A BANNER in support of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange – who is fighting efforts to extradite him to the US and charge him under the Espionage Act – has been unveiled in West Belfast.
An Irish Day of Solidarity with Julian Assange saw a series of events held in support of the imprisoned journalist and publisher.
The day’s events included the unveiling of a banner by Sinn Féin’s Paul Maskey MP and Aisling Reilly MLA at Groves Reilly Corner in Andersonstown.
Saturday’s events coincided with the London High Court proceedings involving lawyers for the US administration, which is seeking to extradite Mr Assange to the US to face charges relating to the US Espionage Act. If extradited, he could be sentenced to up to 175 years in prison.
The Australian, who is being held in London’s Belmarsh prison, is set to appear in court again on Thursday as the US government appeals against an earlier decision to block his extradition.
Mr Assange is renowned for uncovering human rights abuses linked to the US “war on terror”, including in Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay.
Commenting following the Irish Day of Solidarity, West Belfast MP Paul Maskey said: “The words that we put on the banner in West Belfast are very poignant: if wars can be created by lies, then peace can be created by truth.
“It’s very poignant and it’s also reflective of our own situation here over the years of the conflict in Ireland.
“We wanted to stand in solidarity with people on the rest of the island who are opposing the extradition of Julian Assange. It’s a very important cause and he shouldn’t be extradited for telling the truth.”
A rally in support of Mr Assange was also held at Belfast City Hall on Saturday.
