Julian Assanges name is known to many, but the story behind his fame is more complicated than you might guess. You likely know Assange as the founder of WikiLeaks, an organization committed to blowing the whistle on political wrongdoings.
The documents made public by Assange and WikiLeaks have proven consistently inconvenient and embarrassing for the political establishment, but not, thus far, as embarrassing as the allegations against Assange himself. A years-long tussle with the law, which required him to huddle in foreign embassies for roughly the last seven years, has diminished Assanges and WikiLeaks credibility considerably across the world.
So, whats he accused of? Who accused him? And who might have a vested interested in discrediting him?
The case against Assange
The Assange case goes back to August 2010, when two women arrived together at a Swedish police department and gave an account that resulted in a warrant for Assanges arrest. The charge was suspected rape.
The accounts are available for all to read. They involve Assange allegedly approaching these two women, sometimes less than fully clothed, to petition them for sex. They involve Assange allegedly forcing himself on them, possibly while one of them was sleeping, possibly without a condom or possibly with a condom he knew was torn.
If youve ever heard Assange speak to the public or read anything hes written, you know he does come across as thoughtful, measured and deeply rational. You might have a strong negative reaction to his message, but that might be politics talking not the reasoned weighing of evidence.
Its likely that nobody reading this knows Assange nor these women personally or was involved in the investigation. Heres what we know:
The initial warrant was promptly canceled just days after it was brought. Assange himself insisted the accounts were without basis and Eva Finne, chief prosecutor at the time, agreed that she didnt believe there was reason to suspect rape. Assanges defense team had a few key points to make, which are worth mentioning here:
Maintaining a healthy skepticism in a case as complicated and contentious as this one, with crimes as allegedly awful as these, is important. But, if youre following along, that last assertion by Assanges defense team is perhaps the most damaging.
If one of his accusers is on record as literally laughing off one of the charges she helped bring against him, any other testimony she may have given can possibly be considered suspect. This is all very suspect testimony. And the fact that political motivations might be in play here make this case even more frustrating and perplexing.
What has Assange leaked, and where is he today?
In Mid-May of 2017, prosecutors in Sweden announced to the public that they were finally dropping any existing warrants for Assanges arrest as well as their attempts to extradite him. Its pretty clear this isnt the end of his legal troubles, but its a notable step forward for a man who spent years hunkered down in foreign embassies.
The conversation isnt complete without calling attention to some of the most significant contributions WikiLeaks has made to the political public discourse.
Other WikiLeaks dispatches have proven even more controversial. In 2009, the organization released emails sent and received by climate scientists over 13 years, which skeptics seized upon as evidence that scientists were misleading the public over manmade climate change.
Most who dug into the issue indicated the release of the emails showed little more than poor email etiquette and changed nothing about the scientific consensus.
Most recently, WikiLeaks released nearly 9,000 documents detailing how the U.S. built the largest and most invasive surveillance infrastructure in history and then turned it against the American people. You may know this batch of leaks asVault.
WikiLeaks also severely damaged the reputation of the Democratic Party at an inconvenient moment in our history by releasing thousands of internal emails revealing impropriate behavior ranging from feeding questions to preferred candidates at debates to plotting regime change.
As you can see, WikiLeaks is a disruptive political force by any measure and regularly infuriates people all over the political spectrum. No matter what you might think or feel about the allegations against Assange himself, this is what it looks like when an organization favors transparency in government first and specific political agendas second.
Read more:
An Analysis of the Julian Assange Case - International Policy Digest - International Policy Digest (press release) (blog)
