian Assange.
Wikileaks is a media platform for whistleblowers around the world to send sensitive documents to be archived for and released to the public. The whistleblowers usually remain anonymous and WikiLeaks gets credit for the information.
Wikileaks has a great reputation for being truthful and influential, and it is famous for its many of its publishings, not least of which are the hundreds of thousands of documents of classified and unclassified information leaked from the US Army by intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in 2010. The leaks have been called the "Afghan War Diaries" and "Iraq Warlogs" and are at the centre of huge controversy involving Julian Assange, Manning, and the US authorities.
The logs are the largest classified military leak in history and detail supposed war crimes by the US Army in Iraq and Afghanistan. The majority of the tens of thousands of deaths documented in the Iraq War Logs are civilian deaths.
Julian Assange is in trouble with the American authorities for his involvement in the release of this information, with the US hoping to extradite him from the UK for up to 18 charges of hacking and espionage. He could face up to 175 years in a US prison if they can extradite him from the UK, and so far its looking like they will be successful in their pursuit to extradite.
This case has important implications for journalism in the US and around the world, since WikiLeaks was effectively just doing standard journalism. Journalists could find themselves at risk if the US are succesful in their case against Assange.
In November 2010, while Julian Assange was in London, Sweden issued an international arrest warrant for Assange over allegations of rape and sexual assault. Assange, who denied the allegations, believing them to be a smear campaign by his enemies, breached his bail agreement and took refuge in the Embassy of Ecuador in London, 2012 to evade the charges from both Sweden and the US.
Pictured above is Julian Assange appearing to his supporters on a balcony at the Equadorian Embassy in London
He reportedly disguised himself as a delivery man to evade being followed and captured on his arrival to the embassy, and lived in the embassy for next to 7 years in harsh conditions, reportedly sleeping on a mattress on the floor of an office.
He eventually had a dispute with the Equadorian authorities where they called the UK authorities in to the embassy to arrest him, and he is now detained in Belmarsh maximum-security prison in London waiting to see if he will be extradited to the US to face the 18 charges of espionage and computer hacking. The rape and sexual assault charges from Sweden have since been dropped.
In January 2021 a UK judge ruled that Assange was a suicide risk and was not eligible for extradition to the US. The US countered with assurances that he would be treated well, and the extradition has since been re-approved with Assange's legal team running out of time to appeal.
Chelsea Manning was imprisoned from 2010 for espionage until 2017 when her sentence was commuted from 35 years to time served plus 4 months by president Barack Obama.
She was later imprisioned for contempt of court for failing to testify against Julian Assange, and reportedy attempted suicide while in custody. She is now free and had to pay large fines for her contempt of court.
You can view WikiLeaks site at wikileaks.org. Some of their recent uploads can be seen on their homepage.
These are some interesting recent uploads I found on their homepage:
The Intolerance Network(5th of August, 2021):
“Over 17,000 documents from HazteOir and CitizenGO, Spanish right-wing campaigning organizations. They use high level lobbying, a large network and grassroots mobilizations to hinder advancements in LGBTQI, reproductive rights and secularization.”
Fishrot Files, Part 1(12th of November, 2019):
Over 30,000 documents “obtained from a whistleblower within SAMHERJI, a multinational fishing company based in Iceland. They expose corrupt schemes by the company in Namibia to gain access to rich fishing grounds off the African country’s shores.”
“The documents were provided by Mr. Jóhannes Stefánsson, the former Managing Director of SAMHERJI´s operations in Namibia. He has decided to come forward as a whistleblower and testify about the activities of the company.”
Pope’s Orders(30 of January, 2019):
Pope’s Private Letter Reveals Early Involvement in Power Struggle:
“Documents released by WikiLeaks today shed light on a power struggle within the highest offices of the Catholic Church. Amongst the documents is a private letter written by Pope Francis. The existence of this letter, addressed to the papal envoy Cardinal Raymond Burke, has been the source of much speculation in the media. It is now published for the first time in full and with the Pope’s signature.
This letter concerns the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, also known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, originally founded in Jerusalem during the Crusades in 1099. As the name indicates, it has been widely recognised as a sovereign entity in itself despite theoretically being subject to papal authority as a Catholic institution.
This ambiguous status cuts to the heart of the dispute as it reached a fever pitch after Pope Francis forced the abdication of Matthew Festing as Prince and Grand Master of the Order in January 2017. A month earlier Festing had dismissed the Order’s Grand Chancellor Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager.
The reason for the dismissal is said to be that Boeselager, who served as health minister for the Order, was held personally responsible for having approved funds for an aid mission in Africa that distributed condoms, amongst other things. This directly contravenes Church teachings on contraception and Festing was adamant that Boeselager be held responsible.
Boeselager, however, appealed to Pope Francis, who in turn deeply undermined the Order’s independence and sovereignty by appointing a papal commission to investigate the matter and report back to the Holy See. Boeselager was subsequently reinstated at the same time as Festing was ousted.”
“The Pope’s dramatic moves in January 2017 effectively abolished the sovereignty of the Order and have been described by its harshest critics as the annexation of one country (the Order) by another (the Holy See). Members of the Order even went so far as to challenge papal authority on the matter and refused to co-operate with the Vatican’s investigation. This is seen by many observers as part of a larger power struggle between conservative and liberal elements within the Church, represented by Festing and Boeselager respectively.
Adding yet more intrigue to the tale are rumours that some high-ranking members of the Order have also attended Masonic lodges or other organisations deemed suspect by the Church. Some of this seems to be confirmed by the Pope’s letter, which is dated 1 December 2016 (over a month before Boeselager was reinstated and Festing dismissed).”
The case of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks vs the US is important globally and it can be argued that it is really a case of the United States Government attacking its own freedom Laws, which is scary for journalists and free speech enthusiasts around the world
I believe Wikileaks stands for the truth and helps keep governments and corporations around the world responsible for their actions, and is therefore not a criminal organisation as stated by some US officials.
What do you think? Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments.
There will be more to come on this...
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