[pp.int.general] Support for Julian Assange and Wikileaks

[Marcus Kesler]

This is most certainly an "innocent until proven guilty" matter. It is
always interesting to see that anytime something happens to move this
rape allegation forward, it happens during a release of information.

We should consider him innocent until proven otherwise regarding the
allegations in Sweden, and we should consider him innocent until proven
otherwise regarding the US laws he is accused of breaking (even though
they still haven't figured out what laws those might be).

They might go with "endangering national security", but they would have
to prove how his actions actually endangered national security, and if
they handle this case like all PATRIOT Act cases they will claim that
having to explain would also endanger national security.

As far as options that we can pursue at this point:

1) Keep the information flowing. Keep the message on topic, and if you
have an opportunity to talk to the media about this don't let them take
the topic away from the information that was leaked. Even if he is
convicted of these crimes, it does not change the information contained
in these leaks one bit. The best thing we can do is to not let ourselves
become distracted into turning this into a "He is not a rapist!" topic,
and making sure it stays a "This is what was leaked" topic.

2) Insurance - every person on this list should have a copy of the
insurance file. I have no clue what may be contained in it and what
would happen if the key was ever released. But it is a trump card that
Wikileaks has, and one we should empower.

3) Whistleblower Protection - Not sure if this is a Whistleblower case
as far as Wikileaks is concerned. Very possibly for the people that
forwarded the info to Wikileaks, but not Wikileaks itself. It is more of
a Freedom of Press issue.

4) Freedom of Press - That is where we really have to push hard. I know
in the US it was not too long ago that the legislators met with news
leaders to decide on future protections for the media, and the media
threw Wikileaks under the bus. A big portion of this, in my opinion, is
complicated by the fact that the established news outlets see any online
based media/information site as an enemy. Media and Blogs/wikileaks have
the same relationship as MPAA/RIAA and Copyleft groups. We need to push
hard for governments to recognize online news (from blogs to Wiki to
user driven news sites) as news, and giving them the same protection
under the Freedom of Press laws as "paper" news.

Marcus Kesler
Pirate Party of Oklahoma

On 12/2/2010 7:27 AM, Mariano Alesandro wrote:
> 2010/12/2 Erik Lönroth <erik.lonroth at gmail.com>:
>> I think that nobody has escaped the recent events of the Wikileaks publications.
>>
>> * In Sweden, there is an international warranty to arrest Julian
>> Assange which is now on Interpol:s "Most Wanted List".
>> * USA - Hillary Clinton - will use all its available forces to stop
>> Wikileaks and try to prosecute Julian Assange for "something".
>> * Julian is today, one of the most hunted persons in the world at the moment.
>>
>> Now Pirates, util Julian has been proven guilty of ANYTHING, we have
>> to support him. (Inocent until proven guilty).
>>
>> Julian as a person is in grave danger, and what happens to him will
>> statue an example for the rest of us to see.
>>
>> What can we do to protect him?
>>
>> /Erik
>> ____________________________________________________
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>>
> 
> For what I understand he has some "safe-protection" files that would
> be published should anything happen to him.
> From an IT view, we could perhaps storage that data, all of us
> together in different pieces or something, but all I can think of
> helping him is data related, I really have no idea on what to do about
> his personal security, but I guess when he got into this he took
> precautions as well, other than having that safe-file.
> I also think that what we should do is keep on re-tweeting and re
> posting the wikileaks documents, to still focus people on THAT,
> instead of them focusing on his prosecution/hunting.
> I mean, It looks to me that the media is trying to change the focus of
> attention on the WikiLeaks matter, in a way of distracting people from
> talking about the actual HUGE hole all those documents represent, and
> instead talking about Julian Assange persona.
> Regards,
> Mariano
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