Julian Assange to receive Aboriginal Passport
The Indigenous Social Justice Association (ISJA) and the Support
Assange and WikiLeaks Coalition released the statement below on
September 9.
* * *
It is with a sense of pride and complete social justice that this
Association has worked with the Sydney Support Assange and WikiLeaks
Coalition to have the privilege of successfully arranging for Julian
Assange to be able to be issued with an Aboriginal Nations Passport that
his father, John Shipton, will accept on his behalf at the Welcome to
Aboriginal Land Passport Ceremony to be held at The Settlement, 17
Edward Street, Darlington from 11am to 4pm on Saturday 15 September,
2012.
We strongly endorse the words of Linda Pearson of the Support Assange
and WikiLeaks Coalition, see below, on the total lack of support by our
federal government to assist Julian against being press-ganged to
America to face corrupt charges against him for informing the world’s
people of the absolute lies that all governments continue to tell their
people.
Whilst it is true that all governments lie, it is well known that
America leads the pack in their eternal quest for American hegemony of
the world’s resources. It is well known that all Australian governments
since the dismissal of the Whitlam government in 1975, that was assisted
and orchestrated by America’s CIA, have meekly put our country at the
policies of the American foreign policy interests. Julian is but another
example.
The Ceremony is being held at the behest of many migrant, refugee
and non-Aboriginal Australians who wish to fully recognise the
Traditional Owners of the many Aboriginal Nations that still exist to
this very day. They wish to show their full respect to the true history
of this land and that is that we Aborigines still have full sovereignty
over our Lands.
Always was … always will be … Aboriginal Land.
The crimes of the 1788 invasion and the subsequent colonisation still
need to be addressed and accounted for but we believe that the Passport
Ceremony is the first of many steps that are required by those who wish
to participate in a multicultural and pluralistic Reconciliation.
Not the assimilationist reconciliation wanted by Australian
governments and other racists but the real and honourable reconciliation
of removing the-white-blindfold of our joint history and allowing a
mutual respect to be created.
By agreement we will be issuing both Julian Assange, via his father,
and Mamdoub Habib, who will be present, an Aboriginal Nations Passport
that will allow both to respectfully travel through the Aboriginal
Nations — Mamdoub now and Julian on his return to Aboriginal Australia.
Both these men were denied any assistance, first by the Howard
government and then by the Gillard government respectively. These
nefarious actions were taken by these two governments to appease their
American masters. We will attempt to right that wrong.
All those who wish to be issued with a Passport may obtain one by,
firstly, signing the Pledge, giving some personal details to be added to
the Passport, supplying a passport sized photo and a charge of $10 to
help in affraying costs. The Passports are for use by non-Aboriginal
people only and can only be used to travel through the Aboriginal
Nations. This does not apply to Aborigines as we have our own cultural
methods of travelling through Country.
The ceremony at The Settlement will include music, dancers, food and a
wonderful sense of Welcome and Solidarity to all those attending. This
will be an alcohol and drug free event.
We give the final word to Linda Pearson of the Support Assange and
WikiLeaks Coalition:
“We are extremely grateful to the Indigenous Social
Justice Association for highlighting the injustice faced by Julian
Assange, and for this opportunity to show our solidarity with the
Aboriginal owners of this land.
“Australia is built on the injustices of invasion and colonisation.
We condemn racist government polices like the Northern Territory
intervention which continue to inflict untold harm on Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander peoples. We benefit from the occupation of stolen
land, while Aboriginal people are incarcerated at five times the rate
of black South Africans under apartheid.”
The ISJA’s decision to issue Julian Assange an Aboriginal Passport
comes as he remains confined in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
Despite international obligations to respect Assange’s status as a
political refugee, the UK government has made clear its intention to
arrest him if he tries to leave the embassy.
The Australian government should be negotiating with the UK to ensure
Assange’s safe passage to Ecuador. However, our politicians have
consistently put their alliance with the United States before Assange’s
human rights, even when his life has been threatened.
The issuing of an Aboriginal Passport to Julian Assange brings
further shame on the Australian government. It recognises that Assange’s
Australian passport has been completely worthless to him.”
[For further information please contact Ray Jackson 0450 651 063,
Rihab Charida, Linda Pearson 0401 511 588 or Anne Picot 0404 090 710.]
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