The WikiLeaks founder has been held in a prison outside London for the last five years and fought extradition to the U.S. He is expected to return to Australia.

Julian Assange is free.

After living in a cell for more than 5 years, he can soon go home and meet his family again.

I’m wondering if it was worth the sacrifice. The governments and tech companies are spying more than ever on everyone.

    • Zoldyck@lemmy.worldEnglish
      32112·
      5 months ago

      He’s a traitor, and because of him many people died. I hope he’s not ok. Edit: downvote me all you want, but that won’t change the fact that Assange gave very sensitive information to regimes and dictators that has gotten innocent people murdered.

      • Vipsu@lemmy.worldEnglish
        325·
        5 months ago

        Assange is a citizen of Australia and since The United States is known for spying on its allies the act of exposing US informants would be closer to serving ones own country than act of treason.

      • yamanii@lemmy.worldEnglish
        105·
        5 months ago

        Snowden is also considered a traitor, I really don’t give a shit who the US says is a traitor. I only wish the worst for people working for 3 letter agencies.

        • Zoldyck@lemmy.worldEnglish
          936·
          5 months ago

          Not a bot. Assange helped regimes and dictators to kill US informants. Innocent people in Syria and Belarus for example got murdered because of the information Assange gave them. Look it up if you don’t believe me.

          • Alphane Moon@lemmy.worldEnglish
            2113·
            5 months ago

            Zoldyck is not lying.

            Look up Assange and his connection with Israel Shamir, who helped Lukashenko’s regime in Belarus target opposition activists.

            This wasn’t a mistake, he knew what he was doing.

            People just buy into the PR around him (also spread by security services in russia and not only) without taking a critical look at his actions.

            Do better!

            • pop@lemmy.mlEnglish
              82·
              5 months ago

              Then prosecute him for that. But the US doesn’t care about activists, does it? Why do you think US is after him specifically?

              What about, what about, what about?

              Post the actual proof rather than a link to a wikipedia article.

              You do BETTER.

              • Alphane Moon@lemmy.worldEnglish
                31·
                5 months ago

                The Wikipedia article is a good starting point if you wanted to actually get an alternative perspective.

                But you don’t.

            • unexposedhazard@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
              194·
              5 months ago

              Sure he had some shady connections, but all accusations of actual wrongdoing supposedly comitted by Assange himself were brought forward, sourced and verified by the same US authorities, that employed or protected the criminals he exposed, which makes them basically worthless.

              What he actually DID do without a doubt is do the people of this planet a massive service by releasing proof of countless warcrimes, spying and other illegal activities by US agencies and individuals.

              • Alphane Moon@lemmy.worldEnglish
                614·
                5 months ago

                Sure he had some shady connections, but all accusations of actual wrongdoing supposedly comitted by Assange himself were brought forward, sourced and verified by the same US authorities, that employed or protected the criminals he exposed, which makes them basically worthless.

                Opposing the Lukashenko regime is being a criminal?

                I get tankies and right-wingers, they actually know what Assange is about.

                But allegedly well meaning people thinking that he is some sort messiah or saviour, that’s what’s sad.

                He is a genuine supporter of russian imperialism and he has no qualms with sending opposition activists to hellish prisons, all the while positioning himself as some sort of fighter against US imperialism.

                Former russia today employee, Julian Assange after British prison, Volodymyr Tsema-Bursov, Ukrainian POW, after 20 month in russian captivity.

                And Assange support the russian regime and enables what they do to captives.

                • unexposedhazard@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
                  126·
                  5 months ago

                  Nah dude, your brain is cooked beyond saving if you blame Assange for what the russians decide to do with public information. Not even worth responding to this schizo level response tbh.

          • pop@lemmy.mlEnglish
            210·
            5 months ago

            Regurtitating the same talking points your government uses for people that reveal its atrocities are “bots” no matter how you spin it. There are tankie bots and you are a wankie bot.

            Tell us more about how revealing war crimes and global surveillance are traitors, bot.

            • Zoldyck@lemmy.worldEnglish
              77·
              5 months ago

              Try looking up the definition of the word bot. You might learn something today.

      • user134450@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        152·
        5 months ago

        You might be interested to learn about a couple actual trained spies. guess what they were accused of?
        Treason is not what you think it is. Its a nice word to throw around when you are angry at someone but it has a very specific meaning.

      • ebc@lemmy.caEnglish
        221·
        5 months ago

        Yes, but that’s not treason. It could be treason if he was American, but he isn’t.

      • gnuhaut@lemmy.mlEnglish
        6519·
        5 months ago

        Are you talking about the claim that he endangered CIA agents? That was just some bullshit they cooked up to get him on, and I don’t think anybody even claimed that somebody actually died.

        Imagine thinking exposing the CIA should be a crime, because the poor small beans CIA agents need protection. Who wouldn’t want to protect imperial blackmailers, hit men, weapons smugglers and death squad commanders?

        You are the traitor for siding with the oppressor.

        • Alphane Moon@lemmy.worldEnglish
          1526·
          5 months ago

          You are the traitor for siding with the oppressor.

          Right supporting Lukashenko’s regime is such a noble endeavour!

      • pre@fedia.io
        2610·
        5 months ago

        @Zoldyck@lemmy.world

        Bush, Trump, Clinton and Biden all got more innocent people killed than Julian. Their crimes all dwarf anything he is accused of let alone is guilty of. If you are not a literal bot, you have allowed yourself to be programmed by intelligence agencies into hating the man who exposed the crimes over the men who committed them.

      • Grimy@lemmy.worldEnglish
        172·
        5 months ago

        The consequences of doing a bad thing are on the person doing it, not the whistle blower.

        If they wanted to keep their secrets, they should of made sure they weren’t so fucking rough. Nobody would of leaked any files if those heli pilots were saving children instead of joking after killing them.

  • L3s@lemmy.worldMEnglish
    194·
    5 months ago

    Too many rule 3 breaking comments, locking this post. Let’s be excellent to eachother please!

  • TheDarksteel94@sopuli.xyzEnglish
    12·
    5 months ago

    I wonder if that will mean anything for David McBride’s sentence. Probably not, because I assume the Australian government has ulterior motives behind bringing Assange home, especially with how corrupt it is in many places. But one can hope.

  • paddirn@lemmy.worldEnglish
    61·
    5 months ago

    After living 7.5 years in an Ecuadorian embassy, I wonder if he feels like that portion was all a waste of time, going to those lengths to avoid extradition. Though maybe the timing worked in his favor in this case, given its been years since Wikileaks was relevant, whereas had he been extradited years ago he might’ve be faced a harsher situation.

  • sonovebitch@lemmy.worldEnglish
    634·
    5 months ago

    Assange has been held in […] Prison on the outskirts of London for five years, and he previously spent seven years in self-exile at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London […] until his asylum was withdrawn and he was forcibly carried out of the embassy and arrested in April 2019.

    12 years… fuck…

  • 0x0@programming.devEnglish
    1017·
    5 months ago

    WikiLeaks was churning along fine and doing actual useful work in relative anonymity until Mr Assange’s ego decided WikiLeaks needed a figurehead, painting a target on his back - you reap what you sow.

  • kandoh@reddthat.comEnglish
    512·
    5 months ago

    I obviously have issues with his actions in '16

    But they were going after him for releasing the footage of the US gunning down civilians. Not his actions during the election.

  • TrickDacy@lemmy.worldEnglish
    916·
    5 months ago

    Just goes to show if you’re an actual good guy, you get the shaft (Snowden), but if you’re a rapist who repeatedly helps fascists, you have hope.

  • Vipsu@lemmy.worldEnglish
    219·
    5 months ago

    Hopefully he can safely return to his home country and take a long deserved rest from this all.
    It’ll probably take a decade or more to recover mentally from all the shit he has gone through.

    I just hope he takes his time to recover and passes the wikileaks torch as all the accumulated resentment and paranoia will probably take a while to shed off. Going all out on anti-american frenzy on social media and whatnot would likely lead to undesirable outcome for him in public eye.

    I’m wondering if it was worth the sacrifice. The governments and tech companies are spying more than ever on everyone.

    Snowden revelations and Wikileaks have made E2EE pretty much a standard for most internet services. People are also far less naive when it comes to online privacy which has spawned bunch of regulations like GDPR and bunch of investigations on how well services and products handle information security.

  • IsThisAnAI@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2436·
    5 months ago

    Fuck assange. Your hate for the US has you supporting an asshole that works for Russia.