UN rapporteur asks Trump to pardon Assange

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22 December 2020

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United Nations, Dec 22 (Prensa Latina) United Nations special rapporteur Nils Melzer asked US President Donald Trump on Tuesday to pardon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who remains in prison pending extradition to the United States.

Assange is not 'an enemy of the people of the United States' and is paying now a high price for having the courage to publish true information about bad practices of the government, Nils Melzer, the UN rapporteur who examines cases of torture, and cruel or degrading punishment, noted in a letter to Trump.

The founder of WikiLeaks has been arbitrarily detained for 10 years, the UN independent expert stressed. According to Melzer, Assange and WikiLeaks have fought secrecy and corruption throughout the world, and therefore, act in the interest of the American people and humanity.

He never published fake information, but obtained it from 'authentic documents and sources' in the same way that other investigative journalists do.

Melzer said that he has visited Assange at Belmarsh High Security Prison in London with two independent doctors and can attest to the serious and life-threatening deterioration in his health condition.

Assange is currently being held in the UK pending extradition to the United States on 17 charges potentially punishable by a 175-year prison sentence.