"In all the years that I have supported him, I have learned not to be surprised by anything," said Emmy Butlin, a Greek-born Londoner who was a linchpin of the unofficial campaign to free Assange that worked in tandem with the broader push to oppose his extradition.
"It's been a hard journey, at times full of grief, but we have a tremendous sense of achievement.
It's been marvellous to be surrounded by people who share your dreams and your ideas."
Butlin - who links her passion for freedom of the press to her own family's experience under the military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974 - was one of three people who began holding a vigil in 2012 outside the Ecuadorian embassy. Assange had sought asylum inside the building to avoid extradition to Sweden on a rape allegation that he denied, and which he claimed was a ploy to hand him over to the US.
Denne historien er fra June 26, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra June 26, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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