MEMO TOWNSVILLE MEDIA : PROMINENT DARWIN ACTIVIST SUGGESTS YOU GET REACTION FROM MAGNETIC ISLAND ASSANGE SUPPORTERS

Rights Groups Warn Extradition of Assange Would Have 'Dangerous Implications for Future of Journalism'

The secretary-general of Reporters Without Borders called on the U.S. and U.K. governments to "stop  this more than decade-long persecution once and for all."

ANDREA GERMANOS

A chorus of international human rights and press freedom groups roundly condemned a British court's Friday ruling that WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange can be extradited to the United States where he could  face  torturous  conditions and  life in prison. 

This is a travesty of justice," said Nils Muižnieks , Europe director for Amnesty International.

Muižnieks was part of a chorus of condemnation that swiftly followed the High Court decision, which blocks a lower court's January ruling rejecting the U.S. government's attempt at extradition because it would be "oppressive by reason of Assange's mental health" and create "substantial" risk of him dying by suicide.

The new ruling marks in a win for the U.S. government—which has charged Assange with 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act related to his publication of classified documents exposing American war crimes. Critics like Reporters Without Borders (RSF), however, say the ruling represents a far-reaching and alarming attack on journalistic freedoms.

"We condemn today's decision, which will prove historic for all the wrong reasons," said RSF Secretary-General Christophe Deloire.

"We fully believe that Julian Assange has been targeted for his contributions to journalism, and we defend this case because of its dangerous implications for the future of journalism and press freedom around the world," Deloire said. He also called for "a stop to this more than a decade-long persecution once and for all."