From: James Ricketson, jamesricketson@gmail.com
Subject: MEDIA REQUEST FOR MARINA SIMONCINI, AFP Manager, Communications.
Re: WikiLeaks on Twitter: "We applied for Assange's INTERPOL file over a year ago. INTERPOL has, in violation of policy, still not released http://t.co/f47oaZUr" / Twitter
Date: 12th July 2022 11am AEST
To: media@afp.gov.au, cc:
Dear Marina Simoncini
I understand that media requests in relation to Interpol fall under your remit?
On 20th November, 2010, a Red Notice for Julian Assange was issued to law enforcement in all 188 INTERPOL member countries.
As you will be aware, a Red Notice must not be published by Interpol if it violates Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution, which forbids the Organization from undertaking any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.
Given that the issuance of such Red Notices is usually reserved for those alleged to have committed the most heinous of crimes (mass murder, for instance) , I am, in my role as a journalist , trying to find out why such a Notice was issued in relation to Julian Assange who, at the time, had been found guilty of no crime at all, committed anywhere in the world?
I am curious to know what role the Australian government of the day, led by then Prime Minister Julia Gillard, may have played in either agreeing to abide by the terms of the 2010 Red Notice, or in questioning its validity under Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution?
I refer specifically to the Wikileaks/Assange request for the file on that Interpol Red Notice for Julian Assange.
I wonder if you could confirm one way or the other, if the file was forwarded to Wikileaks? If not, on what basis was it withheld?
Sources within the AFP inform me that various Australian government officials have, over the years, also requested this file; that requests for access to this file have quite recently been made by the Department of the Attorney General. Is this so?
Given the very real possibility that Julian Assange could, in the not-too-distant future, be extradited to the United States, I would appreciate it if you could respond to this letter with as much haste as possible.
your sincerely
James Ricketson
cc Mark Dreyfus, Attorney General
No comments:
Post a Comment