Is There A Revolt in The WikiLeaks Camp?

According to the following article, it appears that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is causing some embarassment for organisers of the website. They are demanding that he step down. He is standing fast. If he is in fact innocent of the charges, then I guess I don't blame him. Time will tell
   . . . June


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Revolt in wikileaks
Pune Talking - Bloggers Park - Pune Mirror

The rape charges against Julian Assange are the last straw for some organisers of WikiLeaks, who are demanding that the website’s controversial point man step aside.

The Australian-born founder and chief editor of WikiLeaks is facing an insurrection, with WikiLeaks supporters outraged that Assange has insisted on remaining in charge of the whistleblowing website despite the rape allegations he faces in Sweden.

A WikiLeaks organiser, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Assange had been resisting efforts over the last two weeks to push him off the public stage as a result of the criminal investigation in Sweden, and that his insistence on “staying in charge of everything” was creating “a mess for everyone” as the website prepares to release an additional library of 13,000 classified American military reports from the war in Afghanistan.

The website outraged the Pentagon in July when it released more than 70,000 other classified reports from the war.

The organiser added that internal protests directed against Assange resulted in a temporary shutdown of the WikiLeaks website several days ago, nominally for mechanical reasons. “It was really meant to be a sign to Julian that he needs to rethink his situation. Our technical people were sending a message,” said the organiser.

A prominent WikiLeaks organizer, Birgitta Jonsdottir, a parliamentarian in Iceland, told that she has encouraged Assange to step aside as WikiLeaks’ public spokesman and give up his other management responsibilities, at least until after the criminal investigation is over.


Read On . . .

Wikileaks Founder Assange Will Post Documents Anyway!

According to the article below, claims that Assange had non-consensual sex with two women in Sweden first surfaced last month, following demands by the Pentagon that Wikileaks return some 92,000 mostly classified military documents concerning the US war in Afghanistan. Assange has said the remaining 15,000 documents will be posted in the coming weeks, once names and other sensitive details are redacted.  Has the leaking of documents got anything to do with the allegations?
   . . . June


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Wikileaks founder blasts reopening of rape probe
By Dan Goodin  2nd September 2010 18:28 GMT

The Register: "Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has blasted Sweden's investigation into allegations against him for sexual misconduct after prosecutors reopened a probe into charges he raped a woman last month.

'It appears to be highly irregular and some kind of legal circus,' Assange told the TV service of newspaper Expressen on Thursday. “Today I also had a case filed against me in the United States on a wholly unrelated manner,” he added without elaborating.

The charges come as Assange is applying for a permit to live and work in Sweden, a legal haven for journalists and whistleblowers, Assange said. The investigations may “prevent that application going ahead,” he said, adding “we will find a replacement if it comes to that.

Claims that Assange had non-consensual sex with two women in Sweden first surfaced last month, following demands by the Pentagon that Wikileaks return some 92,000 mostly classified military documents concerning the US war in Afghanistan. The whistle-blowing website has already published about 77,000 records, an action that prompted strong condemnation from US military officials. Some human rights organizations have also claimed the move put Afghan civilians at risk.

Assange has said the remaining 15,000 documents will be posted in the coming weeks, once names and other sensitive details are redacted. Pentagon officials have warned they may spill even “more explosive” secrets than the first batch.
Assange on Thursday suggested the controversy generated by Wikileaks may be stoking the investigations.

“As I have said before, there was clearly a smear campaign, and who was behind this, we do not know,” he said. “Now, whether that turns out to be a smear campaign done by a couple of people for personal motives or ideological motives, or that is larger and involves geopolitical concerns, or whether it is a mixture of all those, we do not know.”

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Is WikiLeaks founder a Target of a smear campaign?

 As soon as someone is in the news it seems that they are fair targets. Julian Assange may or may not be guilty of anything, but somehow, someone found a way to sully his good name. Today's world of instant communication makes this all too easy.
  . . . June


WikiLeaks founder says he's been targeted by smear campaign - CNN.com: 

"Stockholm, Sweden (CNN) -- WikiLeaks founder and editor Julian Assange said Swedish authorities reached 'the height of irresponsibility' by issuing an arrest warrant alleging rape against him, then revoking it less than a day later.

'It is clearly a smear campaign,' Assange told Arabic news network Al-Jazeera in a live telephone interview Sunday. '... The only question is, who was involved?'

Asked who he thinks was behind the accusations, Assange told the network, 'We have some suspicions about who would benefit, but without direct evidence, I would not be willing to make a direct allegation.'

Meanwhile, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in an update on its website that Assange's name was leaked to the media, and the authority -- which does not normally publish the names of suspects -- 'did not in this case initiate publication.'"

However, the office did confirm Assange's identity and later published his name in statements about his arrest and the subsequent revocation.

An arrest warrant was filed against Assange in absentia on Friday. Swedish media, citing unnamed sources, reported that two women, ages 20 and 30, reported the allegations to police, leading to the warrant being filed.

The AftonBladet, a respected Swedish daily, said the 30-year-old told the newspaper that the younger woman had approached her with a story similar to hers -- that she had consensual sex with Assange but that the situation had turned abusive. Karin Rosander, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office, would not confirm the reports.

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Did The Pentagon Ask WikiLeaks For The Afghan files back?

There really seems to be a lot of waffling here. According to the following article, the Pentagon admit that the made a request for contact, but that the lawyer for WikiLeaks was a no-show. I assume that there is willingness on both sides  to solve this mess.


June


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Ohio.com - Pentagon wants Afghan files back

 "STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wednesday the Pentagon has expressed willingness to discuss the online whistleblower's request for help in reviewing classified documents from the Afghan war and removing information that could harm civilians.

''This week we received contact through our lawyers that the General Counsel'' of the Pentagon ''says now that they want to discuss the issue,'' Assange said by telephone.

The Pentagon denied it was willing to collaborate with the group, but acknowledged that it had arranged for a phone call last Sunday between its general counsel and a person claiming to be a lawyer for WikiLeaks.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said the lawyer, Timothy Matusheski, was a ''no-show'' for the call.

The Pentagon followed up with a letter to Matusheski on Monday demanding that WikiLeaks return the war files."

''The Defense Department will not negotiate some 'minimized' or 'sanitized' version of the release by WikiLeaks of additional U.S. government classified documents,'' wrote Jeh Johnson, the Pentagon's top lawyer.

Whitman initially told reporters there had been no ''direct'' contact between the Defense Department and WikiLeaks. He said he still stands by that assessment, because the call between Johnson and Matusheski never took place.

In a brief phone call, Matusheski said Wednesday that he had received a fax from the Defense Department. He did not answer any other questions.

Assange said Wednesday that ''contact has been established'' but added it was not clear whether and how the U.S. military would assist WikiLeaks.

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WikiLeaks Refuses To Bow To Pentagon Warning

WikiLeaks And The Pentagon We will not tolerate Pentagon's threat: WikiLeaks August 17, 2010 at 12:24 AM Stockholm, August 17: Julian Assange, the founder of whistleblower WikiLeaks, told that the site will not tolerate threats from the US' department of defense. During an interview with... WikiLeaks: We will not be threatened by the Pentagon August 16, 2010 at 5:52 AM Whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks is standing firm in its fight against the Pentagon, with spokesperson Julian Assange saying that the site will not tolerate threats from the US' department of... WikiLeaks 'Will Not Be Threatened' by U.S. August 15, 2010 at 10:08 PM Associated Press STOCKHOLM—WikiLeaks will soon publish its remaining 15,000 Afghan war documents, despite warnings from the U.S. government, the organization's founder said Saturday. View Full Image Reuters Wikileaks founder Julian Assange speaks a news conference at the Frontline Club in central London. The Pentagon has said that secret information will be even more... WikiLeaks prepares to release more Afghan war files August 15, 2010 at 8:45 PM 11:19 AM Monday Aug 16, 2010 Email Print LONDON - WikiLeaks spokesman Julian Assange said his organisation is preparing to release the rest of the secret Afghan war documents it has on file. The Pentagon warned that would be more damaging to security and risk more lives than the organisation's initial release of some 76,000 war documents. That extraordinary disclosure, which laid bare classified military documents covering the war in Afghanistan from 2004 to 2010, has angered US officials, energised critics of the NATO-led campaign, and drawn the attention of the Taleban, which has promised to use the material to track down people it considers traitors. The Pentagon says it believes it has... WikiLeaks rejects Pentagon warning August 15, 2010 at 9:58 AM STOCKHOLM — WikiLeaks will publish its remaining 15,000 Afghan war documents within a month, despite warnings from the U.S. government, the organization's founder said yesterday. The Pentagon has said that the new batch of secret information will be even more damaging to security and risk more lives than WikiLeaks' initial release of about 76,000 war documents. "This organization will not be threatened by the Pentagon or any other group," Julian Assange said in Stockholm. "We proceed cautiously and safely with this... This email was sent to dyna999399.wiki99@blogger.com. Delivered by Feed My Inbox 230 Franklin Road Suite 814 Franklin, TN 37064 Account Login Unsubscribe Here

WikiLeaks Plans To Release All War Documents

So someone is standing up to the Pentagon! There must be a great deal of potential damage in those documents for them to be so upset. I rather feel that WikiLeaks themselves are taking quite a chance by publishing them. If someone gets killed and it can be proven that the leaks contributed, then wouldn't they be found criminally at fault? This article gives more detail.


. . . June


WikiLeaks says it won't be threatened by Pentagon
By KEITH MOORE, Associated Press Sat Aug 14, 11:40 am ET

WikiLeaks will publish its remaining 15,000 Afghan war documents within a month, despite warnings from the U.S. government, the organization's founder said Saturday.

The Pentagon has said that secret information will be even more damaging to security and risk more lives than WikiLeaks' initial release of some 76,000 war documents.

"This organization will not be threatened by the Pentagon or any other group," Julian Assange told reporters in Stockholm. "We proceed cautiously and safely with this material."

In an interview with The Associated Press, he said that if U.S. defense officials want to be seen as promoting democracy then they "must protect what the United States' founders considered to be their central value, which is freedom of the press."

"For the Pentagon to be making threatening demands for censorship of a press organization is a cause for concern, not just for the press but for the Pentagon itself," the Australian added.

He said WikiLeaks was about halfway though a "line-by-line review" of the 15,000 documents and that "innocent parties who are under reasonable threat" would be redacted from the material.

"It should be approximately two weeks before that process is complete," Assange told AP. "There will then be a journalistic review, so you're talking two weeks to a month."

Wikileaks would be working with media partners in releasing the remaining documents, he said, but declined to name them.

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What do you think?  Is the Pentagon correct in trying to muzzle WikiLeaks? Or are the WikiLeaks people right in insisting on their right to publish the documents?  Leave a comment


. . . June