Wikileaks founder Julian Assange marked a year living in one room in the Ecuadorian embassy in London this week, and announced he will stay "as long as it takes" to resolve his situation. He originally took refuge in the embassy when the British high court refused his appeal against extradition to Sweden, but now he says he won't come out even if Sweden drops its request because he believes the US has already drawn a secret warrant for his extradition on charges of leaking military documents. The advantage for Assange in remaining in the embassy is clear; he keeps his case in the media spotlight, a cause he's helped this week by tying his case to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden's, offering him a charter flight from Hong Kong to Iceland. It's interesting to think about what Ecuador is gaining from this; foreign minister Ricardo Patino visited London for talks this weekend in what looked like a desperate attempt to get rid of their awkward house guest, but then defiantly told a press conference Britain is violating Assange's human rights. It seems to me that Rafael Correa's government believes it's worth risking strained relations with Britain and the US for regional diplomatic gains; the charismatic Ecuadorian president sees himself as the heir to Hugo Chavez as leader of the Latin American left and wants to be seen defending the sovereignty of small countries against perceived imperialism, even if that means sheltering an alleged rapist.
Here's my report for Channel News Asia on Assange's year in the embassy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3uXbFbtoww
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