Assange rape charge 'could be a set up': Wilkie

[Swagman]

Source: ninemsn.com.au

Former intelligence official and independent MP Andrew Wilkie says the rape charges brought against WikiLeaks' Australian founder Julian Assange "could definitely be a set-up".
16:00 AEST Wed Dec 1 28 minutes ago
By Martin Zavan, ninemsn

Mr Wilkie, who controversially went public with his concerns about the case for going to war in Iraq, said governments tended to overreact when faced with individuals who defied their wishes.

"The organisational response to whistleblowers is pretty predictable. They’re troublemakers, they don’t know what they’re talking about, they’re mentally unstable," Mr Wilkie told ninemsn.

"When organisations are confronted with people they find they can’t control they often lash out fairly powerfully and savagely."

He said governments responded in a theatrical way to threats because they wanted to send a signal to deter people from speaking out.





Read more: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8173913/assange-rape-charge-could-be-a-set-up-wilkie

[tomm2thumbs]

1. ya think?

intimidation comes in many forms - state-sponsored and otherwise

[Delphinus]

4. You said it well.

This is bullshit.

[AlphaCentauri]

32. +1

[TalkingDog]

36. my response exactly.

Even on the news I've hear a couple of newscasters mention (nonspecific) charges very briefly and move on. As if they know it's bullshit.

[xchrom]

2. it's possible -- i'm looking to see if it's reduced to a

'he said, she said' side show.

as far as i know -- mr assange has not been charged with anything like this in his past.

[Judi Lynn]

3. Had he known he had raped someone why would he bring attention to himself. How incautious!

The timing is almost questionable.

[Ruperto31]

59. Rape = taking off a condom or breaking one in Swedish law.

That is what he is charged with. Condom discontinuation and malfunction.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/abraham/detail?entry_id=78430

[No Elephants]

7. What evidence do you expect in a rape case, beyond the words of alleged rapist and alleged victim?

Stautory rape is easy. Age is the issue, not consent.


But most rape cases revolve around consent and no one has seen or heard anything relevant to consent, except for the alleged rapist and the alleged victim.

[xchrom]

8. dna is sometimes known to be used in a rape case.

i'm actually not one of those who thinks assange raped any one.

assange is not so young -- and there's no history that i know of for this behavior.

[Matariki]

40. DNA wouldn't help in this instance as the alleged rape was over a broken condem

during consensual sex.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101118/wl_afp/swedencrimeinternetwikileaksrapelondon_20101118185047

[karynnj]

11. Exactly,

It will come down to the relative credibility of the accuser and him. At this point, there is very little known about the two women who made charges or Assange, as a person. To assume the women are lying, if you think Wikileaks did a good thing is as wrong as assuming he is guilty because you don't like them. What can be said is that Sweden seems unsure of them enough that at one point the charges were dropped.

As to something not being in his past as some say, we know almost nothing about him.

[Lance_Boyle]

15. There is *some* known about one of the women.

She offers guidance online for women seeking revenge. One of the strategies she touts is filing false rape charges. She should be in prison.

[karynnj]

18. I didn't know that - and it completely destroys her credibility

Is she linked in any way to the other woman?

[Hissyspit]

25. More:

http://www.theage.com.au/national/the-man-who-played-with-fire-20100925-15rof.html?from=age_sb

To add to the confusion, one of the complainants told Aftonbladet newspaper that she never wanted Assange charged with rape in the first place, and that ''this was about a guy who has a few problem attitudes to women''.

It is now that things get very strange, because the complainant reveals herself to be Anna Ardin, the political officer/press secretary for the ''the Brotherhood'', a Christian group within the Social Democrats, the party that has dominated Swedish politics and government for a century.

Once rather conservative, the Brotherhood has become a focus for leftish, third-worldish type Christians, and it was Ardin who had organised a series of speaking engagements for Assange. Assange had stayed at Ardin's flat for a week, in the middle of which he had had a dalliance with the second complainant, who had been taking photographs at one of his speaking appearances.

News that Ardin was a complainant rocked the student/youth political milieu, because one of her prior roles had been as gender equality officer in the student union at Uppsala University, Sweden's Oxford. Several months ago, Ardin had also published on her blog a 10-step guide to taking revenge on ex-lovers, one of which was to ''get them in trouble with the law''.

[Pavulon]

26. guess she had it coming..(nt)

[Hissyspit]

28. Had what coming?

Guess he has it coming?

Don't pull that shit on me. I wasn't in the room with them that night. I don't know what happened. But I know enough not to assume Assange is guilty just because I want him to be. And I know enough about life to be skeptical as hell about the context. I know victims of rape have their character assassinated and I know women lie about sexual assault, too. I know enemies of the state have their character assassinated, too.

[Pavulon]

29. If she was a us agent, why not dose him with polonium and blame the russians

of just drug him so someone could dump him 20 miles offshore. Oh yeah, maybe she just got raped.

[Hissyspit]

31. Or maybe she's just an idiot with an agenda working alone.

[marasinghe]

50. sure. he's a wacko with a death wish. it's like 'suicide-by-cop'. and if that fails, he wants jail.

gimme a break.

this is such obvious & palpable bullshit, pulled to destroy assange's credibility & intimidate anyone even dreaming of going against the ruling scum, that anything with an iq over that dumbshit mass-murderer dubya's, is laughing its ass off @ this stupid con game.

and it's not like the details haven't been out on the news, ever since this stupid stunt got rolling.

in all probability, the women are nothing but pawns getting caught up in the usual bumbling bureaucratic shit pulled by any & every spy agency on the planet -- cause they're manned by moronic assholes who haven't fucking evolved, morally & spiritually, beyond crocodiles.

as Judy Lynn said up-thread -- imagine: this guy assange is gonna wait all these years to pull a rape, just as he started on this crusade against the empire & its associates & asskissers around the planet. right.

[Matariki]

41. Absurd post. Consensual sex - broken condom. Do you call that rape?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101118/wl_afp/swedencrimeinternetwikileaksrapelondon_20101118185047

"Both the prosecutor and the defence agree that it was an incident of consensual sex where the condom broke. They are saying that amounts to rape, we are saying it doesn't,"

But that wouldn't matter to people who just want to smear and imprison Assange.

[dreamnightwind]

42. Indeed

It wasn't rape, it was a broken condom, technically a "leak". He was already a known leaker when she had consensual sex with him.

This whole thing stinks, I can't believe anyone here would take the accusations at face value, when there is so much going on here.

[Hissyspit]

23. Links:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9204834

[Mudoria]

5. Could possibly be true too

the guy may be a doucebag in his personal life for all anyone knows.

[Bragi]

17. Yeah, right

So he went through his entire life able to resist his apparent hidden desire to rape women, and right on the eve of releasing a massive number of U.S military and diplomatic files, he caves in to his desires, and apparently rapes two women.

So, what possible explanation might we have for this strange turn of events?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

19. And how many alleged rapists end up on Interpol's "most wanted" list?

[Hissyspit]

30. That doesn't mean shit.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

34. I think we agree. Mine was a rhetorical question.

[Hissyspit]

35. O.k. Gotcha.

[Hissyspit]

22. Much more likely it's bullshit.

Investigation was dismissed and then reinstated in what looks an awful lot like a political move. Woman who accused him blogged, apparently, about using rape accusations to get men. Assange is someone who is seen as an enemy to many, many very powerful and ruthless people.

Do the math. You should view the possibility that he committed some crime skeptically.

[Kaleko]

48. Of course these charges are total bullshit

and anybody with a working braincell left knows it.

[No Elephants]

6. "COULD?" What a strong statement!

:sarcasm:


"...governments tended to overreact when faced with individuals who defied their wishes. " OMG!!1111!!!

[florida08]

9. unbelievable

Kissinger labeled Daniel Ellsberg the most dangerous man in America during the Pentagon Papers. Now it's Julian Assange. He hasn't been formally charged so Sweden's warrant is questionable. Ecuador it seems has offered him sanctuary. Richard Haas of the CFR states it's not a security crisis but more of an embarrassment to TPTB.

http://www.cfr.org/publication/23500/how_to_read_wikileaks.html?cid=ppp-GoogleGrant-WikileaksFT&gclid=CJj_yvWBy6UCFRKt7Qod6jiqkg

Didn't this administration advocate more transparency? Yet Bradley Manning will be court martialed and could face 52 years. Oliver North got got zip. But he only sold weapons to Iran and shredded documents in the coverup. Result.. Espionage for the representative governing body ok..espionage for the public..not ok. The Patriot Act was forced through with no debate and only 2 dissents thanks to John Ashcroft. Even Napolitano called it unconstitutional.

Now we have a Patriot Act to stop food smuggling.

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22148

[Nihil]

13. Sadly, not *that* unbelievable is it? (n/t)

:-(

[florida08]

14. sadly..no, and more like SOP

[stray cat]

10. He could be guilty or innocent like anyone accused

[Yeahyeah]

12. They won't tell us though,it's a secret.

[Javaman]

16. Now wouldn't it be hysterical if Assange has documents that show he's being set up?

THAT would be something else.

[time_has_come]

20. I don't get it. I like theater. That's not going to deter me. n/t

[Xithras]

21. It's important to remember that Assange hasn't actually been CHARGED with anything.

In spite of what you're hearing on the news, the reality is that Assange hasn't been charged with rape...or any other crime. Assange was in Sweden and was interviewed by prosecutors and investigators about the accusations. Because he was only visiting Sweden, he asked to leave and return to his home in Australia. The Swedish prosecutors agreed to allow him to leave the country.

When the prosecutors demanded to interview him again, they requested that he return to Sweden. He refused, and invited them to come to Australia for the interview. The Swedes declined, and demanded again that he return to Sweden.

The warrant issued for Assange simply states that he's wanted for questioning in relation to an accusation of rape. They're hoping that Australia, or some other country, will ship him back willingly so that he can be questioned again.

If the Swedes were really convinced that he committed rape, they would charge him in Sweden, contact the Australians regarding his arrest, and begin extradition proceedings. There is a relatively straightforward process involved in moving criminals from one country to another. The Swedes can't use that process because they don't have a case yet.

[Pavulon]

24. Interpol seems to be involved.

maybe they do that for every maybe rapist out there?

[Hissyspit]

27. So what?

Sweden has raised a shit 'cause they can't get him to come back to talk to them about their politically suspicious charges, so they got them to put out the warrant.

"Maybe rapist" Nice framing. Could have said maybe they do that for every 'innocent until proven guilty' out there.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/the-man-who-played-with-fire-20100925-15rof.html?from=age_sb

To add to the confusion, one of the complainants told Aftonbladet newspaper that she never wanted Assange charged with rape in the first place, and that ''this was about a guy who has a few problem attitudes to women''.

It is now that things get very strange, because the complainant reveals herself to be Anna Ardin, the political officer/press secretary for the ''the Brotherhood'', a Christian group within the Social Democrats, the party that has dominated Swedish politics and government for a century.

Once rather conservative, the Brotherhood has become a focus for leftish, third-worldish type Christians, and it was Ardin who had organised a series of speaking engagements for Assange. Assange had stayed at Ardin's flat for a week, in the middle of which he had had a dalliance with the second complainant, who had been taking photographs at one of his speaking appearances.

News that Ardin was a complainant rocked the student/youth political milieu, because one of her prior roles had been as gender equality officer in the student union at Uppsala University, Sweden's Oxford. Several months ago, Ardin had also published on her blog a 10-step guide to taking revenge on ex-lovers, one of which was to ''get them in trouble with the law''.

The misconduct Assange was charged with is a misdemeanour, and it appeared that the rape charge had been dissolved. But that week, Ardin and SW (the other complainant) hired leading lawyer Claes Borgstrom to represent them, and Borgstrom petitioned a yet higher prosecutor. Borgstrom is not merely a high-profile brief; he has recently been the Social Democratic party's spokesman on gender equality. The prosecutor he approached was Marianne Ny, head of a special unit on ''crime development'' based in Gothenburg, a unit explicitly tasked with exploring and extending sex crime laws in areas of social behaviour.

On September 1, Ny announced she was re-opening the investigation into the charge of rape. Aftonbladet journalists who asked Borgstrom what the allegation was based on were told there was more evidence than had been revealed in the widely leaked police reports, but he would not disclose what it was.

- snip -

The milieu of hackerdom is not without its conspiracy enthusiasts, who pointed to her stint in the Washington DC branch of the Swedish foreign service, that she had been deported from Cuba for working with the US-backed dissident group The Women in White, and that her close cousin Mattias Ardin is a lieutenant-colonel in Afghanistan.

Others focused on the role of Expressen newspaper, which had been leaked the report of the initial rape charges, in contravention of Swedish law, and then leaked the contents of a later police interview with Assange.

Expressen is right-wing, and has long been opposed to Sweden's policy of armed neutrality, advocating closer ties with the US.

[EFerrari]

39. The Women in White is a group paid out of the State Department.

They have been disowned by the real women in white, Las madres de la Plaza de Mayo, from whom they stole their image and all its virginal associations.

That's pretty interesting, Hissyspit.

[Judi Lynn]

43. It's the ultimate in cynicism for the US-supported "dissident" group in Cuba

to take the name of the heroic mothers, grandmothers in Argentina who themselves became the focus of the fascist military government who sent infiltrators to penetrate them, and arrest, torture, and murder some of their members, who themselves were protesting the US-supported fascist dictatorship's kidnappings, tortures, and disappearances of their children.

The same US-supported, Henry Kissinger advised military dictatorship took their pregnant daughters from their homes (which they appropriated, even down to the furniture, and all other contents, their businesses, if they owned any, tortured them, and forced labor in some cases, or allowed them to give natural birth in others, then took their infants, gave the babies out like bonuses to their political friends, stripped the mothers, (daughters of the REAL LADIES IN WHITE) loaded them onto Navy airplanes, and threw them into the Atlantic Ocean.

In Cuba, THEIR "Ladies in White" go out to walk in protests, led by US government-paid former economics professor, Marta Beatriz Roque, who is also paid by Cuban "exile" trrorist, Santiago Alvarez Fernández Magriñat, a 3rd generation terrorist, following in the "noble" footsteps of his grandfather who murdered a Cuban hero, Julio Antonio Mella in 1929 in service of the fascist Cuban government, his fathere, who was a Batista thug, and member of the Commandos L terrorist group, created by the CIA. Santiago Alvarez Fernández early triumph was a machine gunning of Boca de Samá, a coastal town which wounded 2 teenaged girls, mutilating one's leg. Big guy! He's the one who brought the mass murderer/bomber, CIA man, Luis Posada Carriles back to the United States after he got out of prison in Panama, after his part in a plot to blow up an auditorium, killing up to 2,000 people, had the Cuban intelligence not alerted their police force in time to stop them. Santiago Alvarez himself has also worked for the CIA.

Through the Cuban Interests Section in Havana, there have been a lot of regular payouts handed off by the US ambassador, the last one being Michael Parmley, from Santiago Alvarez to creepy, slimy, crabby old Marta Beatriz Roque, the leader of the Cuban "Ladies in White."

http://www.cubaverdad.net.nyud.net:8090/images/dissidents/beatriz_roque_01.jpg http://files.nireblog.com.nyud.net:8090/blogs3/lapolillacubana/files/marta-beatriz-roque-votando-en-la-sina.jpg http://www.cubasocialista.cu.nyud.net:8090/imagen/disidentes/foto07.jpg http://havanajournal.com.nyud.net:8090/images/uploads/Martha_Beatriz_Roque.jpg

Marta Beatriz Roque last 3 at the US's Cuban Interests Section,
the one at the mic with US ambassador James Cason watching behind her.

The REAL "Ladies in White," the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo in Argentina, some of whom were themselves tortured and murdered, just like their sons and daughters:





Protesting the visit by _{George W. Bush to Argentina several years ago!}
On the other hand, the "Ladies in White" in Cuba, receive payoffs from the US government, even from the US Interests Section, from US terrorists like Santiago Alvarez, former CIA and lifetime terrorist against Cuba, and the same government which supported the fascist Argentian government which murdered the children of Las Madres de la Playa de Maya in Argentina.

~~~~~
A little earlier this morning, I discovered an article you might want to scan which informs that the young men and women taken by the Argentinian military dictatorship were called the "chupadas," a name I never encountered before, which was the name for people the government had "sucked up," taking everything they owned, with them, including, as you know, their future children, which they kept for their own use. "Chupadas."

Argentina military junta members,
top officers, and ministers
http://www.yendor.com/vanished/junta.html

It's a universe AWAY from the US-paid "ladies in white" in Havana, isn't it?

[EFerrari]

46. Thank you, Judi! How great is that "Bush Out!" banner.

It's interesting that Ardin not only was in the foriegn service and posted to Washington but then, she gets involved with a State Department front group. As she really did that, it's not a conspiracy "theory", it's just her job history.

Then she turns up as the person, iirc, who invited Julian to Sweden and so on. :shrug:

[ellie]

52. Thanks Judi Lynn!

You rock!

[defendandprotect]

58. Once again, thank you, Judi Lynn for all this info ... !!!

[Judi Lynn]

44. Absolutely amazing seeing the connection to the Cuban "dissidents!"

This right-wing thing clearly is a lot more pervasive than most people would have suspected. Jeez.

Thank you, Hissyspit.

[defendandprotect]

57. Missed this, as well -- late K&R and thanks for the info!!

[TalkingDog]

37. Nah... just for the ones they want to cow into submission

because they won't keep their big trap shut.

[Xithras]

45. Interpol doesn't decide.

Interpol is simply a police information interchange. Your local police department could submit a warrant for someone suspected of smoking a joint on a local sidewalk if they wanted, if they had some evidence that the person had left the country. Having Interpol involved simply means that the local prosecutor is serious about wanting him returned to Sweden. It's a gauge of the seriousness of the prosecutor, not of the crime.

BTW, Assange has offered to interview with them many times, including at the Swedish embassy or in Britain. He's not a rich guy, but the Swedes are insisting that he fly back to Sweden on his own dime so they can interview him. It's understandable why he doesn't.

If you actually look at the accusations against him, and the timeline of their release, the whole thing is questionable anyway. Even if it's not an international conspiracy to get him, it may be a case of two vindictive women trying to get a bit of revenge. The story they originally told to the police was fairly tame, which is why he was originally allowed to leave (it was basically an argument over a broken/removed condom during consensual sex, compounded by two women who were angry when they discovered that he'd slept with both of them in a two day time period). A short while later (conveniently timed to the worlds outrage over his info dumps, and after the Swedes had decided to drop the case), the women came forward with "new information" accusing him of coercing and harrassing them to get the sex in the first place. This leaves a huge, lingering question: If he really coerced or even forced them into sex, why didn't they mention this the first time they talked to the police? Why did they, instead, tell the police that the sex was consensual, and that his crime was simply his deceptive use of the condom? That's a HUGE change in their story, with no explanation as to why it changed.

More info on the actual accusations can be found here: http://gawker.com/5624854/wikileaks-founders-molestation-police-report-leaked-his-top+secret-moves-revealed

[cbdo2007]

33. Or Assange *could* be on the next Nasa mission to the Moon.

I hate when news stories use the word "could" or "might" as if those words actually mean anything. The news is supposed to report news, not speculation or guesses on the news.

[ibegurpard]

38. really??

:sarcasm:

[defendandprotect]

47. Evidently, Wikileaks had documents which showed this attack would be arranged.....

Trust someone will bring forth more info on this --

but evidently the documents were discovered by Wikileaks!

[Odin2005]

49. No shit!

[howaboutme]

51. First worldwide manhunt in history over a case of .....

well what are the charges actually over? We don't know. The actual charges have been foggy to me at best. It seems the Swedes don't wish to actually lay out specifics while the Interpole frantically posts worldwide wanted posters.

The obvious question due to the irrationality of the pursuit over the alleged crime is - was it a setup? Did one man forcibly rape two women or is it a case of questionable date rape? What atre the names and the background of these women so the media can investigate their legitimacy. Is it possible that he forcibly raped them both - of course - but unlikely? Is it possible that they are shills intended to snag him in the judicial system...definitely? The fact that this is totally overblown leads me to the latter and obviously a setup.

[captain jack]

53. I'm thinking two Myrtle Poor Bear's here. n/t

[IDFbunny]

56. Rape by deception

Force has not been implied. He is a rapist because he is a no good two-timer and in at least in one case refused to wear a condom (unlawful coercion).

[askeptic]

54. We wouldn't describe as rape what Assange is accused of

I read that he had consensual sex with one woman and the condom broke. He then had consensual sex with the other woman but without a condom. The fact that he wasn't using a condom, even though the sex was consensual, constitutes "rape" in Sweden. So is this really an Interpol-worthy crime? No, we see the real motive is to shut Assange up. And our press is complicit in this farce by purposely not explaining what the circumstances were or actual conditions that constitute "rape" in Sweden.

[howaboutme]

55. If the truth were known

this type of blackmail in degrees of subtlety by those who pull the strings of politicians and those who might be outed by whistle blowers probably takes place the world over. All the puppet masters need is information flow, the ability to monitor communications and the ability to disseminate it. Collection is not being done by only our government and NSA.

Assange through the data sent to him by whistle blowers was able to turn the tables on the puppet masters. As to the ability to disseminate it, I see the US media as far more likely to expose derogatory or embarrassing information about the USA than some other entities.