Greens ask for any secret Assange documents

December 03, 2011

The Greens are trying to get hold of any secret Australian Government documents dealing with the possible extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

Mr Assange is fighting an extradition order in the UK that would see him sent to Sweden to face sexual assault charges.



His supporters are concerned he might then be sent to the United States, where he could be prosecuted for publishing confidential documents.

Greens Senator Scott Ludlam is travelling to London for Mr Assange's extradition hearing.

He has lodged a Freedom of Information request for any documents relating to Mr Assange, such as letters, emails, file notes and records of phone conversations.

"It's essentially to try and work out what the Australian Government knows and who it has communicated with in the instance of that onward extradition to the US, whether there is any material documenting discussions with their counter parts in the US and what the Government's thinking is about his extradition to the US," he told Saturday AM.

Senator Ludlam says supporters of the WikiLeaks founder are operating in an information vacuum.

"The Australian Government may well be assisting the US government with its extradition process," he said.

"Of course we haven't heard anything from the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General since they both pronounced him a criminal last year [for] having committed illegal acts, which was later completely contradicted by the Federal Police.

"There has been nothing said by the Prime Minister or the Australian Government all year.

"We've had parliamentary questions go in. We are trying the Freedom of Information avenue to try to establish whether the Australian Government plans to stand up for his citizenship rights or not."

Senator Ludlam is hopeful the freedom of information requests will be granted in time.

"Generally there's a bit of back and forth. There's appeal and counter-appeal," he said.

"But eventually I found useful material does fall out of the system.

"I think we need a pro-disclosure culture where we don't have to go to these lengths to make applications, but we'll see what we get."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-12-0...uments/3710668

PS - I can assure you, that this more from the 'Communist Green Party' (One World Govt. Supporters) is purely 'Political Rhetoric..!

The Greens are totally 'Dead in the Water' down here in Australia and they are doing this only to trying to save face and appease their flagging supporter base..!!!