The government of Ecuador said late Tuesday that it had “temporarily” restricted the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, citing the group’s decision to release documents “impacting on the U.S. election campaign.”
“The Government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate,” the government said in the statement.The statement added, “This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities.”
Some people have blamed Secretary of State Kerry for the Government of Ecuador’s actions, but Kerry denied any involvement.
The next logical person to have asked Ecuador to intercede is Hillary Clinton.
Holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in Great Britain four four years, the founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange had is internet access was shut down by the government of Ecuador after leak two weeks Assange leaking the emails of Hillary Clinton’s campaign head John Podesta.
“We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assange’s internet access Saturday, 5 p.m. GMT, shortly after publication of (Hillary) Clinton’s Goldman Sachs speeches [sic],” the statement from WikiLeaks said.
“We have activated the appropriate contingency plans,” added the Twitter message on Monday. People close to WikiLeaks say that Assange himself is the principal operator of the website’s Twitter feed.
The removal of Assange’s internet access did not stop the podesta emails from going out. Monday’s was delayed, but Tuesday’s batch went out int he morning as usual. It was just sent by others in the WikiLeaks organization, and the Ecuadorian govt. has given assurances that Assange’s asylum hasn’t been damaged.
Sources close to both the Democratic Party and WikiLeaks say they believe WikiLeaks has acquired as many as 40,000-50,000 emails hacked from the personal accounts of John Podesta, the former White House advisor who now chairs Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Why now? Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has long felt that the rape charges that led Julian Assange to seek refuge in his embassy was simply an attempt to deny him free speech. So it seem a bit strange to cut him off now… until one realizes that Correa is a fan of the former Secretary of State.
Correa, whose term will end next year, has said he is behind Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who he says he knows personally, in the U.S. presidential election.
“For the US it would certainly be better if Hillary won. I know her personally and have a great deal of respect for her,” the Ecuadoran leader told RT Spanish
At the beginning of October when Assange scheduled and then canceled what was supposed to be a major WikiLeaks announcement, some blamed it on the Correa relationship with Clinton:
“Assange is a guest of Ecuador and if they kick him out of the embassy he will be arrested by British police,” says Madrid freelance writer Rafael Marcos. “It’s a fact that Ecuador President Rafael Correa wants Clinton to win the election and he doesn’t want leaked documents going out that will hurt her chances,” he adds.
When one puts together all of the above, it makes sense to surmise that Correa took away Assange’s internet privileges to protect Hillary Clinton, perhaps even at her request. It certainly seems that way.
