The New York Times and other publications called on the US authorities to drop charges against Julian Assange

On Monday, November 28, five major publications from different countries – The New York Times, The Guardian, Le Monde, El Pais and Der Spiegel – published an open letter calling on the US authorities to drop charges against WikiLeaks founder and editor-in-chief Julian Assange. In their opinion, this is necessary to protect freedom of speech.

It was these publications that in 2010 published data from more than 250,000 confidential telegrams from the US State Department that got into WikiLeaks. Shortly thereafter, Assange was charged with espionage in the United States. This summer, the UK approved extradition Julian Assange in the United States, his lawyers will appeal this decision.

In an open letter, five publications state that “publication is not a crime.” “This accusation sets a dangerous precedent, threatening to undermine… freedom of speech. Holding governments to account is part of the core mission of a free press in a democracy. Obtaining confidential information and disclosing it when necessary in the public interest is a key part of the daily work of journalists. If such work is criminalized, public discussion and democracy weaken,” they noted.

Yana Rozhdestvenskaya