LONDONThe U.S. government resumed its yearslong effort to put Julian Assange on trial on spying charges, challenging a British judges decision to refuse the WikiLeaks founders extradition because he posed a suicide risk.

In a preliminary hearing in London ahead of a full appeal in October, lawyers acting for the U.S. sought to broaden the grounds for appealing a January decision against Mr. Assanges extradition, arguing the evidence around Mr. Assanges mental health needed revisiting.

Judge Timothy Holroyde agreed, saying the judge in the lower court that refused the extradition gave too much weight to the evidence of a defense witness who misled the court by omitting in a report to the court that he knew Mr. Assange started a new family while holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The decision means the U.S. can challenge the extradition refusal on multiple fronts, relating both to points of law and the lower courts central judgment around Mr. Assanges mental state. The U.S. has already offered assurances around Mr. Assanges treatment if extradited to ease concerns that harsh prison conditions could heighten his risk of suicide.

The full appeal is slated for Oct. 27 and 28. Further appeals are possible, meaning Mr. Assanges fate might not be clear for many months.

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U.S. Presses Effort to Secure Julian Assanges Extradition From U.K. - The Wall Street Journal

Julian Assanges partner has made a plea for this nightmare to come to an end once and for all as the US Government won the latest round in its High Court bid to extradite the WikiLeaks founder on espionage charges.

Stella Moris, who has two children with Assange, spoke outside the Royal Courts of Justice after a preliminary hearing as part of the US Governments challenge to a decision by a British judge in January not to extradite him.

At Wednesdays hearing, Lord Justice Holroyde ruled in favour of the US authorities and allowed them to expand their arguments for the main appeal, which will take place over two days in October.

After the ruling, Ms Moris said the court had not discussed why she fears for my safety and the safety of our children and Julians life.

She said: The constant threats and intimidation that we have endured for years which has been terrorising us and has been terrorising Julian for over 10 years.

Threats against me, threats against our children, death threats against Julians eldest son.

Threats on Julians life, threats of 175-year prison sentence and the actual ongoing imprisonment for a journalist for doing his job.

These are sustained threats to his life for the past 10 years. These are not just items of law, this is our lives.

We have the right to exist. We have a right to live. We have a right for this nightmare to come to an end once and for all.

Ahead of the hearing, Ms Moris accused the US Government of exploiting the inherently unfair extradition arrangements with this country in order to arbitrarily prolong his imprisonment.

She added: The imprisonment of an innocent man accused of practising journalism.

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn also joined protesters in front of the High Court ahead of the preliminary hearing.

He said: The United States seems to have a sort of obsession with people who uncover the truths about US military presence around the world.

I think they should wind their necks in and let Julian Assange go.

I hope the court today gives a very clear signal that they will not allow the appeal by the United States and that Julian Assange will be allowed to go free.

He was applauded by protesters who later shouted free Julian Assange and jail the war criminals to the sound of a beating drum as uniformed police looked on.

The US Governments full appeal against the decision not to extradite Assange will now be heard at the High Court in October.

In these testing times, your support is more important than ever. Thank you.

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Julian Assange's partner seeks end to 'nightmare' of 'threats and intimidation' - Northern Times

The US government is arguing that Assange is capable of resisting suicide and, in the High Court, repeated its offer for the Australian to serve out any sentence in his home country rather than the US.

The full appeal will be heard on October 27 and 28.

Edward Fitzgerald, QC, representing Assange, sought to comfort the Australian, whom he spoke to from the courtroom via a video link, after the decision.

Its only a preliminary ruling, its not the end of the line at all, just saying its arguable and weve at least got a clear idea of the case weve got to meet for the full hearing, Fitzgerald told Assange.

Supporters gathered outside as the High Court heard a US appeal in the extradition case of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.Credit:Getty Images

The conversation was streamed to journalists reporting remotely and was supposed to have been private, but Fitzgerald repeatedly warned Assange that it was likely their discussion was being broadcast.

I wont say any more, Julian, or invite you to say too much because people might be listening in, he said.

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But Assange said he could not comprehend the reasoning behind the decision. I just dont understand how ... an expert has a legal obligation to protect people from harm, my children in particular, he said, an apparent reference to Kopelmans decision to omit referring to Moris and their two children.

The 50-year-old had been expected to appear in person at the Royal Courts of Justice but instead appeared via a video link, seated on a sofa in a room at Belmarsh Prison where he has been imprisoned for almost two years.

He appeared dishevelled, his white hair straggly and grown out to the base of his neck. He wore a white shirt with the collar unbuttoned and a burgundy tie undone and hanging around his neck. His face mask covered only his mouth, leaving his nose exposed.

The US government is pursuing Assange for espionage, arguing he conspired with Chelsea Manning, then an army intelligence officer, to hack into government systems to steal three-quarters of a million secret and classified cables that WikiLeaks dumped, unredacted, online.

Assange says he is a whistleblower and journalist, but this was rejected by the judge overseeing his extradition hearing who said his actions went beyond that of a whistleblower.

If you or anyone you know needs support call Lifeline on 131 114.

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US government wins first appeal battle in fight to extradite Julian Assange - The Age

Globally recognised artist Ai Weiwei has said the decision by British visual arts organisation Firstsite to exclude an artwork invited from him is an attempt to silence his continued support for Julian Assange.

Firstsite had used my name to promote the so-called biggest exhibition in the UK while also deciding against the core values of art, freedom of expression.

Ais Postcard for Political Prisoners was explicit in its aim to enlist support for Assange, under conditions in which days before the exhibition was to open Assange had just undergone a show trial in London, with the US government seeking his extradition on Espionage Act charges that could see him locked up forever with a 175 year prison sentence.

Ai said he was honoured by the rejection, which gave a real meaning to my artwork. He explained, I think the reason is related to Assange who has been incarcerated in HM Prison Belmarsh in London since his arrest on 11 April 2019, and that they dont want to touch on a topic like Assange.

Firstsites Great Big Art Exhibition, which ran from January 28 to May 9, was billed as a 100 day celebration of the creativity in each and everyone of us. It was intended as a means of sharing art in front windows, gardens, balconies and outdoor spaces.

Firstsite invited contributions from prominent artists. The idea was that artists would respond to a different theme every two weeks, encouraging the broadest possible creativity and sharing of responses. On January 18, Ai was invited to contribute, and told that artworks can be made of anything. Four days later, Firstsite director Sally Shaw rang him. Following Ais agreement to participate, he and Firstsite were in constant contact about the content of his contribution.

Ai revisited his work at a 2014 exhibition at the former Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in San Francisco, where he made postcards printed with the address of a political prisoner. Visitors were encouraged to write on the postcards, which were later sent to the prisoners.

The artwork delivered to Firstsite on April 22 was titled Postcard for Political Prisoners. Sending it over, he told Firstsite they were still awaiting an Amnesty International list of political prisoners who would be able and willing to receive mail from the public. Firstsite thanked him for all youve done to get this to us.

On April 25, Ai advised Firstsite of delays in getting information from Amnesty International. There were so many political prisoners it was proving hard to collate their details. Ai asked about posting details of the project on the Firstsite exhibition website.

They did not reply, nor to follow-up communications on May 13 and 17. Ais studio then asked Greg Hilty, director of the Lisson Gallery in London, to continue the inquiries. On May 20, after 27 days of stonewalling, Sally Shaw rejected the work.

Firstsite, she wrote, were unable to take it forward for two reasons. Sadly, due to the timing of when the idea came through from the studio, it has made it difficult for us to include it... Also, the concept of the project is to encourage people across the nation to make artworks and display them in their windows. The sending of a postcard takes us away from this intention. I must assure you, sincerely, that this is in no way a reflection of our appreciation of the idea itself, which is remarkable and profound, and equally our esteem for Weiwei and his work.

Ai wrote that Shaws message had exactly the same tone as a rejection letter sent to job applicants, although she had solicited his involvement in the first place. He dealt with Shaws two stated reasons. The question of timing was spurious. He had been given no deadline for his contribution, and it was still in good time for the exhibitions final theme, Performance. Ai said it would have fit well here, thematically and temporally.

Regarding the idea that the postcard form takes us away from the exhibitions aims, Ai asked, Why wouldnt my conceptual artwork Postcard for Political Prisoners inspire people to make artworks in the form of a postcard and engage in art-activism? What could stop participants from sending the postcard to themselves and pasting it on the window?

At issue, he insisted, was the works content. The reverse of the card featured a sketch from his 2015 work All Fingers Must Point Down. The front focused attention on the worlds highest profile political prisoner, WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange.

In 2016, Ai interviewed Assange who had received asylum at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. That October, Assange gifted him his treadmill, an image of which is on the front of Postcard. Ai has long demanded Assanges freedom, saying, I am a strong supporter of Assange because I firmly believe in the importance of investigative journalism in a civil society.

He felt the combination between my encounter with him and my ongoing interest in sending letters to political prisoners was crystallised into Postcard for Political Prisoners. It is a project which not only shows care to political prisoners, but it also encourages participants to reflect upon the relationship between the freedom that they enjoy and the price these fighters pay for that freedom.

Ai asked pointedly, Whom has my postcard with Julian Assanges treadmill offended?

He noted a general reluctance even to mention Assange, as witnessed in Shaws clumsy response: she seemed too afraid to give us a straight answer and too maladroit to round it off.

They are not alone: Everyone is avoiding itnot just in the mainstream media, but in the circles of art and culture in general.

Ais statement in ArtNet News was intended, he said, to provoke everyone reading to think about the role that contemporary art plays in daily life.

This incident unravels the art worlds hypocrisy and corruption to reveal a world that considers art as a decoration and a sedative within our capitalist and consumerist society, a world where cultural activities concern culture alone and nothing more.

He called out the hypocrisy of the exhibition, and its museum backers, for advocating a democratic freedom of expression it actively denied, and which it has transformed into a form of flattering the powerful and wealthy. Firstsite rejected his work, but their website continues to thank Ai for his contribution. I feel ashamed, he wrote, that nowadays all art does is whitewash.

Ai (b. 1957, Beijing) is a vocal critic of the Chinese Communist Partys record on democratic rights. When he was detained for 81 days without charge in 2011, it suited many imperialist politicians to use his case as a lever against China. Among them were the very forces now lined up against Assange. It is to Ais credit that he has not comfortably adapted to these regimes since leaving China in 2015. He spent four years in Germany, of which he said, I dont like a state or culture that so obeys authority. He moved to a Britain he recognised as colonial.

Ai has increasingly explained his art as a political response to the world, telling the Guardian, If my art has any meaning, it is as a tool for freedom. If I see people victimised by authoritarianism, I am a soldier in defending their freedom.

He repeated these themes in his response to Firstsite: Art has become a tool to numb ourselves so that we may avoid introspection. Any reflections through art are undesirable because they evoke pain and suffering and, if we delve into it, we would all be found guiltyand artists are guiltier than others because we have far more opportunities for free expression.

The comments touch not just on the corruption of a corporate art world, but address the question of how artists need to respond to the world today.

Much of Ais recent work has lived up to his view that contemporary art should be related to peoples lives and concerned with humanitarian ideas; art is, first and foremost, about human beings. Many of his works have shown a genuine sympathy with the oppressed at a personal level, although they have sometimes struggled to go deeper. The WSWS noted that everyone interested in the defence of the rights of immigrants should watch his remarkable documentary Human Flow, but with an understanding that the film lags far behind the times in terms of its political content.

The rapidity of political change may be pushing Ai further. The design of Postcard was based on a personal contact with Assange, but the continued threat to the journalist, and suppression of even a favourable mention of him, are forcing Ai to consider the burning questions, What is art and what is its purpose. He is right to conclude that Firstsites rejection made Postcard for a Political Prisoner a truly worthwhile project.

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Ai Weiwei's artwork in support of Julian Assange rejected by Firstsite UK exhibition - WSWS

Yesterday, two men with ties to Massachusetts, Michael and Peter Taylor, pled guilty in Tokyo to aiding former Nissan executive Carlos Ghosn escape Japan and evade a raft of charges related to financial improprieties. GBH legal analyst and Northeastern law professor Daniel Medwed joined Aaron Schachter on Morning Edition today to provide the legal context to the case and discuss the road ahead. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Aaron Schachter: Now this is quite a story, right? The whole case reads like a figment of a screenwriter's imagination. A Special Forces operative and his son hide Ghosn in a box in Japan and Tokyo and take him out of the country on a private plane. But while Ghosn is free in Lebanon, the Taylors were hauled to Japan to face the music. How did this happen?

Daniel Medwed: It's a twist in the screenwriter's plot that probably doesn't help the Taylors very much. Here's how it happened: It relates to how extradition treaties work. When countries are engaged in bilateral negotiations, they often include an extradition provision that spells out the circumstances in which one country can haul a citizen of another country back into court to face criminal charges. Lebanon and Japan don't have an extradition treaty, and that's why Ghosn can't be touched by Japanese authorities. And in fact, that's why he was secreted to Lebanon in the box.

However, the United States and Japan do have an extradition treaty. It's not boundless, though. And for many months, while the Taylors were here in Massachusetts, they fought the extradition order by Japan. Their claim was that the particular criminal charge that they're looking at basically the Japanese equivalent of bail jumping, helping someone flee and not appear in court wasn't covered by the extradition treaty. They lost that battle, which is why they're in their current predicament.

Schachter: So this whole thing about extradition is kind of like the case with Julian Assange, right? When he was holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy for seven years?

Medwed: That's exactly right. Julian Assange, the reason why he was in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for all that time is because Ecuador and the United States didn't have an extradition treaty. But he knew full well that if he ever set foot out of that embassy, he could be scooped up by British authorities and sent back to the United States. But because, of course, there's a long standing extradition arrangement between the U.K. and the United States, and in fact, in 2019 when Assange did step out of that embassy and he was about to face the music for the WikiLeaks scandal, he was hauled in by the British authorities and he remains incarcerated there while he fights extradition to the U.S.

WATCH: Daniel Medwed on guilty pleas in Japan

Schachter: How do guilty pleas work in Japan, Daniel? Was this a good idea for them to make that plea?

Medwed: That's a really interesting point. I think it was probably a good idea to make that plea because in Japan, the conviction rate is over 99 percent. Japan has what's called an inquisitorial or civil law system where the judge and the prosecutor have all the clout. And the defense lawyer, frankly, is a little bit of an afterthought. In Japan, you plead guilty. It doesn't resolve the case. It just means you face a sentencing trial where the judge decides what you should get. So the reason why you'd plead guilty in Japan is that you know you're going down anyway 99 plus percent conviction rate so why not curry favor with the judge in the hopes that you'll get some leniency on sentencing day?

Schachter: It seems sort of odd that you can have a near 100 percent conviction rate, that all that many people are guilty.

Medwed: A couple of different reasons: The first is that unlike in the United States, you don't have a robust right to counsel during police interrogations in Japan. You can be detained in Japan for days without a lawyer. In fact, you can be detained for about 23 days without being charged with a crime at all. Second, as a cultural matter, prosecutors just don't take cases to trial unless there's ironclad evidence of guilt. They'll drop the case instead of potentially losing face by not securing a conviction at trial.

Schachter: Do we know how long the Taylors face in jail?

Medwed: Yes, the maximum sentence, I believe, is three years.

Schachter: So things are not looking great for the Taylors.

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Mass. Father And Son Plead Guilty To Aiding Carlos Ghosn Escape Japan - wgbh.org

Ai Weiwei has accused the organisers of a large UK art exhibition of rejecting his artwork for the show because the piece addressed the imprisonment of the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

The Chinese dissident artist and activist said the piece for The Great Big Art Exhibition featured an image of the treadmill which Assange used while seeking asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy.

In an opinion article for the art website Artnet, Ai Weiwei said the piece, called Postcard for Political Prisoners, incorporated a photograph of the running machine given to him by Assange, who is detained in Belmarsh high-security prison in south-east London.

Ai said that in April the artwork, which was intended to be sent as a postcard to political prisoners, was delivered to the visual arts organisation Firstsite, the organiser of the online exhibition, which he said initially responded enthusiastically.

But after informing Firstsite that there would be a delay because his studio was waiting for Amnesty Internationals list of political prisoners who would be able and willing to receive mail from the public, Ai said the organisation ignored further inquiries about exhibiting the piece.

He wrote that Firstsite eventually responded to an inquiry from the Lisson Gallery, which represents him, earlier this month. He said Firstsites director explained that they could not include his project due to time constraints, and because it did not fit with the concept of the exhibition: to encourage people across the UK to make artworks and display them in their windows.

Ai Weiwei said that this response made no sense to him because, he says, no deadline was given for the delivery of the artwork, and there was nothing to stop people from pasting the postcards on their windows.

He wrote: I think the reason is related to Assange who has been incarcerated in HM Prison Belmarsh in London since his arrest on 11 April 2019, and that they dont want to touch on a topic like Assange.

In a statement, Sally Shaw, the director of Firstsite, repeated the reasons given to Ai as to why they chose not to include the artwork in the exhibition. She added: I must assure you, sincerely, that this is in no way a reflection of our appreciation of the idea itself, which is remarkable and profound, and equally our esteem for Weiwei and his work.

This article was amended on 3 June 2021 to refer to Ai Weiwei on subsequent references a direct quote excepted by his surname Ai, in conformity with Guardian style, rather than his forename Weiwei.

Originally posted here:
Ai Weiwei accuses curators of rejecting artwork over Julian Assange content - The Guardian

The father and brother of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange are planning a nationwide tour of the United States next month to advocate for the release of the detained journalist and for the Biden administration to drop its extradition effortand to highlight the broader implications that his prosecution has for global press freedom.

"The U.S. government wants to make an example out of him to deter journalists and whistleblowers."Gabriel Shipton, Julian Assange's brother

John and Gabriel Shipton, Assange's father and brother, will kick off the #HomeRun4Julian tour in Miami on June 6, then travel to over a dozen U.S. cities for the rest of the month, wrapping up in Washington, D.C. in July. Some events will be live-streamed, and the pair plans to meet with activists, journalists, and policymakers along the away.

"My brother Julian Assange has effectively been a prisoner for over a decade because he published evidence of war crimes," said Gabriel Shipton in a statement Thursday. "The U.S. government wants to make an example out of him to deter journalists and whistleblowers."

Assange has been held at Her Majesty's Prison Belmarsh in London for over two years, since he was forcibly dragged from the Ecuadorian Embassy in the city, where he had sought refuge in 2012. A British judge in January declined the Trump administration's request to extradite Assange to face charges of violating the Espionage Act, concluding he would be at extreme risk of suicide.

Since taking office, U.S. President Joe Biden has continued to ignore global calls to end the extradition effort and drop all charges. The Department of Justice formally appealed Judge Vanessa Baraitser's decision in February. Forty-nine-year-old Assange could face up to 175 years in a maximum-security prison if he is extradited to the United States.

"Gabriel and I are excited to talk to the American public on why protecting journalism and freeing Julian is so important to a free press," said John Shipton, who toured their home country of Australia this month to advocate for his son. "This issue is bigger than just Julian. Freedom of the press in America impacts every part of the world."

The U.S. tour is sponsored by the Courage Foundation, which was founded in 2013 as the Journalistic Source Protection Defense Fund. Assange is a trustee of the foundation, which supports whistleblowers and other truth-tellersor "those who risk life or liberty to make significant contributions to the historical record."

"For the first time in American history, a journalist has been indicted for publishing truthful information in the public interest," Courage Foundation director Nathan Fuller said of Assange. "That's why press and human rights groups around the world are in agreement that this is an existential threat to investigative reporting."

Press freedom advocates last month marked the two-year anniversary of Assange's arrest by British police by reiterating demands that the Biden administration immediately drop all charges against him. Nils Melzer, the United Nations special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, has also long advocated for Assange's release.

In a December 2020 open letter asking then-President Donald Trump to pardon Assange, Melzerwrote that "I can attest to the fact that his health has seriously deteriorated, to the point where his life is now in danger. Critically, Mr. Assange suffers from a documented respiratory condition which renders him extremely vulnerable to the Covid-19 pandemic that has recently broken out in the prison where he is being held."

Melzer and the mayor of Geneva are among dozens of people planning to join a June 4 event in the Swiss city to launch the "Geneva Call to Free Assange," which supporters are promoting online with the hashtag #GVA_FreeAssange.

"The 'AnythingToSay' statue dedicated to whistleblowers Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning as well as to Julian Assange will be installed at the same time on the Pquis pier in front of the Geneva Jet d'eau," according to an event webpage. "The Association of Users of the Bains des Pquis, initiator and organizer of the event, will also present an exhibition on whistleblowers."

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Julian Assange's Father and Brother Announce US Tour to Demand Journalist's Freedom - Common Dreams

What is art and what is its purpose? What is its relevance to our post-industrialist and consumption-oriented world? These questions may seem banal, but they are especially pertinent if we look at The Great Big Art Exhibition, organised by the U.K. visual arts organisation Firstsite this year. I am very honored to share that my 2021 project Postcard for Political Prisoners was not acceptedand that their rejection gave a real meaning to my artwork.

Erica Bolton, a public relations specialist who worked for Firstsite on the exhibition, contacted us earlier this year, on January 18, through Greg Hilty, the curatorial director of Lisson Gallery, and invited me to take part in the nationwide showwhich claims to be the U.K.s largest-ever art exhibition and a celebration of creativity to counter the gloom of the pandemic. In collaboration with Art U.K., The Big Draw, Voluntary Arts, and supported by the Plus Tate network of 35 museums and galleries across the U.K., the idea is that Britains leading artists would choose a different theme every two weeks and that people could join up virtually to produce artworks together. In the initial information I received from Bolton, we were told that artworks can be made of anything, and that key works from across the U.K. would be made available for download.

Their slogan goes: The doors to our collections and galleries might be shut but art and expression will be unleashed as never before across the U.K.

On January 22, Sally Shaw, the director of Firstsite who was leading the project, had a phone meeting with my studios press and publications manager at that time. Between January and April, there was a constant flow of WhatsApp communications between the studio and Stuart Tulloch, Firstsites head of program, about the specifics of my contribution.

Ai Weiweis treadmill from Julian Assange, photographed in October 2016. Courtesy Ai Weiwei.

On April 22, my artwork titled Postcard for Political Prisoners was delivered to the Firstsite team. The idea of a postcard stems from my 2014 exhibition at the former Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in San Francisco, where I made postcards that were each printed with an address of a political prisoner. Visitors could write on them and the postcards were subsequently mailed by the exhibitions organisers to that jailed individual.

This time, for the design of the postcard I included a sketch from my 2015 work All Fingers Must Point Down on the reverse side. On the front is an image of Wikileaks founder Julian Assanges treadmill, which was given to me in October 2016 as a present some months after I interviewed him in summer 2016 while he was seeking asylum at the Embassy of Ecuador in London, before he was detained by the British authorities in April 2019. I am a strong supporter of Assange because I firmly believe in the importance of investigative journalism in a civil society. As I felt that I did not have the chance to do justice to Assanges story, the combination between my encounter with him and my ongoing interest in sending letters to political prisoners was crystallised into Postcard for Political Prisoners. It is a project which not only shows care to political prisoners, but it also encourages participants to reflect upon the relationship between the freedom that they enjoy and the price these fighters pay for that freedom.

As we submitted the work, we informed Firstsite that we were waiting for Amnesty Internationals list of political prisoners who would be able and willing to receive mail from the public. Immediately afterwards, we received an enthusiastic WhatsApp message from Stuart Tulloch: Ill get back to you with any questions tomorrow. Thanks for all youve done to get this to us.

On April 25, we informed Firstsite that Amnesty International would take longer, due to the fact that there are so many people in prison at the moment, they have less information on where people are held. We enquired with Firstsite about posting the details of my project on their platform.

No response.

We followed up again on May 13 and May 17.

No response.

On May 17, we asked Lisson director Hilty to follow up on our behalf. Thats how we finally received a response, on May 20, after Firstsites silence for 27 days. The response came from the director of Firstsite, Sally Shaw: We have given the idea a great deal of consideration and unfortunately, we are unable to take it forward for two reasons. Sadly, due to the timing of when the idea came through from the studio, it has made it difficult for us to include it in The Great Big Art Exhibition. Also, the concept of the project is to encourage people across the nation to make artworks and display them in their windows. The sending of a postcard takes us away from this intention. I must assure you, sincerely, that this is in no way a reflection of our appreciation of the idea itself, which is remarkable and profound, and equally our esteem for Weiwei and his work. [Shawreiterated this to Artnet News when reached for comment, adding that it was our greatest dream to work with Ai Weiwei. He is the most extra-ordinary artist for whom everyone at Firstsite has the deepest respect.]

On of the site-specific installations by Ai Weiwei on Alcatraz Island. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Shaws response carries exactly the same tone as a rejection letter sent to job applicants. The only difference is the reversal of our roles because she was the one who courted my participation in the exhibition. What makes even less sense is the reasons that she gave for not having included my postcard: timing and art form. In fact, no deadline was ever given for my contribution, and, according to official information, the last theme, Performance, spanned from April 26 to May 9my work could have fit nicely, thematically and temporally.

Now, for the second reason: In an exhibition where Anish Kapoors abstract painting could potentially encourage people to make artworks and Antony Gormleys instructions could teach people how to make a dog figurine with a ball of clay, why wouldnt my conceptual artwork Postcard for Political Prisoners inspire people to make artworks in the form of a postcard and engage in art-activism? What could stop participants from sending the postcard to themselves and pasting it on the window? Who is judging whether one artwork is more worthwhile for the purpose of encouraging people across the nation to make artworks and display them in their windows than another? What is the criteria? Whom has my postcard with Julian Assanges treadmill offended?

The inherent self-contradiction in Shaws stated reasons, or rather, excuses demonstrated an inability to make her caseshe seemed too afraid to give us a straight answer and too maladroit to round it off. I think the reason is related to Assange who has been incarcerated in HM Prison Belmarsh in London since his arrest on April 11, 2019, and that they dont want to touch on a topic like Assange. Everyone is avoiding itnot just in the mainstream media, but in the circles of art and culture in general. By writing down the events that occurred, I hope to provoke everyone reading to think about the role that contemporary art plays in daily life.

Ai Weiwei poses with John Shipton, the father of Julian Assange, outside the Old Bailey court in central London on September 28, 2020, where the extradition hearing against Assange was taking place. Photo: Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP via Getty Images.

In my opinion, contemporary art should be related to peoples lives and concerned with humanitarian ideas; art is, first and foremost, about human beings. What I do as an artist is always related to my personal experiences and the world around meas such, my postcard design references my personal contact with Assange.

Everywhere in the contemporary world, art exhibitions enjoy flaunting famous artists work, while, at the same time, Western art has become completely cut off from society.The Great Big Art Exhibition used my name to promote the so-called biggest exhibition in the U.K. while also deciding against the core values of art, freedom of expression. What this incident unravels is the art worlds hypocrisy and corruption to reveal a world that considers art as a decoration and a sedative within our capitalist and consumerist society, a world where cultural activities concern culture alone and nothing more. Art has become a tool to numb ourselves so that we may avoid introspection. Any reflections through art are undesirable because they evoke pain and suffering and, if we delve into it, we would all be found guiltyand artists are guiltier than others because we have far more opportunities for free expression.

My rejection also demonstrates that this art project, which involves more than 21 museums as well asother cultural venues based in this so-called democratic society, are quintessentially hypocritical. Lets read The Great Big Art Exhibition slogans once again: artworks can be made of anything at all and art and expression will be unleashed as never before across the U.K. It is truly ironic to observe the corrupt practices of cultural circles in a place at the pinnacle of Western civilization, which advocates for and takes pride in its freedom of expression. In reality, freedom of expression is nothing more than empty talk and it has become a product that only serves the purpose of flattering the vanity of those who are powerful and wealthywhich is even worse.

I feel ashamed that nowadays all art does is whitewash. My artwork has once again proven how the art world is corrupt. So, I would like to thank Firstsite and the experience that they offered: Their rejection made Postcard for Political Prisoners a truly worthwhile project.

In response to this article, Sally Shaw, director of Firstsite, sent Artnet News the following comment: It was our greatest dream to work with Ai Weiwei. He is the most extra-ordinary artist for whom everyone at Firstsite has the deepest respect. We gave his idea a great deal of consideration and unfortunately and very sadly we were unable to take it forward for two reasons. Due to the timing of when the idea came through from the studio, it has made it difficult for us to include it in The Great Big Art Exhibition. Also, the concept of the project is to encourage people across the nation to make artworks and display them in their windows. The sending of a postcard takes us away from this intention. I must assure you, sincerely, that this is in no way a reflection of our appreciation of the idea itself, which is remarkable and profound, and equally our esteem for Weiwei and his work.

See the original post:
The Organizers of a Major U.K. Exhibition Used My Name to Promote Their Show. But They Were Too Afraid to Embrace My Ideas - artnet News

The Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei says hes hypocritically been removed from a British exhibition because he chose to design a piece that addressed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assanges incarceration in a London prison.

One persons terrorist is anothers freedom fighter is a flowery way of saying actions can be interpreted differently, depending on your viewpoint.

Its a scenario acclaimed Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has often encountered and, unfortunately, is in again.

He fled his homeland for being deemed too controversial for the states strict censorship. Hes recounted how he was arrested, beaten by Chinese police, placed under house arrest and then imprisoned for tax evasion.

On his release, he described being subjected to psychological torture, being detained in a tiny room with constant light and two guards never more than 30 inches away, even when he used the bathroom.

In 2019, he fled to Berlin, but didnt stay long, I dont like a state or culture that so obeys authority, he declared, adding: They would say in Germany you have to speak German. They deeply dont like foreigners.

He now resides in the picturesque city of Cambridge in the east of England. So it was understandable when last year The Great Big Art Exhibition asked a world famous artist, who called the UK home, to take part.

However, Weiwei is no longer part of the project despite his reputation being used to draw attention to it.

Why?

Because he wanted to feature in the exhibition a postcard with the image of Julian Assanges treadmill. The WikiLeaks founder used it for exercise during his almost seven-year spell in Londons Ecuadorian Embassy, where hed sought refuge.

The exhibition hopes to encourage Britons to make art and display it in their windows, a tonic to beat the gloom of the pandemic. Weiwei opted for his contribution to be a Postcard for Political Prisoners, which members of the public could send to political prisoners around the world, their addresses supplied by Amnesty.

Although people could send it to themselves to display in their own window if they wished.

Weiwei wanted to inspire them to engage in art-activism, a practise that has made him globally admired.

However, his idea was rejected.

Weiwei claims that Sally Shaw, the director of Firstsite, who are leading the project, seemed too afraid to give us a straight answer and added: I think the reason is related to Assange who has been incarcerated in HM Prison Belmarsh in London since his arrest on April 11, 2019, and that they dont want to touch on a topic like Assange.

Shaw has denied Weiweis claims: The sending of a postcard takes us away from this intention. I must assure you, sincerely, that this is in no way a reflection of our appreciation of the idea itself, which is remarkable and profound, and equally our esteem for Weiwei and his work.

Weiwei has managed to break a glass ceiling, his art is widely admired for the aesthetic and then also its deeper meanings very few artists share that ability. To have someone like him involved would undoubtedly have elevated the credibility and sophistication of the project.

Weiwei said of the rejection: I feel ashamed that nowadays all art does is whitewash. My artwork has once again proven how the art world is corrupt.

Assange is a figure who, despite the best endeavours of the British establishment, wont disappear. He remains locked up in Belmarsh despite Americas extradition request being denied. He is behind bars because bail was controversially denied, while an appeal is mounted by the US government.

The whole matter is a stain on the British justice system, as Assange is guilty of nothing but revealing atrocities committed by Americas armed forces.

Thats why Weiweis latest artistic beacon is to be lauded.

In the same way British society lauded Weiwei when he was standing up to causes that suited them.

Back in 2011, Foreign Secretary William Hague called for China to release him immediately. The same year, someone called Boris Johnson wrote a column entitled The world must speak up over the detention of Ai Weiwei. (Not sure well get a similarly-entitled one now about Assange, do you?).

Former Prime Minister Theresa May even personally got involved when she was Home Secretary to issue him with a six-month visa after he was only offered a 20-day permit due to being detained for political reasons in China.

The prestigious Tate Modern in London also rapturously received and hosted Weiweis Sunflower Seeds millions of handcrafted porcelain seeds which explored the complexity of the Chinese individuals relationship with society, the authorities and tradition.

So when Weiwei rallied against Chinese oppression he was to be admired but when his artistic torch illuminated Britains dark side, the script was flipped.

As a country, we should be welcoming individuals like Weiwei but strictly adhering to consistency. Its arrogant to shut down his work when it embarrasses our own transgressions, and thats what the treatment of Assange is.

Sally Shaw was awarded an MBE in the The Queens Birthday Honours List only months ago for services to the Arts and yet decides to cancel Weiwei.

Were a closed shop, but don't like to admit it. And world-class hypocrites. Why else would we censor a globally recognised artist?

The message is clear; criticise those who it suits us and well support you, but come looking for us and well erase your platform.

Hypocrites? Nah, spineless cowards.

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The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.

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The British elite lauded Ai Weiwei when he criticised China, but its the opposite when he highlights their treatment of Assange - RT

John Jiggens

Julian Assange in 2010. Photo Espen Moe, Creative Commons.

John Shipton, father of detained WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, is due to speak in the Byron Shire again this week.

Mr Assange and his family have close connections to the Northern Rivers, with the acclaimed journalist having spent part of his childhood in the hinterland.

His father has dedicated much of the past decade to fighting for Mr Assanges freedom and has spoken as part of sell-out public forums in the Byron Shire at least three times, with support from independent local media organisations The Echo and Bay FM community radio.

This May, Mr Shipton is on tour down the east coast again and started with a public address in the Nimbin Town Hall as part of MardiGrass festivities.

Mr Shipton spoke in Brisbane on World Press Freedom Day (May 3) and marched with the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance on behalf of his son, a Queensland-born member of the MEAA, before addressing a rally in West End.

Northern Rivers residents can hear Mr Shipton in person at the Courthouse Hotel this Tuesday, May 4, from 7pm as part of the monthly Turning Point Talks.

Peace advocates Ciaron OReilly and Melbourne4WikiLeaks member Jacob Grech will join Mr Shipton on the panel, while local regional journalists Mandy Nolan (The Echo) and Mia Armitage (Bay FMs Community Newsroom)will introduce and facilitate the discussion.

On Wednesday, May 5, Mr Shipton will speak in Lismore at the space in front of the gallery in Keen Street from 1pm with support from Lismore Mayor Vanessa Ekins and Councillor Darlene Cook.

A midday rally at Byrons Railway Park on Friday, May 7, will end Mr Shiptons North Coast stint and will also feature Byron Shire Councillor and former journalist Sarah Ndiaye.

Lismore City Councillors Ekins and Cook and Byron Shire Cr Ndiaye have all supported Mr Assange at a local government level.

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Father of Julian Assange to speak on the Northern Rivers this week The Echo - Echonetdaily