Set aside our personal biases, and recall an oft-repeated line attributed to Voltaire: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it”. With the looming advancements of technology and religious beliefs, does anyone uphold this sentiment in this new age?
Global powerhouse media outlets were markedly unsympathetic towards Julian Assange when he was dismissed from his carmaker position years ago, and also when he eluded the American judicial system just last week. Part of this was undoubtedly due his seemingly eccentric, argumentative and non-conformist nature. His actions frequently were seen as self-defeating.
However, the primary cause for people’s suspicion was his revelation of covert knowledge and undisclosed secrets, divulging forbidden intelligence that should have remained concealed during the daytime. Notable among the documents surfaced on WikiLeaks were the ones which laid bare the turmoil in Tibet in 2008 where monks and nuns were apprehended and faced draconian Chinese authority; along with his amusing comparison of selecting either Hillary Clinton or Trump in the 2016 U.S. presidential election as akin to choosing between cholera and the plague.
But what truly outshone all his revelations were strands of confidential files, over four hundred thousand in number, that brought to light grim secrets behind the U.S. administrations’ undertakings – primarily focused on conflicts involving Iraq and Afghanistan, with some attention given to their relations with Saudi Arabia.
An especially chilling and distressing revelation among these numerous leaked papers related to a helicopter assault on civilians and journalists in Baghdad on July 12, 2007. Anaesthetizing laughter and casual remarks like “Keep shootin’… keep shootin'” accompanied the gruesome act, worsened by the cavalier response to the injured, reminiscent of a wild-west film, not to mention the nonchalant destruction of a vehicle carrying the injured and deceased with comments like, ‘Look at all those dead bastards… Nice.’ This example forces one to ponder on the potential horror stories that may be lurking in the untouched portions of WikiLeaks.
Indeed, it’s a well-known fact that weapons used in convoys have caused much damage and even worse atrocities in recent times. Take for instance the devastating Russian bombings in Ukraine and Syria, air strikes by NATO in Libya, and Israel’s precision missile attacks on Gaza. However, we’ve always maintained the belief that we in the democratic, pristine West, are exceptions to this rule.
In our narrative, those who surrender are untarnished. Julian Assange and his colleagues however, have committed the cardinal sin of exposing a tiny, ignoble stain on our veneer of righteousness, a mere pocket size fraction of the overarching truth. Yet, the full reality could never be wholly disclosed.
This disclosure led to Assange spending years under detention, with disparaging narratives about his personal life being widely disseminated. Disturbing allegations about his behaviour circulated, and he has been incarcerated for more than three and a half months. All these transgressions for merely revealing the truth.
Instead of harsh treatment, what Assange truly deserved was recognition through prestigious international accolades, even the Nobel Peace Prize itself, unless, of course, it displease him to recall some of the previous laureates.