WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange seeks asylum in Ecuador

NEWS RELEASES OF THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS, TRADE AND INTEGRATION MINISTRY

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News Release

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Integration has reported today that Mr. Julian Assange of Australian nationality, resident in the UK, was presented at the headquarters of the Diplomatic Mission of Ecuador in London asking the government for Ecuadorian protection, arguing that with a “regrettable factual statement of abandonment received by the authorities of my country, Australia, who state that they will not defend even my minimum guarantees before any government and delegate in the constitution of a foreign country that applies the death penalty for the crime of espionage and treason, and the guarantees it offers to its nationals, ignoring the obligation to protect its citizens, who is persecuted politically.

Such statements make it impossible for me to return to my home country and puts me in a state of helplessness by being requested to be interrogated by the Kingdom of Sweden, where its top officials have openly attacked me, and investigated me for political crimes in the United States of America, a country where the death penalty for such offenses is still in force.”

The Government of Ecuador is evaluating the request of Mr. Julian Assange and any decision on it will take into account respect for the rules and principles of the International Law and the traditional policy of Ecuador to safeguard human rights. Read Article