Bernard Collaery challenges Australian government to lead 'breakout solution' to free Julian Assange, Toby Vue, Canberra Times

By Toby Vue

Updated October 8 2022 - 9:05pm, first published 5:30pm

The Australian government needs to lead a "breakout solution" to resolve the "endless circuitry" oppressing "foremost international prisoner of conscience" Julian Assange, prominent lawyer Bernard Collaery has said.

Mr Collaery's four-year legal fight against charges in relation to the exposure of an espionage operation against East Timor ended in July with Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus QC ordering Commonwealth prosecutors to discontinue the case against him.

Bernard Collaery spoke at the international day of action for Julian Assange on Saturday morning when he issued a challenge to the federal government to find a way to release the WikiLeaks founder. Picture by Elesa Kurtz

"As a person who's had the advantage of very deep considerations by Penny Wong and Mark Dreyfus in not proceeding with the indictments against me, I would ask them to continue that roll on," Mr Collaery said.

"They gained great credit from being merciful to me and my family and they have to do the same for Julian.

"They must find a protocol that, in a multilateral and bilateral context, will allow this government to demonstrate its resolve in terms of international civil and political rights."

Mr Collaery, who knows the WikiLeaks founder and his family, said Australia should lead the development of that international protocol with other governments, including the US.

"You've got to forget the UN Human Rights committee. It's not working and the membership nations, or the independent commissioners, have not shown the willingness to take on a very important international human rights issue," he said.

Mr Collaery said Mr Assange "has to be free and he should not have to sign some form of indemnity that he will cease his activities, cease his commentary".

"Julian is a decent man. It's 20 or 30 years since I first met him. He assisted the East Timor cause at the very beginning," he said.

"He's a great Australian and we should free this great Australian."

Speakers at the international day of action for Julian Assange outside the British High Commission on Saturday included Bernard Collaery, Jack Waterford, Caroline Le Couteur, and Sophie Singh. Picture by Elesa Kurtz

Speakers at the international day of action for Julian Assange outside the British High Commission on Saturday included Bernard Collaery, Jack Waterford, Caroline Le Couteur, and Sophie Singh. Picture by Elesa Kurtz

Assange is wanted by US authorities on 18 counts, including a spying charge relating to WikiLeaks' release of troves of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables, which US officials have said put lives in danger.

The 51-year-old is held in London's maximum-security Belmarsh prison amid the legal battle over his US extradition.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose office has been contacted for comment, in June rejected calls to publicly intervene for the charges against Assange to be dropped.

While in opposition, Mr Albanese supported the release of Assange, saying "enough is enough".

"I don't have sympathy for many of his actions, but essentially I can't see what is served by keeping him incarcerated," he said in early 2021.

Other speakers at the Saturday event included former Canberra Times editor Jack Waterford, who said Assange did not engage in wrongdoing and instead conveyed information "to the hands of the British people, the Australian people, the people of the world".

Mr Waterford said the case for Assange included his deteriorating health and the fear he would be treated worse in the US.

"The reason Australians and others ought to be supporting him is that he has rendered the world a great public service," he said.

Mr Waterford accused the government of being "terrified that somebody will tell the US president that Australia is an unreliable ally, that it can't be counted on, that it's insecure because we don't keep all of America's secrets".

The international day of action for Julian Assange outside the British High Commission on Saturday. Picture by Elesa Kurtz