Julian Assange, the head of Wiki leaks, had been charged with rape while on a visit to Sweden. He was questioned but not arrested and allowed to travel to the UK. Subsequently, Sweden asked for his extradition. To avoid extradition to Sweden, Assange hid in the Ecuadorian embassy. Now information has been received that the Swedish government has decided to drop the rape charge against Assange. His Swedish lawyer Per E. Samuelson declared on Friday that "this is a total victory for Julian Assange. He is now free to leave the embassy when he wants," as reported by CNN international.
Julian Assange
Julian Assange was responsible for publishing secret documents and emails of a classified nature all over the world. He was particularly harsh on the USA, and the CIA had declared him enemy number one. He also became America's most wanted cyber-spy.
Assange was a relatively unknown man until 2006. He started a hacking site in the same year. He became famous when he leaked information about the US military by Chelsea Manning. After that, he became a household name. He was instrumental in publishing a number of stories including details of the American military's detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and the secret membership roster of the British National party.
Assange a free man?
Assange is a free man but his troubles are not over. He still faces a one-year prison term for jumping bail. At that time friends and well-wishers had collected £ 240000 for his bail. Assange jumped bail and took asylum in the embassy of Ecuador. For its part, the embassy announced that Arrange could stay in the embassy for as long as he liked.
Though the rape charge is dropped yet the offense of violating his bail conditions remain. This is a relatively minor offense but it is enough to have the sword of Damocles hanging over his head.
The road ahead is murky for Assange as he could be arrested in case he steps out of the embassy. He could also be extradited to the USA.
This is the real worry for Arrange as he remains open to arrest and deportation.
The future
Assange has made a name for him as a super cyber spy. In the Ecuador embassy, he has continued to release sensitive information that has embarrassed many governments. For the moment he can savor the dropped rape charge but one wonders whether he will be able to leave the Equador embassy. His only hope is the request by the embassy to allow Assange to go to Equador for asylum. Britain may just agree to get rid of a troublesome man.
