Julian Assange loses extradition appeal

THE FOUNDER of Wikileaks, Julian Assange has lost his extradition appeal as a London court decided he should be sent from Britain to Sweden to face questioning over alleged sex crimes.

Two judges at the High Court in London decided that a previous ruling in favour of extradition must be upheld.

Assange denies the charges brought by two females. His lawyers said that the Swedish government has presented Assange, who is an Australian national, as "public enemy number one," which they said ensures that he will not get a fair trial.

Assange also claims that the sexual assault charges are a ruse for government intentions to make him pay for leaking thousands of private documents and diplomatic cables on the internet. He said he fears extradition to the US, where he believes he could even face the death penalty for his role in the leaks.

According to the BBC, Assange, who was dressed in a navy blue suit and wearing a Remembrance Day poppy, was mobbed as he approached the court building.

Pirate party leader Loz Kaye told The INQUIRER, "Today's ruling shows that we can be spirited across Europe without charge for a DNA test. It is time for a fundamental reassessment of the proportionality of the European Arrest Warrant.

"The person of Julian Assange has been the subject of a great deal of controversy. But the Wikileaks project is larger than any one person. At the Pirate Party we continue to support the rights of whistleblowers, and the goal of a truly transparent democracy." µ