LONDON--An anti-war solidarity vigil was held outside the High Court/Royal Courts of Justice, The Strand, London, on Monday Dec 5th against the extradition of Julian Assange. The vigil was organized by London Catholic Worker and Veterans for Peace to keep the focus on the real issues--the truth about the wars as evidenced by the WikiLeaks disclosures Bradley Manning is accused of leaking.
Ben Griffin of Veterans for Peace UK spoke about the way the state treats those who dare to speak out and tell the truth about the wars. Ben is himself subject to a High Court gagging order in relation to his experiences in the army. Ben was in the SAS and served in both Iraq and Afghanistan before refusing to go back to war and leaving the army. Prior to the injunction, Ben had spoken publicly about British involvement and complicity in the extraordinary rendition of non-combatants from Iraq and Afghanistan, who were handed over by British troops to the Americans in full knowledge of what would happen to them.
Today, Ben referred to the importance of the WikiLeaks disclosures for soldiers talking about their experiences of the wars, since these revelations provide evidence which confirms stories that the state could otherwise dismiss as unsubstantiated rumor. Ben spoke about the length of time Julian Assange has been fighting this case and has been held under virtual house arrest (nearly one year). He also mentioned Bradley Manning, held for 18 months without trial, for nine of those months in conditions of torture, and Michael Lyons, the British Navy medic jailed for seven months for refusing to take up arms and opposing the war in Afghanistan, whose appeal against this charge and sentence was dismissed by judges after a mere couple of minutes of supposed deliberation. Ben pointed out that anyone who speaks out against the state and its wrongs is likely to be treated in such ways.
Another speaker today referred to the frequent use made by authorities through history of fabricated rape allegations to discredit those who oppose the state or are seen as some kind of threat; this was also referred to by Women Against Rape in a letter to the press almost a year ago, as Assange was beginning his battle against extradition to Sweden.
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