There is, I believe, a fundamental issue at stake here. Western ‘democracy’, however limited some of us believe it to be, is based on the notion of a ‘contract’ between those who rule and those who are governed. It is one of the basic foundations of Western Society that those who rule should have an obligation to the governed to rule in their best interests. Sipu touches on this obligation in his post ‘Downton Abbey’. Part of this ‘contract’ is that all will receive unbiased justice equal to any other, regardless of their status, rank, or wealth.
It has been a long fought battle, as those who have even a smattering of history will know, between the will of over-mighty rulers and the people they rule. Had the rulers of Europe had their way they would have become as autocratic as the Tzars in Russia or the Emperors of China where the ‘little man’ was subject to the whim of his masters. It is not a battle that has been won, it is and will continue to be a struggle between those who would like to rule untrammelled by constraints for their own interests and those who do not want to be used like pawns in a game of chess for the benefit of others. It is incumbent on everyone to protect the rights of the individual – even if we do not like the particular individual concerned.
Part of that ‘contract’ to rule in the interests and wishes of the governed has to be transparency in government, and that is what, as far as I’m concerned, Wikileaks is about. It is opening the world of the secret, underhand deals of our rulers to the light of day. No one is demanding the right to know those things which are truly part of ‘national’ security’, but would that someone, anyone had leaked the ‘secrets’ surrounding the UK’s vote for the Common Market. Does anyone doubt that there would have been an almighty rejection of that proposal? I will be dead long before the ‘true’ nature of the treaties signed with the USA for their support in the last war will be revealed, but I would not mind betting that part of those treaties was to follow the US in whatever crack-pot war they decided to fight – along with ceding parts of the UK to US law. I happen to think that it is right for the people of the UK to know why they are spending their money and their men and women to fight in the US’s foreign wars. Keep secret that which is necessary, expose that which serves only to further the interests of the few. ‘Secrecy’ leads to ‘Tyranny’.
The Press has a long history of exposing scandals. The MPs’ expenses scandal was not exposed by a ‘whistleblower’ but by a journalist. Watergate, and other such have been brought to the light of day by investiagtive journalism. It is right that the Press has freedom to investigate and publish.
Then there is the question of justice. As hard as the US, Australia and the UK have searched, they have not been able to find any law under which to prosecute Assange. I have no idea what sort of man Assange is, I have no idea whether the charge of rape is true or not, or whether he has stolen money. What I do know is that he has not committed a crime under any Official Secrets Acts, he has done no more than many newspapers have done, and he has not been found guilty of any of the other crimes of which he has been accused. He has, however been the victim of ‘over-mighty’ rulers using their power to freeze his funds, to declare that he is a ‘terrorist’, to allow death threats against both him and his family and to encourage a campaign of villification. Is this justice? I think not.
This is not about Assange. This is about knowing what our rulers are doing in our name and ensuring that they do not use their might to destroy the rights of the individual.
Boadicea's Chariot 
Yes, I agree with you, Boadicea.
Assange has not, up to this point published anything which could be construed as “secret”. If he does, then I may change my view.
I don’t really feel the UK has tried to find anything, they said quite early on that he had not broken any laws here, but they were obliged to arrest him when presented with an EU whatever, extradition order.
The subsequent hearings and appeal are quite likely to go on for ages. I do wonder though if the US will lose patience and find something with which to charge him.
Sorry, I’m not ignoring the main thrust of your argument, by the way, it is very valid.
Excellent piece and in my other guise as antipolitician this is what I have been trying to put across very unsuccessfully for years, you have managed where I failed.
I feel that with the birth of the internet the ordinary people of the world are waking up, and the politicians are extremely slow to realise just how quickly this has moved on making people aware around the world of what is going on in the politicians dirty little world. I don’t think it will be long before their are coordinated riots the world over, possibly starting in Europe and then rapidly spreading across the world.
I think this is inevitable, but politicians like Cameron, Clinton, Obama, Blair, Berlesconi, are completely unaware of the possibilities of this happening as they wrap themselves in a cocoon of yes men. Also in the UK we still have MP’s who are looking after their own self interests by misusing their expenses and Cameron and his government are still sitting on their hands and letting it happen.
Assange has let us have only a glimpse of what is going on, and now they are trying to crucify him, but they will only make him a folk hero, because thats how it goes, but it seems they are too bent on revenge to see the blatantly obvious.
I think we have to be careful about whom we should pillory for Assange’s present plight. It’s OK to fulminate about every politician we dislike but just as they have the responsibility to behave with due regard for popular feelings, so we have a duty not to generalise about their faults. Rioting is all very well – unless, as in the recent case of ‘students’ objecting to the new university funding methods, many of the rioters were unaware of the real policies they claimed to oppose and many were professional anarchists. So – which politicians are behind the attacks on Wikileaks?
Thank you FS / AP. It really is good to see you here 🙂
The internet has wakened people’s awareness, by allowing people to read what is being said all around the world. Years ago before the internet, Bearsy and I used to compare what was being said in the Australian and British press about specific items. It was, as you may imagine, extremely informative as to what was published and what was not! Now we can read papers from all around the world sitting in our own homes – and are not limited to a one-country point of view.
The increasing exposure of the abuse of power has, I hope, encouraged people to look more closely at what politicians and others do – and they, naturally, are seeking more ways to limit what what information is available to scrutiny – by fair means or foul.
My contention is that even those who think that Assange is guilty of something (even if they can’t actually say what!) should understand that if they support the way he is being deprived of his rights by bully-boy tactics the next lot of ‘rights’ to be lost might well be theirs.
I cannot help but believe that the attacks on Wikileaks stem not so much from what as been revealed so far, but what has potentially yet to be revealed. I am certain that even the wiliest Wormtongue of the diplomatic core is, after a particularly emotional soiree, susceptible to occasional bouts of bigotry and prejudice which could cause considerably more embarrassment than has been the case so far. I imagine that there are one or two emails among the 250,000, that might describe Mugabe as a ‘Baboon’ or refer to the British as ‘Stuck up Limeys’ (Limies??) or worse. Don’t even think about ‘Ragheads’ or ‘Oven Dodgers’ let alone ‘Uppity Ns”.
By testing the legal waters with fairly harmless leaks, the team may hope to establish that they have not broken any laws and are therefore not liable to prosecution when the more juicy bits of information are revealed.
Politicians would do well to remember why it is that Parliament exists: to make the ruler(s) answerable to the people. Taking it a step further Thomas Carlyle wrote, “Burke said there were Three Estates in Parliament; but, in the Reporters’ Gallery yonder, there sat a Fourth Estate more important far than they all.”
Very good post, Boadicea!
You know we eaterners like conspiracies. 🙂
Individualism is good as far as everyone gets individual. What if some “association” is doing this in the notion of “divide and rule”. What if they are “leaking” these stuff to create a fake freedom feeling?
Sipu
Wiki’s already revealed that the US thought Kevin Rudd is a ‘control freak’ – but we all know that anyway. You are probably right there are almost certainly some more ‘undiplomatic’ Diplomats’ remarks hidden away!
Yes the Fourth Estate is the most important of all, and I do see this attack on Wikileaks as being a threat to the Freedom of older forms of journalism.
Hello-oo-oo! Anybody there? Which politicians are behind the attacks on Wikileaks?
Try the mob in the US, Janus who reckon Assange is a terrorist and should be assassinated. Try my Ozzie PM and members of my Government. If you haven’t seen any politicians leading the attack on Wikileaks I suggest you read a few more newspapers.
A withering riposte! is that Obama then?
There’s Palin, Biden and a quite a few more. I really cannot believe that you have not read reports of the comments by a number of American politicians… in any civilised country they’d be on a charge for incitement to violence, and death threats.
What planet have you been on for the last few weeks – 🙂
Boa, my point was that FS’s list of ‘big boys’ are not responsible. You’d expect the Bidens and Palins. Of course I’ve followed the media coverage but stll await the involvement of the movers and shakers – which may or not happen.
Excelent piece Boa and I disagree with but one point. The whistleblower in the MP’s expenses case was the person who leaked the documents to the Newspaper. The whistleblower in the Watergate affair was the renowned ‘Deep throat.’ Investigative journalists – whom I support as you do, btw – would have got nowhere without someone on the inside.
Janus when I mentioned the big boys it was just a random list. We already know that Blair is one of the biggest liars in recent years, Cameron is just a weak chancer who managed to cash in on Labours useless efforts, Clegg is nothing, he was possibly the most surprised when he was offered the chance of power by both sides.
My thoughts are that the evil harridan Clinton has the most to lose and was caught out most obviously. I have not advocated rioting, what I wanted to point out is that it is happening in many countries in Europe, how long before different groups start to communicate and cooperate with each other and plan not just timed riots in their own country, but add weight to other planned riots by travelling to them in advance ready to add weight to numbers.
I think that what I am trying to say is that much of this is avoidable, but politicians in general have become complacent and have forgotten the actual role they play and I think that Sipu has already summed that up.
Wake up and smell the coffee!
If your wake up call was for me, you shouldn’t misunderstand my dumb questions. Or maybe you’ve forgotten what Backside gets up to. 🙂
In my job I know very well what backsides get up to 😀
YUck! 🙂
Many thanks to everyone who commented here. I thought it timely to remember that there is a fundamental issue at stake here: the power of the State v. the rights of the Individual.
Bravo. You are right of course, without the whistleblowers there would be no leaks.
Interesting fact reported from the Western Telegraph, the local Pembrokeshire paper.
Wikileaks, aka slimeball who made such an issue of paying for Bradley Manning’s defence and has reneged on the deal has been supplanted by a defence fund locally in the County which has just raised £50,000 for him. Manning went to school in Haverfordwest.
Manning’s mother still lives in Haverfordwest.
I think you have chosen a very poor example of humanity on which to expend your outrage.
That is my point, Christina. As I said:
I can think of quite a few “poor examples of humanity” who, nonetheless, should have their right to fair treatment upheld.
I don’t think he has been deprived of his rights as of yet. He has been charged with nothing ref his website.
I think you make too much of a few loudmouth nutter USA politicians and nutter Palin, after all she has death squads on the brain! Nobody of any consequence has said anything like on the matter.
Far too many hysterical conspiracy theories run around the internet, I think this is a prime example, aided and abetted by slimeball himself, what a little simpering sly primadonna with a victim complex.
Do I get the idea you don’t like him, Christina? 🙂
You are not sitting this side of the world, Christina, where it seems pretty clear that our PM and Attorney General have abandoned their duty (again) to an Australian citizen in their rush to please the US.
There have been death threats, and his funding has been frozen – not by due process of law, but by political pressure – neither of those actions are legal.
From here it doesn’t seem that Assange likes Australia any more than Australian govt likes him!
He appears to have been running around neutral Europe trying to get Switzerland and Sweden to accept him as a ‘political refugee’ or some such tarradiddle! Small wonder the Australian govt. has washed its hands of him after such an insult!
I find it very convenient that he never made the signing of cheques on behalf of Wikileaks some other employees job, very handy for not paying his bills or promises. After all, hardly rocket science that the old one two was going to hit the fan! As for no longer being able to accept contributions to Wikileaks, no commercial organisation anywhere will touch it with a barge pole. I find it beyond credulity that all could be subverted by the USA govt. Anyway, with the likes of Jemima Khan to pay his bills I wouldn’t worry too much!
The death threats are a pack of nonsense by a pack of nutters.
The whole thing has been blown completely out of proportion.
I suggest most Australians are more annoyed with their own govt’s lack of action than anything else?
Frankly it has become a non news worthy item here, doesn’t even figure on the news, well supplanted by the repeal of the don’t ask don’t tell rule and the foul weather all over Europe.
I only get the details from the British papers. It mostly seems to have blown over, Clinton did an excellent job of flying round the world smoothing ruffled feathers. Lets face it, there was nothing of earth shaking revelation in any of it so far anyway, mostly common knowledge but not articulated. What may come out in the future is a different matter.
Assange planned the whole thing as an attention seeking ploy that has gone badly awry with the inclusion of the Swedish rape charge, quite amusing really, serves him right for screwing women as idiot and attention seeking as himself. He may be high IQ, but no common sense!
Called hoist by your own petard!
There is a very strong feeling here that Australia should not be the 50-whatever-th state of the US. Having thrown off the cultural cringe for all things British, there are many who see both sides of the political spectrum as kow-towing to the US – not helped by the Wikileak that one MP was running with tales on the internal workings of the Government to the US Embassy. Some are well aware that the US is only an ally when it suits them (as it should be) and want to make sure that Australia does not follow slavishly wherever America says, but puts Australian interests first (as it should) and, in this case, should put the rights of an Australian citizen before the demands of the US.
The Assange case has re-opened the anger at the way a former Government abandoned another Australian to the mercies of the US. That case eventually helped bring the Government down – this may well do the same.
There is a natural distrust of all Governments here – not surprising given the circumstances under which the place was settled, and few, I suspect, think that Assange has done anything wrong with exposing what he has. There is a very strong sense of a “Fair Go”. Let’s face it a country that makes a national hero out of a villain like Ned Kelly is likely to support anyone putting two fingers up to any authority. It is perceived that Assange is not getting a “Fair Go” from the US or his own government.
Reading the papers here, it is obvious that anti-American feeling is running extremely high – and while America doesn’t care what the rest of the world thinks, it is not really a good idea to alienate one’s allies completely.
So yes, your observation is pretty accurate.
“Frankly it has become a non news worthy item here, doesn’t even figure on the news, well supplanted by the repeal of the don’t ask don’t tell rule and the foul weather all over Europe.”
I was always surprised how parochial the news reportage was in the US, but I thought that maybe this had changed.
Apparently not.
Interesting. Australia is never perceived here in the USA as being a satellite or within the political hegemony of the USA. As all Americans have the most ghastly lack of knowledge about geography it is very rarely mentioned, you have no common games with the USA so no reporting at all. The last I heard of Australia was last year about drought in the Murray Darling system on Public TV!
I suspect that all that you say is strictly generated within Australia because none of it seems to have any real roots here or rings any bells so to speak. If Australia has become Americanised or afraid of becoming americanised, I think it must be strictly one sided, as it is with Canada. America is far too introspective a place and given to navel gazing to actually care about others’ cultures which most others find irritating and quite rightly so.
Of course with the deficit that the USA is running I suspect that their influence will wane in favour of that of China in the East before long. It may well become a case of be careful for what you wish, you might just get it! I’d have thought that Australia would like that a lot less than the influence of either Britain or America. Things have a dreadful way of being replaced by worse in this world!!!
PS lost the last para which went thus-
Interesting conversation Bo, now where do I send my slimeball death threats??
The only international news is that provided by the BBC world service, who are obsessed with all things African. Thank God for the internet!
I find this a tad scary, CO, to be honest, but yes, it doesn’t surprise me.
Absolutely right – as an American cop once asked Bearsy “What State is Australia in”…
America’s dabbling in Australian affairs may not get much, if any, attention in the US media – but believe me it does! Like the US Ambassador telling Australians that they should vote for Howard, a different PM would not have the support of the US…
I can certainly think of several more worthy recipients – Mugabe might be top of my list. 🙂
I find it scary how many people don’t bother with the news even when it is easily available.