Australian MPs vote ‘overwhelmingly’ in favor of freedom for Julian Assange
Australian MPs, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and members of his cabinet, have voted “overwhelmingly” in favor of urging the US and UK to allow embattled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to return to his home country of Australia.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie praised the vote as “an unprecedented show of political support for Assange by the Australian parliament.”
Wilkie added that it was “time for all of us to take a stand” and support the motion.
The federal parliament vote on 14 January saw 86 in favor of freeing Assange and 42 against. It comes ahead of Assange’s upcoming hearing in the UK High Court on 21 February, which will determine whether he can continue his case in UK courts.
If unsuccessful, he will have exhausted his appeals in the UK, which would lead to the start of his extradition to the US.