The UK has a responsibility to free Assange
The UK has a responsibility to free Assange
Your fortnightly digest of the very best content from independent media publications up and down the UK.
Hello everyone. Last week we marked the 4th anniversary of Julian Assange’s imprisonment with a stark reminder that press freedom cannot exist when journalists are persecuted and imprisoned for doing their job.
More below.
- Reece
Release Julian Assange
The IMA is calling for the immediate release of journalist and WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange, who is currently held at Belmarsh prison.
Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, was arrested in 2019 for violating bail conditions in the UK and has been held in prison ever since. He faces extradition to the US, where he is charged with espionage and could face up to 175 years in prison if convicted.
"Julian Assange's imprisonment is a grave violation of press freedom and the public's right to know," said IMA Chair Tchiyiwe Chihana. "Journalists should not be punished for revealing information in the public interest. It is unacceptable that Assange, who has won numerous awards for his journalism, continues to be treated like a criminal."
Assange's case is perhaps the most well known violation of press freedom and the UK government is complicit in this. The UN Special Rapporteur on torture has condemned his treatment, stating that he has been subjected to "psychological torture."
"On this anniversary, we must remember that the free press is essential to a functioning democracy," Chihana added. "The persecution of journalists like Julian Assange sends a chilling message to all those who seek to hold power to account. We call on the UK government to release him immediately, drop the extradition request, and cement further protections for independent media and journalists in UK law."
Independent media digest
A new film from Pablo Navarrete on the anniversary of Julian Assange’s imprisonment at Belmarsh prison. [Pablo Navarrete, Alborada]
A potted history of Bristol’s public toilets before they were closed to save cash. Eugene Byrne, trying to hold it in until he gets home, looks at the history of Bristol’s public loos. [The Bristol Cable]
Improving health services in a hostile climate. In this piece, Rachel Jenkins, the Mental Health & Wellbeing Manager at Refugee Women Connect, explains how to introduce culturally aware and trauma-informed care to support migrant women’s mental health. [Migrant Women Press]
The RMT found a government-funded train company splashed £75m on dividends – so the Canary dug deeper. [The Canary]
Canada's voter ID approach: a blueprint for change? The UK could learn a lot from Canada’s approach to voter ID. Canada has a “vouching” system, which allows a voter who has ID and appears on the electoral roll to sign a letter confirming the identity of another voter. [Great Central Gazette]
Coming up
Wednesday 19th:
UK monthly inflation figures
Retrial begins of TikTok influencer Mahek Bukhari
Resolution Foundation publishes its annual 'Low Pay Britain' report
UK House Price Index
Travel consumers sceptical of 'greenwashing' by travel firms, survey shows
Thursday 20th:
Humza Yousaf faces Douglas Ross at Scottish First Minister's Questions
Solar eclipse
Permanent exclusions and suspensions statistics
BBC Proms programme announced
Friday 21st:
Extinction Rebellion rally in central London with group hoping for 100,000 protesters
Muslim festival of Eid
Amazon workers in Coventry start latest strike over pay
Saturday 22nd:
Earth Day
Stephen Lawrence Day and 30th anniversary of Stephen Lawrence murder
Stormzy's #Merky Books hosts inaugural literature festival at the Roundhouse
Record Store Day
7th anniversary of Paris Agreement signed
Sunday 23rd:
London Marathon
Test emergency alerts sent to UK mobile phones
St. George's Day
Resources
Want to create a Wikipedia page for your organisation? It’s simple enough. You can create an account here or if you’re having trouble, you can request an account here. You cannot create new Wikipedia pages anonymously. Make sure to turn off your VPN too - Wikipedia can block VPN IP connections.
Find 10 random pages and make meaningful contributions, no matter how small they are (you could fix punctuation, for example). You need to do this to unlock the ability to create new pages.
Conflict of interest (COI) editing involves contributing to Wikipedia about yourself, family, friends, clients, employers, or your financial and other relationships. If you want to create a Wikipedia page for your media organisation, you’re COI editing.
Editors with a COI must disclose it otherwise your article will get rejected.
Follow these steps to declare a “General COI”. There are slightly different rules if you are being paid to create a Wikipedia page (e.g. you’re salaried at or freelance for the organisation whose page you’re creating).
Twitter verification
“Twitter says Press Gazette would have to pay £1,140 a month to stay verified. With the introduction of paid verification, and departures of NPR and PBS, we want to hear from you: is Twitter still worth being on for your news organisation?”
And that’s all from me folks! Sorry this has been a short one, I’ve been pressed for time this week. Do send any interesting bits you’re working on to community@ima.press and I’ll include them in the next newsletter. Feedback is also welcome!