On May 20th, London’s High Court will decide whether the WikiLeaks founder is extradited to the United States, where he faces charges for publishing hundreds of thousands of leaked documents about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In the letter, press professionals are demanding that Boric support Assange, who – they say – has contributed significantly to exposing human rights violations, political interference, and other misconduct by governments worldwide.
“If extradited to the United States, Assange would face up to 175 years in prison. This represents a threat to your freedom and your life and also sets a dangerous precedent for press freedom globally and consequently for democracy,” the letter states.
The College of Journalists calls on the president to pronounce himself publicly about this case and to seek dialogue and collaboration to urge the United States to withdraw its extradition request.
“We do not want Chile to be the only country with a deaf ear to this approach, very unlike the attitude demonstrated by other nations in the region,” the signatories stated.
A group of deputies also asked the president to join the request for Assange’s freedom, like some Latin American peers such as Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Gustavo Petro, or Andrés López Obrador.
jrr/llp/oda/car
