Defending Rights & Dissent Statement on UK High Court Ruling Granting Assange Partial Appeal Rights

On Tuesday March 26, 2024, the United Kingdom High Court of Justice granted Julian Assange a partial right to appeal his extradition to the US. For nearly five years, the United States has been seeking the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition to put him on trial for 2010-2011 reporting exposing US war crimes and abuses of power. In an unprecedented move, the US brought 17 counts against the Australian journalist under the Espionage Act, the first time a publisher of truthful information has ever been indicted under the law. Assange faces an additional count of conspiring to violate the overly broad Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Defending Rights & Dissent has consistently opposed all of these charges.

In a sworn declaration, US prosecutor Gordon Kromberg stated the US government might argue Assange lacked the First Amendment protections US citizens do. Based on this statement, the court ruled the Assange could appeal the extradition on the basis that he would endure unfair treatment and prejudice as a foreign national and it would violate his free expression rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Although none of the charges against Assange carry the death penalty, British prosecutors representing the US government told the court the US could pursue death penalty charges against Assange and the UK would be powerless to stop them. UK law prohibits extradition if the death penalty is to be applied. Assange was granted an appeal right based on this.

While they granted these narrow appeal rights, the High Court rejected Assange’s right to appeal on the basis that extradition law prohibits extradition for political offenses or that the charges themselves violate his right to political expression under the European Convention on Human Rights. The Court wrote that European legal “authorities do not support the proposition advanced by the applicant that whistle-blowers or journalists have an immunity from prosecution in respect of criminal conduct in the course of journalistic activities.” Assange is also barred from raising new evidence about the CIA’s illegal surveillance of him, as well as their plots to kill or kidnap him.

The appeal right is conditional. The US can provide assurances that the death penalty will not be sought and that Assange will have the same First Amendment rights as a US citizen. If the assurances are made by the US, there will be no right to appeal.

Defending Rights & Dissent Policy Director, Chip Gibbons, who was present in London for the two day hearing on whether Assange could appeal his extradition to the US, had this to say:

We are glad Assange will have another opportunity, however narrow, to appeal his extradition. We share the UK Court’s concern over comments from US prosecutors that Assange may be denied First Amendment protections on the basis of his nationality. This is the press freedom case of the 21st century and a verdict against Assange will have an impact on press freedom broadly. The idea of putting him on trial for newsgathering and then saying he can’t rely on the First Amendment is an unacceptable prospect.

We are at a critical stage in the Assange case and we will be escalating our calls for the Biden Administration to uphold the First Amendment and defend global press freedom by dropping this Trump-era prosecution of a journalist for journalistic activities.