Imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has reportedly been moved out of solitary confinement in the medical wing of Belmarsh Prison, thanks to a revolt by fellow inmates who petitioned the prison and demanded he receive fair treatment.
Assange is currently imprisoned in London’s highest security prison awaiting a trial, which begins next month, to determine if he will be extradited to the United States.
Assange faces charges under the Espionage Act in the United States for his publication of the Iraq and Afghan War Logs. If extradited and convicted, he could face a maximum sentence of 175 years for the “crime” of publishing material that the US government did not want the population to know.
Prisoners' revolt and pressure from legal team and campaigners forces Belmarsh to move Assange out of solitary. WikiLeaks statement:
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In a video announcement, WikiLeaks Ambassador Joseph Farrell explained that “in a dramatic climbdown, authorities at Belmarsh Prison have moved Julian Assange from solitary confinement in the medical wing and relocated him to an area with other inmates. The move is a huge victory for Assange’s legal team and for campaigners who have been insisting for weeks that the prison authorities must end the punitive treatment of Assange.”
“But the decision to relocate Assange is also a massive victory of prisoners in Belmarsh. A group of inmates have petitioned the prison governor on three occasions, insisting that the treatment of Assange was unjust and unfair,” Farrell stated. “After meetings between prisoners, lawyers and the Belmarsh authorities, Assange was moved to a different prison wing — albeit one with only 40 inmates.”
Though he has been moved, Farrell said there are still serious concerns about Assange’s treatment at the prison — especially the fact that he is still being denied adequate time with his lawyers.
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