Desperate
to ingratiate his government with Washington and distract the public
from his mounting scandals, Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno has
sacrificed Julian Assange – and his country’s independence
by
Denis Rogatyuk
Part
1
The
images of six Metropolitan police officers dragging Julian Assange
out of the Ecuadorian embassy in London have provoked rage by
citizens around the world. Many have warned that his extradition to
the US for trial on conspiracy charges – and possibly much more if
federal prosecutors have their way – will lead to the
criminalization of many standard journalistic practices.
These
scenes were only possible thanks to the transformation of Ecuador’s
government under the watch of President Lenin Moreno.
Since at
least December 2018, Moreno has been working towards expelling
Assange from the embassy. The Ecuadorian president’s behavior
represents a stunning reversal from the policies of his predecessor,
Rafael Correa, the defiantly progressive leader who first authorized
Assange’s asylum back in 2012, and who now lives in exile.
While
Ecuador’s Foreign Minister, Jose Valencia, blamed his government’s
expulsion of Assange on the Australian journalist’s “rudeness,”
the sell out is clearly a byproduct of Moreno’s right-leaning
agenda.
Political
instability has swept across Ecuador since revelations of widespread
corruption in Moreno’s inner circle emerged. The scandal coincided
with Moreno’s turn towards neoliberal economic reforms, from
implementing a massive IMF loan package to the gradual and total
embrace and support for the US foreign policy in the region.
In his
bid to satisfy Washington and deflect from his own problems, Moreno
was all too eager to sacrifice Assange.
Source,
links:
Nearly a year ago, these predictions unfortunately are now reality: https://t.co/gQonJV7uSC— failedevolution (@failedevolution) April 12, 2019
Comments
Post a Comment