Julian Assange and the Problem with Bullies
by John Wang-Fitzpatrick
Having very rare skills in codifying and undoing cyphers, Julian Assange is a very remarkable Australian individual. That he chooses his own position of some honesty and honour rather than being owned by corporations or governments, makes him quite unique. He is obviously a threat to duplicitous systems and politicians everywhere.
He is an enemy of state-duplicity and an enemy of human torture.
He is being punished for being a bright, self-directed, individual world-person and very few politicians in Australia or elsewhere will rally to his defence, preferring a continuation of supporting and encouraging American territorial and sphere of influence agendas; preferring deception and torture as the best way forward 'for us'.
I noted that the leaked US admissions of systematic torture based upon ethnicity were not actually seen as a bad thing by the US Government at all; but rather what was an unforgiveable thing was that 'someone told on them.' An interesting morality. Australia could have much more genuine friends than these, if we deserved better.
The thing that amazes me is the notion that if America, England and Australia etc actually violently invade a country it suddenly becomes a crime for the people of that country to fight back... whereas the truth is that it's a crime if they don't fight back. It's their country and they have every right to get rid of such vicious invaders.
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Wednesday, 15 December 2010
DPRK Foreign Minister in Beijing for Talks/ Xinhua News
DPRK FM in Beijing for talks
www.chinaview.cn 2006-05-30 21:38:05
BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) -- Paek Nam Sun, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), arrived here Tuesday for talks with senior Chinese officials on issues of common concern.
"On issues that concern the interests of DPRK, China will keep communications with DPRK and step up mutual understanding and support," Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said in a meeting with Paek on Tuesday afternoon.
"Li and Paek exchanged views on Korean Peninsula nuclear issues," said a statement released by Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told the regular briefing Tuesday afternoon that Paek's talks with Chinese officials were "mainly about bilateral issues."
China and DPRK have conducted active exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and the bilateral relations have shown renewed vitality, the statement said.
Li reiterated that China would like to work with DPRK to continuously promote the bilateral ties.
"DPRK will try its best to advance its friendly cooperation with China, which is the unchanged guideline of the DPRK government," Paek said.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao also met with Paek on Tuesday afternoon, discussing bilateral relations and issues of common concern.
Paek is visiting China as a guest of his Chinese counterpart.
Paek's China tour came at a time when the six-party talks on Korean nuclear issue remained stalled since the last round of meeting was held in Beijing last November.
The last round of talks, involving China, DPRK, the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan, ended up with a Chairman's Statement, in which the parties concerned agreed to resume the talks as soon as possible.
But as Washington imposed financial sanctions on Pyongyang for alleged counterfeiting and money laundering. Until now, there has been no signs that the talks will be resumed.
Christopher Hill, chief U.S. negotiator to the six-party talks on Korean nuclear issue, visited Beijing last week and said that there was no new progress on the six-party talks.
Experts said that Paek's talks with Chinese officials will not produce any substantial results on the resumption of six-party talks as he was not DPRK's chief negotiator to the nuclear talks.
"But Paek's visit could at least ensure the good communication between China and DPRK," experts said.
Paek will also tour Guangdong, a booming province in south China, where DPRK leader Kim Jong Il visited in January.
Spokesman Liu Jianchao said Paek's visit to Guangdong is helpful to enhancing mutual understanding and exchanging experience on economic development.
www.chinaview.cn 2006-05-30 21:38:05
BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) -- Paek Nam Sun, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), arrived here Tuesday for talks with senior Chinese officials on issues of common concern.
"On issues that concern the interests of DPRK, China will keep communications with DPRK and step up mutual understanding and support," Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said in a meeting with Paek on Tuesday afternoon.
"Li and Paek exchanged views on Korean Peninsula nuclear issues," said a statement released by Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told the regular briefing Tuesday afternoon that Paek's talks with Chinese officials were "mainly about bilateral issues."
China and DPRK have conducted active exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and the bilateral relations have shown renewed vitality, the statement said.
Li reiterated that China would like to work with DPRK to continuously promote the bilateral ties.
"DPRK will try its best to advance its friendly cooperation with China, which is the unchanged guideline of the DPRK government," Paek said.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao also met with Paek on Tuesday afternoon, discussing bilateral relations and issues of common concern.
Paek is visiting China as a guest of his Chinese counterpart.
Paek's China tour came at a time when the six-party talks on Korean nuclear issue remained stalled since the last round of meeting was held in Beijing last November.
The last round of talks, involving China, DPRK, the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan, ended up with a Chairman's Statement, in which the parties concerned agreed to resume the talks as soon as possible.
But as Washington imposed financial sanctions on Pyongyang for alleged counterfeiting and money laundering. Until now, there has been no signs that the talks will be resumed.
Christopher Hill, chief U.S. negotiator to the six-party talks on Korean nuclear issue, visited Beijing last week and said that there was no new progress on the six-party talks.
Experts said that Paek's talks with Chinese officials will not produce any substantial results on the resumption of six-party talks as he was not DPRK's chief negotiator to the nuclear talks.
"But Paek's visit could at least ensure the good communication between China and DPRK," experts said.
Paek will also tour Guangdong, a booming province in south China, where DPRK leader Kim Jong Il visited in January.
Spokesman Liu Jianchao said Paek's visit to Guangdong is helpful to enhancing mutual understanding and exchanging experience on economic development.
Mr Assange and Wikileaks, a view from China Daily
WikiLeaks' ordeal tests Internet freedom
English.news.cn 2010-12-14 09:12:33
By Chen Weihua
BEIJING, Dec. 14 (Xinhuanet) -- Government officials of the United States have been busy apologizing to countries around the world for the huge embarrassment and political damage caused by the confidential diplomatic cables released by the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks two weeks ago.
One important explanation it owes to the world, however, is whether it was behind the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in London last Tuesday on charges of alleged sex crimes in Sweden.
People are naturally questioning the timing of the arrest and the refusal of bail for Assange, although some $150,000 in surety has already been guaranteed.
Somewhere there must be a confidential US diplomatic cable that would shed light on this.
New York Congressman Peter King has called on the US government to go after Assange and to prosecute the New York Times, which published some of the cables. Senator Joe Lieberman has also suggested investigation into the New York Times and described its action as "an act of bad citizenship".
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has depicted the leak as an attack on the fabric of responsible government. President Barack Obama has condemned the WikiLeaks' actions as "deplorable." The US government is considering legal action against WikiLeaks.
Under such pressure, Amazon.com, Visa, MasterCard and PayPal have all suspended their services to WikiLeaks. And the WikiLeaks website is no longer accessible in the US.
The US has also been trying numerous ways to press charges against Assange, including using the outdated World War I-era Espionage Act, although some cables suggest that some US diplomats should also be worried if that happens.
All these have been happening in a country, which loudly boasts of its First Amendment guaranteeing the freedom of the press and freedom of expression. Obama addressed Internet freedom in a town hall-style meeting in Shanghai in November 2009. Hillary Clinton also went on at great length about Internet freedom in her speech at the Newseum in Washington in January, pointing an accusing finger at China and several other countries.
But the Assange case reveals such rhetoric is just so much hypocrisy. It is apparent that when Internet freedom conflicts with self-declared US national interests, or when Internet freedom exposes lies by the self-proclaimed open and transparent government, it immediately becomes a crime.
The power of new media should never be underestimated. Even in China, many of the scandals, such as corruptions and coal mine disasters, are broken first by new media.
Up until recently, Obama must have loved new media and social media because they helped him raise funds and garner support to defeat John McCain during the 2008 presidential campaign. Now, he may be having second thoughts.
The arrest of Assange has triggered widespread concern and protest both inside the US and around the world. In the US, academics and professionals have talked about its possible implications for a free press. In other parts of the world, people are protesting against the attacks on Internet freedom.
Censoring the Internet by pushing for charges against Assange would only inflict more damage on the US. While the leaked cables may have damaged some trust between the US government and foreign governments, the crusade against WikiLeaks and Julian Assange would destroy people's trust in the freedom of the press preached by the US.
Remember, Assange is a fellow journalist, or a citizen journalist in the age of new media, and uncovering the secrets of governments, corporations and interest groups is part of a journalist's job.
The author is deputy editor of China Daily US Edition.
(Source: China Daily)
Editor: Zhang Xiang
English.news.cn 2010-12-14 09:12:33
By Chen Weihua
BEIJING, Dec. 14 (Xinhuanet) -- Government officials of the United States have been busy apologizing to countries around the world for the huge embarrassment and political damage caused by the confidential diplomatic cables released by the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks two weeks ago.
One important explanation it owes to the world, however, is whether it was behind the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in London last Tuesday on charges of alleged sex crimes in Sweden.
People are naturally questioning the timing of the arrest and the refusal of bail for Assange, although some $150,000 in surety has already been guaranteed.
Somewhere there must be a confidential US diplomatic cable that would shed light on this.
New York Congressman Peter King has called on the US government to go after Assange and to prosecute the New York Times, which published some of the cables. Senator Joe Lieberman has also suggested investigation into the New York Times and described its action as "an act of bad citizenship".
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has depicted the leak as an attack on the fabric of responsible government. President Barack Obama has condemned the WikiLeaks' actions as "deplorable." The US government is considering legal action against WikiLeaks.
Under such pressure, Amazon.com, Visa, MasterCard and PayPal have all suspended their services to WikiLeaks. And the WikiLeaks website is no longer accessible in the US.
The US has also been trying numerous ways to press charges against Assange, including using the outdated World War I-era Espionage Act, although some cables suggest that some US diplomats should also be worried if that happens.
All these have been happening in a country, which loudly boasts of its First Amendment guaranteeing the freedom of the press and freedom of expression. Obama addressed Internet freedom in a town hall-style meeting in Shanghai in November 2009. Hillary Clinton also went on at great length about Internet freedom in her speech at the Newseum in Washington in January, pointing an accusing finger at China and several other countries.
But the Assange case reveals such rhetoric is just so much hypocrisy. It is apparent that when Internet freedom conflicts with self-declared US national interests, or when Internet freedom exposes lies by the self-proclaimed open and transparent government, it immediately becomes a crime.
The power of new media should never be underestimated. Even in China, many of the scandals, such as corruptions and coal mine disasters, are broken first by new media.
Up until recently, Obama must have loved new media and social media because they helped him raise funds and garner support to defeat John McCain during the 2008 presidential campaign. Now, he may be having second thoughts.
The arrest of Assange has triggered widespread concern and protest both inside the US and around the world. In the US, academics and professionals have talked about its possible implications for a free press. In other parts of the world, people are protesting against the attacks on Internet freedom.
Censoring the Internet by pushing for charges against Assange would only inflict more damage on the US. While the leaked cables may have damaged some trust between the US government and foreign governments, the crusade against WikiLeaks and Julian Assange would destroy people's trust in the freedom of the press preached by the US.
Remember, Assange is a fellow journalist, or a citizen journalist in the age of new media, and uncovering the secrets of governments, corporations and interest groups is part of a journalist's job.
The author is deputy editor of China Daily US Edition.
(Source: China Daily)
Editor: Zhang Xiang
Julian Assange and WikiLeaks
It's interesting that Julian Assange's bullied plight, as an Australian citizen, is of far more concern to democratically minded people all over the world than it is to the Prime Minister and Government of Australia. Prime Minister Julia Gillard's notion that he is a criminal because the Americans say so really defines us as good little servant-helpers without conscience or care for our own.
Tuesday, 7 December 2010
Philosophy
'Oh young soul, so full of young soul; oh, to be so full again with the agitation of emptiness.'
Thursday, 2 December 2010
Photo taken on Dec. 1, 2010 shows the aluminum-lithium alloy fore part of the airframe of C919 jumbo jet, which is manufactured by Hongdu Aviation Industry Group, in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province. The C919 is China's self-developed jumbo jet, 17-meter-long, 5.6-meter-high, 3.96-meter-wide, which is designed to accomodate 156-168 passengers. (Xinhua/Zhou Ke)
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