Ecuador grants asylum to Assange
- Thread starter EnglishLady
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EnglishLady
Veteran Expediter
Ecuador finally gets to thumb its nose to Great Britain.
"While today is a historic victory, our struggles have just begun. The unprecedented US investigation against Wikileaks must be stopped," Assange said.
What a baby. I wanna do what I want. Waaaaaa.
Britain threatening to revoke Ecuador's diplomatic status over this was kind of a rooster poop move, tho. British law permits it to revoke the diplomatic status of a building if the foreign power occupying it "ceases to use land for the purposes of its mission or exclusively for the purposes of a consular post." But it's written so broadly that it allows the revocation of diplomatic status if they serve lunch at the embassy. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and that's never been more true in diplomatic circles.
"While today is a historic victory, our struggles have just begun. The unprecedented US investigation against Wikileaks must be stopped," Assange said.
What a baby. I wanna do what I want. Waaaaaa.
Britain threatening to revoke Ecuador's diplomatic status over this was kind of a rooster poop move, tho. British law permits it to revoke the diplomatic status of a building if the foreign power occupying it "ceases to use land for the purposes of its mission or exclusively for the purposes of a consular post." But it's written so broadly that it allows the revocation of diplomatic status if they serve lunch at the embassy. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and that's never been more true in diplomatic circles.
EnglishLady
Veteran Expediter
With very good reason ....
WPC Yvonne Fletcher Wounded policewoman dies in hospital | World news | guardian.co.uk
WPC Yvonne Fletcher Wounded policewoman dies in hospital | World news | guardian.co.uk
Not really the same thing. In the case of Assange, it's purely political posturing and one-upsmanship. In the case of automatic weapons being fired from within an embassy, it's an act of war, or state-sponsored terrorism. The Geneva Convention deals with the latter by specifically allowing the immediate revocation of diplomatic status, no additional laws required.
Revoking Ecuador's diplomatic status just because "we want Assange, and we want him really, really badly, therefor you should give him to us," doesn't cut it. If Ecuador were to grant Assange Ecuadorian citizenship and declare him to be an ambassador, England can't touch him without also severing all diplomatic ties with Ecuador (and several other Latin American countries who would retaliate in kind).
Britain doesn't acknowledge diplomatic asylum, I don't know that they ever have, but that doesn't mean they can ignore diplomatic sovereignty when it's convenient. Under the 1961 Vienna Convention, diplomatic posts are considered the sovereign territory of the foreign nation. All Britain has to do is wait until Assange leaves the embassy. He can't stay there forever. He'll eventually wear out his welcome. The only other time something like this happened for an extended period of time was when József Mindszenty camped out at the US embassy in Budapest for 15 years from 1956 to 1971. I can't see Assange doing the same thing.
EnglishLady
Veteran Expediter
I only meant to enlighten those that may not know why that older law was mentioned.
I agree that they are at a stalemate at this time, but I don't see Britain "waiting" for years.
Its really laughable that Assange says "It was not Britain or my home country, Australia, that stood up to protect me from persecution, but a courageous, independent Latin American nation," has he seen Ecuadors human rights violations !!
He should just man up & go face the music - clear his name if he feels unjustly accused .... whatever Sweden does with him once he is out of British air space is up to Sweden.
When I read that, in the background I could hear the Ecuadorian National Anthem being played, and in the distance I spotted the waving flag of Ecuador.
Wanna bet that Wikileaks has conveniently failed to release any documents that would embarrass Ecuador? <snort> Assange is amazingly hypocritical about many things. Always has been.
Well, the officially stated fear is what once Sweden gets a hold of him, they'll simply turn him over to the US so we can waterboard him for fun and recreation... and then kill him when we get bored.
His real fear, which I think is fully justified, are the rape laws in Sweden. If a condom breaks, as is what happened with Assange, the woman can claim rape, and she'll win. If at any time during a consensual sensual encounter the woman changes her mind, if the man doesn't immediately cease and desist any and all amorous activity forthwith, even if he has just loudly and proudly announced his imminent arrival, she can claim rape, and she'll win. Add to that the prosecutor in Sweden is a woman who believes that all male genitalia should be outlawed and disposed of properly by placing them in a stainless steel bowl into cages at the Big Cat House at the zoo, and I don't blame him one bit for not wanting to "man up", because that's precisely what the prosecutor wants, in order to lop it off.
Are you serious?
Unfortunately, yes. Sweden’s definition of legal rape includes the idea of ’unlawful coercion’, which involves exerting emotional pressure on someone to have sex. In other words, being a smooth talker and talking someone into bed, and the women regretting it later. If the sex is consensual, but later the women wished she hadn't been talked into having sex, she can claim unlawful emotional coercion, and she'll win.
The official allegations against Assange are rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion, all of which sound bad, and they are if using the definitions of the US and most countries, but in Sweden there are all sorts of things that can get you those charges. The rape and sexual molestation stem from the allegation that he "used the missionary position to use his weight to hold her down".
He is accused of raping two different women over three days. The second woman, he is accused of raping her in her sleep, despite her saying that she fell asleep, naked on his bed, after getting bored with Assange when he was more interested in his computer than he was in her.
A Google search on Sweden Rape Laws will get you some very informative results.