Venezuela, ALBA back Ecuador and Assange

Actually, the Ecuadorean government has said it has no problem with Assange being sent to Sweden to face *questioning* over allegations (NOT made by the Swedish government, which would be ridiculous). All Ecuador has insisted on is a guarantee he would not THEN be extradited to the United States. And neither Sweden nor the US has been willing or able to give such a guarantee. This is *also* Julian Assange's stated position. Both Assange and Ecuador have also stated that Sweden authorities, which seek Assange for questioning, can question him in London. You say "I wonder if they still so obliging in WikiLeaks had a section on Ecuador..." Well... how about that then, it *just so happens* WikiLeaks *does* have a section on Ecuador. And Ecuadorean government requested WikiLeaks publish cables relating to it. (http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/51416) You say you are "still waiting for a real justifiable reason" from Ecuador -- try reading what Ecuador has actually said on the matter then. You can read the full statement by Ecuador here: http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/51907 But to save you time, here are the specifically listed reasons: * * * In order to assess his fear of possible political persecution, and that this persecution could end up becoming a situation which curtails and violates his rights, integrity, and could become a risk to his personal safety and freedom, the Government of Ecuador has considered the following: * Julian Assange is an award-winning communications professional internationally known for his struggles for freedom of expression, press freedom and human rights in general; * Mr. Assange shared privileged documents and information generated by various sources that affected employees, countries and organizations with a global audience; * That there is strong evidence of retaliation by the country or countries that produced the information disclosed by Mr. Assange, retaliation that may endanger his safety, integrity, and even his life; * That, despite Ecuador’s diplomatic efforts, countries which have been asked togive adequate safeguards for the protection and safety for the life of Mr. Assange have refused to facilitate them; * That Ecuadorian authorities are certain of the possibility that Mr. Assange could be extradited to a third country outside the European Union without proper guarantees for their safety and personal integrity; * That legal evidence clearly shows that, given an extradition to the United States of America, it would be unlikely for Mr. Assange to receive a fair trial, and likely that he would be judged by special or military courts, where there is a high probability of suffering cruel and degrading treatment, and be sentenced to life imprisonment or capital punishment, which would violate his human rights; * That while Mr. Assange must answer for the investigation in Sweden, Ecuador is aware that the Swedish prosecutor has had a contradictory attitude that prevented Mr. Assange the full exercise of the legitimate right of defense; * Ecuador is convinced that the procedural rights of Mr. Assange have been infringed upon during the investigation; * Ecuador has observed that Mr. Assange lacks the protection and assistance that should be received from the State of which he is a citizen (Australia); * That, following several public statements and diplomatic communications by officials from Britain, Sweden and the US, it is inferred that these governments would not respect international conventions and treaties, and would give priority to domestic law, in violation of explicit rules of universal application and; * That, if Mr. Assange is remanded to custody in Sweden (as is customary in this country), a chain of events would begin that would prevent further protective measures from being taken to avoid possible extradition to a third country. Thus, the Government of Ecuador believes that these arguments lend support to the fears of Julian Assange, and it believes that he may become a victim of political persecution, as a result of his dedicated defense of freedom of expression and freedom of press as well as his repudiation of the abuses of power in certain countries, and that these facts suggest that Mr. Assange could at any moment find himself in a situation likely to endanger life, safety or personal integrity. * * * Seeing as pretty much every single claim you made is demonstratably false, you should probably take the time to find out the facts rather than rely on government and corporate media spin.