JULIAN ASSANGE, THE FOUNDER OF WIKI LEAKS and crusader for media freedom, continues to languish in the Belmarsh prison in the United Kingdom despite the Swedish authorities finally stopping all “preliminary investigation” into charges of sexual misconduct against him. It took the Swedish prosecutors more than 10 years to formally announce that there was “insufficient evidence” against Assange to proceed with the case.
The WikiLeaks founder has insisted that the allegations of rape against him were fabricated and a pretext to incarcerate him and finally extradite him to the United States. The U.S. has not forgiven him for exposing the war crimes it committed in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere.
Because of the political conspiracy hatched in tandem by the U.S., the U.K. and Swedish governments, Assange was forced to seek political sanctuary in the Ecuadorian embassy in London where he remained until April this year. The establishment media in the West, which initially cooperated with WikiLeaks to publish the explosive material Assange unearthed, subsequently turned against him with a vengeance at the behest of the political establishment. Assange has been labelled a traitor, serial sex abuser and a Russian agent, among other things, in the Western media. The Swedish investigations provided the basis for the calumnies against Assange to be mainstreamed.
‘PSYCHOLOGICAL TORTURE’
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How Not To Handle An Epidemic
The lockdowns were meant to buy time to put in place appropriate health measures and contain the coronavirus’ spread, but they have failed to achieve the objective and heaped immense misery on the marginalised sections of society. India is still in the exponential phase of the COVID-19 infection and community transmission is a reality that the government refuses to accept.
Tragedy on foot
As the COVID-19-induced lockdown cuts the ground beneath their feet in Tamil Nadu, thousands of migrant workers are trudging along the highway to the relative safety of their upcountry homes.
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Scapegoating China
As the COVID-19 death rate spikes and the economy tanks in the United States, Donald Trump and his advisers target China and the World Health Organisation with an eye to winning the forthcoming presidential election.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
No love lost for labour
Taking advantage of the lockdown and the inability of workers to organise protests, many State governments introduce sweeping changes to labour laws to the detriment of workers on the pretext of reviving production and boosting the economy.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Understanding migration
When governments and their plans are found to be blatantly wanting in addressing reverse migration, exercises such as the Ekta Parishad’s survey of migrant workers throughout India can be useful to work out creative long-lasting solutions.
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.
