|
STD fears sparked Assange rape case - reuters story with all the dirt
STD fears set off rape caseBy Mark HosenballWASHINGTON | Tue Dec 7, 2010 4:27pm EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) The two Swedish women who accuse WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange of sexual misconduct were at first not seeking to bring charges against him. They just wanted to track him down and persuade him to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases, according to several people in contact with his entourage at the time. not only was it not rape, the women didn't even want him charged with that until the prosecuters got involved and let me guess why they were so keen to make the most out of anything they could.... The women went to the police together after they failed to persuade Assange to go to a doctor after separate sexual encounters with him in August, according to these people, who include former close associates of Assange who have since fallen out with him. One of the women, identified in the British court hearing on Sweden's extradition request as Miss A, was listed on publicity for Assange's Swedish visit as a spokesperson for a group hosting the WikiLeaks leader. People who were in contact with both Assange and other members of his entourage at the time say that the woman at some point invited him to stay at her residence. According to the accounts of Assange's associates, his overnight stays at his erstwhile spokeswoman's residence soon evolved into a sexual relationship between the two. During one of their encounters, the woman later said, a condom Assange was wearing broke or split. eople who saw Assange and the woman in the days after this incident is said to have occurred said the two displayed little if any obvious sign of tension or hostility; to some who saw them at the time, it was not clear their relationship was anything other than amicable and chaste. A few days later, however, people who were in contact with Assange then told Reuters, a second, younger woman went to a seminar addressed by Assange. FIFTEEN DOLLAR TRAIN TICKET this one would be the spy After hearing him speak at the seminar, the newspaper said, the woman, identified in court as Miss W, loitered outside the meeting hall, and eventually was invited to lunch with Assange and his entourage at a local bistro. A day after their initial meeting -- which the Mail account said included a visit to a natural history museum -- Miss W agreed with Assange that he should spend the night at her apartment about 45 minutes outside Stockholm. That night, according to the accounts of both the newspaper and people who were in contact with Assange and his inner circle, he and Miss W had sex using a condom. The next morning, however, under circumstances which remain deeply murky, the sources said, Assange allegedly had sex with the woman again, this time without a condom. Then, after a meal during which the Mail says that the woman joked that she could be pregnant, they parted on friendly terms, with Miss W buying Assange his train ticket back to Stockholm. Two people who were in contact with Assange's entourage before, during and after these events said that while some details are still unclear, it appears that after parting from Assange, Miss W became increasingly concerned that he might have given her a sexually-transmitted disease. According to the sources, Miss W anxiously tried to phone Assange to plead with him to go to a doctor and be tested for sexually transmitted diseases. However, the sources said that Assange had turned his phone off, leaving Miss W no way to get in touch with him. Becoming increasingly anxious about possible dire consequences of having had sex without a condom, Miss W then began trying to contact Assange through various people she believed were in touch with him. This eventually led her to Miss A -- who according to people who followed the case closely was not previously acquainted with Miss W. Attrocious. This is caled stalking. If she was worried about an STD then she should get herself on antibiotics/anti-retrovirals. Get tested in 3 months. Not stalk, harass and go to the police. This woman is the spy The two women proceeded to compare notes on their encounters with Assange and decided that they would insist that he should go to a hospital or doctor and submit to testing for sexually-transmitted diseases. Eventually they managed to get in touch with Assange, according to a person who closely followed the case at the time. But by the time the women had wrung this concession from Assange, the source said, it was a Friday evening and hospitals and medical clinics were closed. At this point, Miss W, apparently exasperated at Assange's evasive behavior, decided to take her story to police, though initially she didn't want Assange to be prosecuted. she did want him prosecuted, that was her only goal, but she pretends that isn't the case to give herself legitimacy. According to a version of the story published by London's Guardian newspaper, which has been in close and continuing contact with Assange for months, Miss A decided to go to the police with Miss W to offer moral support, but did not want charges brought against Assange either. After taking statements from the women, according to both published accounts and to accounts confirmed by Swedish officials at the time, police officers passed the reports on to prosecutors. Based on the reports a prosecutor serving after-hours duty on a Friday night then decided to issue a warrant for Assange's arrest on suspicion of rape -- a charge which the Guardian said at the time was related to Assange's alleged encounter with Miss W. The next morning, however, the file was sent for review to a more senior prosecutor, who concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the rape accusation and canceled the arrest warrant. But the second prosecutor decided that the investigation should continue as a lesser accusation of "molestation" against Assange, Swedish officials said at the time. Over the following several days, prosecutors spoke about wanting to question Assange, though also dropped heavy hints that they wanted to wrap up their investigation rapidly -- with the most likely outcome being a closing of the file. However, new life was injected into the investigation after Miss A and Miss W hired Claes Borgstrom, a prominent Swedish lawyer. Borgstrom confirmed to reporters at the time that his clients' allegations against Assange related to efforts he made to have sex with them without wearing condoms, and his subsequent reluctance to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases. i wonder why they suddenly wanted to hire a lawyer? where did they get the money for that? God it's so obvious what is really going on here. it's disgusting when Politics is allowed to interfere with the judicial process. Just disgusting. This is a threat to the freedom of all of us because they don't use these tactics only against enemies now we are all targets. Every Western journalist who writes anything critical of Government (UK, US, Australia) can expect similar attacks to lesser degrees unless we tell them that media is to be left alone, and the court system is to be left alone. Borgstrom said at the time that he would appeal the authorities' initial decision to close the rape investigation to a higher authority. Subsequently, Marianne Ny, one of three senior Swedish prosecutors who hold the title of Director of Public Prosecutions, issued a statement about the case, which, in an official translation published on the English language page of the Swedish Prosecution Authority's website, declared that: "There is reason to believe that a crime has been committed. Considering information available at present, my judgment is that the classification of the crime is rape." and how does she get to that conclusion after consensual sex, backed up by witness accounts of happy relations after the fact, backed by text messages, backed by the original police statement.... Translation: The CIA and other intelligence agencies leant on the Swedes to use any and every possible means to attack Assange. They have interfered with the judicial system in Sweden, compromising its independence and the fundamental principal of equality before the law. This willingness to trash the norms and principles of Western Democracy is a far greater threat to our freedom than anything Wikileaks published. In their official statement, prosecutors added that the original "molestation" investigation of Assange -- which was never officially closed -- also would continue and "will be extended to include all allegations in the original police report... There is reason to believe that a crime has been committed. Based on the information available, the crimes in question come under the heading of sexual coercion and sexual molestation, respectively." n a flurry of statements and Twitter messages after the case first erupted, Assange and WikiLeaks charged that the whole Swedish case was the product of some kind of "dirty tricks campaign" related to the group's work. In one Tweet, WikiLeaks said that "The charges are without basis and their issue at the moment is deeply disturbing." Another Tweet said: "We were warned to expect 'dirty tricks'. Now we have the first one." I have to say I agree. Even those that despise Assange and think of him as an enemy would have to admit that the process involved in slapping these charges on Assange looks highly suspicious Tuesday, a lawyer representing the Swedish government laid out for a British judge four specific charges of sexual misconduct, three related to Miss A and one related to Miss W. The word "rape" was not part of the charges but "unlawful coercion" and Assange's alleged reluctance to use condoms was. There you have it folks. You must draw your own conclusions. I respect everyone on this site as being patriots and people who care about their country. I also am a patriot and care about my country and its allies. I don't believe our Governments and their spy agencies should destroy our village in order to save it. Judicial independence and media freedom are not luxuries to be suspended and only given back once all our enemies are defeated "for our own safety". BS. We will have freeedom now and not surrender it - no matter what enemies we face. Posted by: anon1 2010-12-07 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=311271 |