He is currently in the Ecuadorean embassy in London, which, under the terms of the Vienna Convention, British police cannot enter.
Earlier his legal adviser Balthasar Garcon emerged from the Ecuadorean embassy in London and said: "I have spoken to Julian Assange and I can tell you he is in fighting spirits and he is thankful to the people of Ecuador and especially to the president for granting asylum.
"Julian Assange has always fought for truth and justice and has defended human rights and continues to do so.
"He demands that WikiLeaks and his own rights be respected.
"Julian Assange has instructed his lawyers to carry out a legal action in order to protect the rights of WikiLeaks, Julian himself and all those currently being investigated."
The first picture of Julian Assange in embassy
Mr Assange, a former computer hacker, was granted political asylum by Ecuador after its ministers agreed he was facing persecution and the possible death penalty in the United States.
But he remains holed up in the embassy in Knightsbridge, surrounded by police who want to arrest him for breaching his bail conditions.
Embassy workers could be seen opening windows to a balcony and were heard to be testing microphones, prompting speculation the statement will be made from the first floor.
A heavy police presence could be seen on the streets of Knightsbridge as dozens of officers, aided by helicopters overhead, sought to maintain calm.
A huge scrum of press had also gathered outside the embassy, behind Harrods, as the world's media waited for the Australian in the blazing sun.
Dozens of reporters, photographers and television crews were barricaded in metal pens directly opposite the building.
A small number of supporters had gathered alongside while scores of tourists and onlookers stopped to take pictures of the extraordinary scenes.
"It reminds me of Evita about to address the people," one onlooker remarked.
William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, said the Australian would not be allowed to fly to his newly adopted country and must answer rape allegations in Sweden.
The case has provoked a diplomatic stalemate between London, which has said it was "disappointed" by the long – awaited decision, and Quito, which has accused Britain of threatening to storm the building to seize Mr Assange.
The saga has been going on for almost two years, since Mr Assange was accused of raping and sexually assaulting two women on a visit to Sweden where he was promoting his whistle – blowing website.
He was arrested in London in 2010 but fought extradition to Sweden all the way to the Supreme Court, fearing it was a pretext for him to be sent to the US where the authorities were incensed by his release of thousands of confidential diplomatic cables.
After the court rejected his last appeal in June, Mr. Assange walked into the embassy and applied for political asylum.
When he refused to come out, he broke his bail terms, becoming liable for arrest.
The WikiLeaks spokesman said the group wanted guarantees from the Swedish government that it would not extradite Mr Assange to the United States.
"It would be a good basis to negotiate a way to end this matter if the Swedish authorities would declare without reservation that Julian would never be extradited from Sweden to the USA," he said.
Ricardo Patino, Ecuador's foreign minister, has said Mr Assange fears "repression and intimidation" if sent to Sweden.
But Sweden's foreign minister has accused his Ecuadoran counterpart of living in a "fantasy world" for granting political asylum to Mr Assange.
Carl Bildt described suggestions by Ecuador that Mr Assange was subject to political persecution and might be sent by Sweden to face prosecution in the United States over the website's activities as "grave accusations".
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar