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Julian Assange to be made honorary citizen of Rome (www.reuters.com)

submitted 11 months ago by jimmydoreisalefty@lemmus.org to c/world@lemmy.world

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cross-posted from: https://lemmus.org/post/1242124

Assange, 52, has been in London's high-security Belmarsh prison since 2019 and is wanted in the United States over the release of confidential U.S. military records and diplomatic cables in 2010.

"Assange is a symbol of free speech which is essential for any genuine democracy," Raggi, who ran Rome's city hall between 2016 and 2021, told Reuters.

"He has been deprived of his own liberty for years, in awful conditions, for doing his job as a journalist," she said.

Other Italian cities have taken similar steps. The northern city of Reggio Emilia granted Assange citizenship last month, while Naples is set to follow shortly.

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[-] SamsonSeinfelder@feddit.de 64 points 11 months ago

In the beginning he was a whistle blower. In the end he was a Russian marionette. They used him (like Snowden) to leak US documents. His first interview on cameras was for russia today and given the chance to drop damaging information on the Republican Party, he always choosed to drop the dirt of the democratic party. He got played by the FSB hard and is still in denial about this. He is either a bad faith actor or a useful idiot for russias desinformation campaign.

[-] anlumo@lemmy.world 20 points 11 months ago

Assange isn’t a whistle blower. He was a journalist who published information given to him by whistleblowers (like Manning).

[-] Son_of_dad@lemmy.world 23 points 11 months ago

Published only the secrets that hurt the people he wanted specifically to hurt, while hiding the secrets that made his benefactors look bad. I wouldn't call that a journalist, I call that an information terrorist

[-] oce@jlai.lu 17 points 11 months ago

Who used Snowden to leak documents?

[-] Son_of_dad@lemmy.world 7 points 11 months ago

He's an information and data terrorist. He has everyone's secrets but only releases the ones that are convenient to him or his handlers. There's nothing noble about him.

[-] statist43@feddit.de 16 points 11 months ago

What are you talking. his website released even data of the embassy he was granted asylum for few years. They then kicked him out.

You are talking shit my man.

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social 1 points 11 months ago

He's just a narcissist.

[-] Franzia@lemmy.blahaj.zone -3 points 11 months ago

When the DNC and RNC got hacked, the info came out for both. But what the DNC did pissed off the highly politically engaged - democrats who voted in the primary.

[-] Selmafudd@lemmy.world 9 points 11 months ago

How does one get citizenship from a city?

[-] CmdrShepard@lemmy.one 28 points 11 months ago

Probably the same way you get an honorary degree in something. Someone prints out a useless sheet of paper and then hands it to you.

[-] MaxHardwood@lemmy.ca 10 points 11 months ago

A PhD is the promise you'll do great work. An honorary degree means you've already done it.

[-] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 15 points 11 months ago

Or you dropped a couple million in money you inherited from your family.

[-] ThatOneDudeFromOhio@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago

Great work

[-] autotldr@lemmings.world 6 points 11 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:

ROME, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Jailed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will become an honorary citizen of Rome by early next year following a vote this week by its local assembly, the city's former mayor Virginia Raggi said on Thursday.

Assange, 52, has been in London's high-security Belmarsh prison since 2019 and is wanted in the United States over the release of confidential U.S. military records and diplomatic cables in 2010.

The motion to make him a citizen of the Eternal City was spearheaded by Raggi, from the left-leaning Five Star Movement, and won cross-party support.

"Assange is a symbol of free speech which is essential for any genuine democracy," Raggi, who ran Rome's city hall between 2016 and 2021, told Reuters.

The motion was approved on Tuesday, kick-starting a process that Raggi said she hoped could be completed by Christmas but may take slightly longer.

The northern city of Reggio Emilia granted Assange citizenship last month, while Naples is set to follow shortly.

The original article contains 237 words, the summary contains 163 words. Saved 31%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

[+] PugJesus@kbin.social -9 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

“He has been deprived of his own liberty for years, in awful conditions, for doing his job as a journalist,” she said.

I wonder if he could have simply not raped two women in Sweden?

EDIT: I can't believe being anti-rapist is a controversial opinion now. Good job, Lemmy community. I hope you feel nice and warm when you go to sleep tonight after simping for a rapist's right to not stand trial for rape.

[-] muntedcrocodile@lemmy.world 43 points 11 months ago

Are these the charges that where dropped? Is one not innocent untill PROVEN guilty. Of cause its a catch 22 u go and extradite him to have the case then he ends up in the US awfully convenient that. Also gotta point out how convenient it is that anyome who fucks with the alpabet bois gets accused of such crimes.

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social 5 points 11 months ago

Are these the charges that where dropped?

The prosecution announced that the investigation had been closed as of 19 November 2019 because "the evidence has weakened considerably due to the long period of time that has elapsed". It said the complainant had "submitted a credible and reliable version of events"

Is one not innocent untill PROVEN guilty.

Yes, and that is generally why people are tried in court instead of hiding in another nation's embassy to avoid arrest.

Of cause its a catch 22 u go and extradite him to have the case then he ends up in the US awfully convenient that.

Yes, because Sweden was just drooling over the prospect of extraditing him to the US, and totally doesn't have policies against extradition for the US crimes Assange was accused of /s

Also gotta point out how convenient it is that anyome who fucks with the alpabet bois gets accused of such crimes.

"Believe all women, except when women accuse someone I like"

Really eye-opening how popular this view is on here.

[-] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 13 points 11 months ago

I'm not saying he's innocent, but if the people who wanted to extradite him for that wanted to actually try him for that crime, then all they had to do was promise not to hand him over to the US.

Weird that they wouldn't do that.

I honestly think he should stand trial, but clearly these charges are just a pretense to get him to the US. Ironically these women are just being used for cynical political manipulation.

If he had done the things he's accused of with the Epstein crowd then nobody would be trying to extradite him for it.

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social -2 points 11 months ago

I’m not saying he’s innocent, but

It's astounding how far people will go to defend a rapist with credible accusations.

Weird that they wouldn’t do that.

Swedish law mandates that extradition decisions cannot be carried out in absentia.

I honestly think he should stand trial, but clearly these charges are just a pretense to get him to the US. Ironically these women are just being used for cynical political manipulation.

Yes, clearly, it's Sweden that's way more likely to extradite him, not the UK, where he was arrested before skipping bail. /s

Funny enough, he's almost certainly going to be extradited now, by the UK, who have him dead to rights for skipping bail and do NOT have the rules Sweden does about restricting extradition. If he had went to Sweden and stood trial, he might be free today, lmao.

If he had done the things he’s accused of with the Epstein crowd then nobody would be trying to extradite him for it.

"If the richest, most powerful rapists in the world don't get justice served to them, why should the other rapists?"

[-] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

If I took all your sentences and gave them the most bad-faith possible interpretation in isolation it'd sound pretty bad too, but only if the reader wasn't paying attention.

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social -2 points 11 months ago

If I took all your sentences and gave them the most bad-faith possible interpretation in isolation it’d sound pretty bad too, but only if the reader wasn’t paying attention.

You have some dispute with the middle two points?

The first point is supposed to be pointing out just how bad it sounds, and that you should take a step back before saying "He's not innocent BUT" for a guy with very credible rape accusations leveled against him.

The last point is just taking your argument to its logical conclusion to display how absurd a whataboutism in this situation is,

[-] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Sweden could make an exception and offer amnesty, again if they really cared about the rape allegations.

And the third point is just "the imperial machine got him in the end lol lmao", like, okay? Congrats the US gets to have their retribution anyway? How many US politicians have been rapists again? Does that matter to you, or only when the rape allegations are about people you don't like? Those women still won't get justice when he's extradited.

If you're angry that the women aren't getting justice in this case, get angry at the realpolitik that forces them to be used as political footballs just to get any attention on their allegations at all. That's not justice.

And obviously I didn't say that women shouldn't have justice because rich rapists get away with it. Like what the fuck are you talking about? You have to be purposely trying to miss my point to think that's what I'm saying.

And it sounds bad? Yes, if you strip all context and insert your own, then sure, but like... that was my point, right? If all you have is the aesthetics of the argument then you have nothing of substance. You literally took the part where I said I wasn't defending him and said I was defending him. Do you expect people to take this seriously?

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social -1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Sweden could make an exception and offer amnesty, again if they really cared about the rape allegations.

God, I don't know how to get this through. Do you not understand how a country with rule of law works? There was no chance of him being extradited. I don't know what more you want. A super special legislative session just to intervene in a judiciary matter regarding an offense against private persons? So what, special extraconstitutional treatment for rapists if they're really popular? Fuck that.

And the third point is just “the imperial machine got him in the end lol lmao”, like, okay? Congrats the US gets to have their retribution anyway? How many US politicians have been rapists again? Does that matter to you, or only when the rape allegations are about people you don’t like?

The third point is "If he had stood trial for rape instead of trying to play games, the 'imperial machine' probably WOULDN'T have gotten him."

If you’re angry that the women aren’t getting justice in this case, get angry at the realpolitik that forces them to be used as political footballs just to get any attention on their allegations at all. That’s not justice.

"to be used as political footballs"

Yes, I'm sure that was the point when Assange immediately fled Sweden, he was super concerned that these accusations were going to be turned into political theatre, and he thought the best way to avoid it was... fleeing Sweden to go to a more US-friendly country, skipping bail in that US-friendly country, and requesting asylum from a third country, all while broadcasting to whoever that would listen that it was all a conspiracy against him.

Maybe he's just a rapist who didn't want to get put in jail for, y'know, rape?

Those women still won’t get justice when he’s extradited.

Yes, because the rapist spent half a decade in an embassy using PR from people like you to shield him from consequences until the case could no longer be pursued. How heroic.

And obviously I didn’t say that women shouldn’t have justice because rich rapists get away with it. Like what the fuck are you talking about? You have to be purposely trying to miss my point to think that’s what I’m saying.

No, I really don't. The issue is Assange raping two women. When the issue is brought up, your response is, and I quote, "If he had done the things he’s accused of with the Epstein crowd then nobody would be trying to extradite him for it."

In context, that's either a whataboutism, which is nothing less than rape apologia of the kind I described, or a non-sequitur, in which case you're 'only' throwing out nonsense with no relevance to the matter at hand.

Which is it?

And it sounds bad? Yes, if you strip all context and insert your own, then sure, but like… that was my point, right? If all you have is the aesthetics of the argument then you have nothing of substance. You literally took the part where I said I wasn’t defending him and said I was defending him. Do you expect people to take this seriously?

"I'm not defending him BUT maybe the fault is with the country that's trying to uphold its laws (Sweden)"

Yeah, no, have fun with the rape apology.

[-] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 0 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Okay, you're still taking my statements in the worst way possible and I don't believe you've understood my point in all of this.

If you want me to continue replying to any of this, I need an answer to this question: are you at all curious to understand what it is that I am trying to say?

[-] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I will take the lone downvote as a no then.

It's difficult position, being asked if you're curious to understand the other person, because if you say no, then you've forfeited any right to reply. You are admitting bad faith.

If you say yes, then you may be held to that standard, and the tactic of aggressively dictating the secret message you've divined between the other person's words doesn't work. If they tell you you've got their ideas wrong, then you have to listen, if you are in fact curious.

To be clear, I am curious to understand. If I'm not I'll stop responding. It's hard to glean the argument I was facing here, it was full of contradictions like, "Sweden would never extradite" but also "they cannot guarantee they will not extradite." I would've liked to understand that one in particular. If that person comes back and admits to having curiosity, I will ask them about it.

[-] SturgiesYrFase@lemmy.ml -3 points 11 months ago

"Believe all women, except when women accuse someone I like"

Really eye-opening how popular this view is on here.

To be fair, that's everywhere, not just here.

[-] PugJesus@kbin.social 0 points 11 months ago

Lemmy, in general, is more vocally feminist and feminist-friendly than most communities, so the disparity is more stark. I expected better, I suppose.

[-] SturgiesYrFase@lemmy.ml 1 points 11 months ago

Fair dues

[-] Blackout@kbin.social 1 points 11 months ago

I don't know about that. I see far more racist and prejudice views here than I ever did on Reddit as it would have been down voted rapidly or moderated before I'd get to it. Maybe not anymore with the mods leaving but I do get a good shocking opinion here daily.

[-] sudneo@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago

If you read about this matter, you would know very well that the matter is way more complex than "he did not want to stand trial". The whole matter is very well described by Stefania Maurizi (a journalist who cooperated with Wikileaks) in her book "Secret power". Both the Swedish and the UK government have huge responsibilities on how (bad) that case was handled.

this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2023

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