All language subtitles for ithaka-en

(SIREN WAILS DISTANTLY)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

Breaking news out of the city -
police have confirmed reports

that WikiLeaks founder
Julian Assange

has been arrested.

One of the most notorious
and controversial figures
in the world

is finally in custody.

I can't even remember how
I feel about Julian Assange.

WikiLeaks! I love WikiLeaks.

WOMAN: 10 years ago,
Assange shot to fame

when WikiLeaks began publishing
secret documents

provided by former
US intelligence analyst
Chelsea Manning.

MAN: WikiLeaks first caught
the attention of most Americans

when it released this video.

- At least a dozen people
were killed in the attack...
- (GUNFIRE)

..some of them
innocent civilians.

..that the Metropolitan Police
have arrested Julian Assange.

MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

Arrested for breach of bail

after nearly seven years
in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

He has also been arrested

in relation to
an extradition request

from the United States
authorities.

The Obama administration
couldn't figure out how
to charge him

without him being able to get
journalistic protection.

MAN: Right.

I think it's pretty amazing,

and the Trump administration
should be, like, "Look at us.

"We figured it out."

MAN: Now, after eight years
of cat-and-mouse,

Julian Assange
is on the precipice

of extradition
to the United States.

You've said that
you're proud of your son.

You've now, if you like,
broken cover,

because we didn't really
know about you

until this morning, actually.

Why have you decided that now
is the time to speak up for him

and to call for
his repatriation to Australia?

Well, he...Julian can
no longer speak for himself,

and so...so we...his family
and friends must speak for him.

MAN: Can we talk about the day
Julian asked you to help?

Can you talk me through that?

I don't really remember.

What I remember is
that he got arrested,

and so I came here and...

..went and saw him in the...

..went and saw Julian
in the jail.

Anyway, he was
in a very bad way.

OK. Yeah. Just...just tell me,
how was Julian Assange?

Oh, well, he's lost
about 10 kilos' weight,

and he's psychologically under
a lot of stress and pressure.

The visiting hours
are very, very precious.

(SNIFFS)
Sorry. I'm a bit upset.

Yes. This is my first visit.
Yes.

Yes. Yes. That...

MAN: How was that...?

It's pretty moving,
as you would expect.

- (CAMERA CLICKS)
- MAN: OK. Thanks.

Pretty tough.
For him, you know?

(CAMERA CLICKS)

- I guess that'll do.
- MAN: Thank you.

- Thank you.
- JOURNALISTS: Thank you.

So I said,
"I'll...I'll be back."

"I won't stop coming
until you can come home."

And I...I don't
much like the media, but...

..it seems as though
there was an avenue

where I could contribute.

MAN: Can we talk about
your contact with Julian

through his childhood?

Well, I don't think it's a...

..you know, I don't think
it'll help, will it?

MAN: Well, just understanding

that you didn't connect
for a long time.

Yeah. So why do we...

I mean, frankly, why do we
have to go over that again?

It's a serious question.

Why do I have to
go over the fact

that I may not feel comfortable
with your question?

MAN: Mmm.

- Well, it's part of the story.
- It ISN'T part of the story.

The story is that...you know,

I am attempting,
in my own humble...

I don't like that word.

..modest way
to get Julian out of the shit.

What does it involve?

Traipsing around Europe,

building up
coalitions of friendship.

And I have the feeling that

the desire for
a narrative about Julian

is stronger than the desire

to understand the person
that you are speaking to,

and what
you're indirectly doing

is making sense of life

by imposing on life,
as it flows past, a narrative,

because that's what
you want to see -

a beginning, a middle
and an end and a conclusion -

which is a convenient...
or what I would call

Hollywood way of
looking at life.

But, you know, life's not
really like that at all.

So, what you can do
with these things...

is that you can give it
a destiny.

I would prefer
the difficulty of destiny

over the ease of narrative.

It's good to see you. Yeah.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

JOHN SHIPTON:
Julian is suffering from

years of psychological torture,

increasing to the extent
of damaging him.

Thank you very much,
ladies and gentlemen.

Julian, of course, is not well.
Um...

(WOMAN SPEAKS GERMAN)

NILS MELZER: So I'm an
independent human rights expert

who's appointed directly
by the United Nations.

Well, Julian Assange's case,

it does involve my mandate
on several levels,

although I...

I at first didn't think so,
and...

..that's the deceptive nature
of psychological torture.

That's the purpose
of psychological torture.

It wants to
torture people without
the environment realising

someone is being tortured.

Doesn't want to leave traces.

Now, you DO leave traces,
but it's in the mind.

Torture is used
to break people,

very often to make them say
what you want them to say

or not to say anything.

But in Julian's case,

it's about
intimidating everybody else.

Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

JOHN SHIPTON:
I started this thing...

Oh, what was it? '73, I think.

Oh, oh, thank you.

- And if I had...
- And, really, tell him...

..you know, had that
in my nature,

I would have
been there already.

But I wasn't. You know,
I liked building things.

Particularly liked
building homes.

'Cause a...a home, you know,

is a stage
for the theatre of life.

And it gathers the inhabitants
under its roof

like a hen gathers its chicks.

So I liked that.

That was what I liked doing,
making those things.

MAN: So, please have a seat.
JOHN SHIPTON: Ah.

Thank you. Alright.

Just have to put this
a little bit closer.

- Oh.
- That's OK for you?

Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

Well, I last saw Julian
at three years of age,

and then we re-met
when he was in his 20s,

so, as a child, I can
only go by what his mum says.

I think his nickname
was 'Wizard'

and...and shortened to 'Wizzy',

because he was precocious
and inventive and... Yeah.

- Is that correct?
- Yeah. (LAUGHS) Yes. Yeah.

He...called in one day,

and we made tea
and avocado toast,

and we talked about secrecy,
its benefits and its failures.

And he said that the...

..quality of a society

is founded upon the information
that it can get access to

in order to build something
that is more sturdy

and has deeper knowledge
of itself

and consequently can move
to a higher plane of existence.

They are...
that is his but paraphrased,

because the conversations
extended over days, you know?

MAN: Ready to go live
on the fly

here on 99.5 FM
in New York City.

Today, I'm talking with
Dr Niraj Lal,

about Julian Assange.

So, when did you first meet
Julian Assange, Dr Niraj?

First met Julian in 2002,

in my first physics lecture
at the University of Melbourne.

And the question of
whether Australia
would go to war in Iraq

was a topic of discussion.

Julian was very much
a passionate advocate

for fairness, for justice.

And millions of citizens
were marching,

to see if we could
stop this war taking place,

that I think people of the time

knew that it wasn't actually
about the safety of
the Iraqi citizens themselves

or the safety of other nations
around the world.

And we saw this, and we
marched and we protested.

And nothing happened.

It didn't lead to anything.
We still went to war.

And Julian asked the question,
"Well..."

"if marching civilians
can't do it,

"if letters to our politicians
don't do it, if..."

"well, what WILL change?

"What WILL enable us to prevent
going to an illegal war?"

and Julian's idea,
with WikiLeaks

was that the goal is justice
and the method is transparency,

to show the public
what's really going on.

This movement is not about
the destruction of law.

It is about
the construction of law!

MAN: In July 2010,
WikiLeaks and its collaborators

went public
with a massive leak.

The Afghan War logs
came from a trove

of 90,000 incident
and intelligence reports.

MAN: WikiLeaks
released this video.

It shows a US Apache
helicopter crew in Iraq

opening fire on a group of men.

Some of them
were journalists from Reuters.

- (GUNFIRE)
- MAN 2: Come on. Fire.

Keep shooting.

We have clear evidence for war
crimes having been committed.

WOMAN: ..has changed
dramatically since April,

when he was dragged by police

from the Ecuadorian Embassy
in London.

MAN: A thin and
confused-looking Julian Assange

has been seen
for the first time

since his April arrest,

the WikiLeaks founder

struggling to remember
his birthday

as he was told his extradition
hearing WILL go ahead.

WOMAN: Fronting
Westminster Magistrates' Court

in a navy suit
and clean-shaven,

the WikiLeaks founder
was noticeably thinner,

struggling
to remember his birthdate,

saying,
"I can't think properly."

Assange will remain behind bars
until that full
extradition hearing,

which has been set down
for the end of February.

ANNOUNCEMENT: We will shortly
be arriving at Farringdon.

STELLA MORIS: I met Julian

because I had responded to

an email from Jennifer
Robinson.

The legal defence team
needed more people.

The case was developing
very quickly,

and I was brought on to
work on the US investigation.

In the beginning
of Julian being in prison,

he could only call
a few times a week,

when he was in...

..the unit for
desperately suicidal

or terminally ill people,

and most of the time,
they're in isolation.

So that's where Julian was
for about six months.

I mean, Julian's had a...

..a very...

..difficult time in the prison.

(CHILD CHATTERS)

JOHN SHIPTON:
Yes, but that's not very nice.

You have the nice one,
the big one...

(CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY)

(CHILD SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

WOMAN: Stella...

(WOMAN SPEAKS SWEDISH)

- Did you rest well?
- I did.

- Oh.
- Yourself?

Yes, I did. I feel...
I feel human.

- (INDISTINCT)
- (CHUCKLES)

- Dad?
- Yeah?

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

I took off my shoes already.

JOHN SHIPTON: Severine,
she asked when...when...

are we gonna
get Julian out of jail, yeah.

Severine thinks
it's an immediacy.

We're just coming to
pick him up, you know?

Get in the cab and...

She doesn't really see that
we might end up in America

fighting this battle.

JOHN SHIPTON: You know,
I find myself very different,

in that I have cultivated
within myself a love of family,

because when I left school,

or my father died,
after he died,

I got all
the family photographs -

oh, there was a fucking heap,
I tell you -

and I burnt them.

I wasn't going back there,
not for quids.

MAN: What...you know...?

What was going on
when you did that?

Oh, who knows? You know?
Humans are complex.

Um... And...so I built...

..copying from
books and plays and...

..mentors...

..the elements of families
in myself.

Yeah, so I built it.

It's a hou...
my mansion, you know?

And it has all these rooms,
which I've...

..decorated
and put furniture in,

and I move into them.

No, that was me.

It's still
bottoming out somewhere.

I want to stay with you.

- Darling, we have to go.
- (SOBS)

- We have to go. OK?
- (SOBS) I want to be with you.

Huh? Becau... You can't...

Because we can't
get in the jail.

We're going to places
no children...

It's just an awful place
I'm going to today.

OK.

For whom?

For the lawyers?

When you say 'us',
I don't understand.

Oh.

OK.

STELLA MORIS: Julian's
always talked about

how he...when he was...
when he was a child,

growing up, he always...

..knew he was different.

And he says...

..that he wasn't...

..he wasn't afraid
of an alien abduction.

He was hoping that
it would happen soon

because he felt like an alien.

This must be the explanation,
right? (LAUGHS)

So it was very funny
to...to know

that Julian and...and John
had only reconnected

when Julian was already a...

..you know, a mature adult.

Because they are very similar
in some ways.

I mean, I think it's very...
(LAUGHS)

..in ways that are noticeable,

even to people
who don't know them personally.

Their thought processes
are recognisable -

ability to abstract...

..storytelling.

And kind of
a cheeky sense of humour.

And he's been really...

..really good.

(LAUGHTER AND CHEERING)

JOHN SHIPTON: I get upset
in that fuckin' place.

Three suicides
and one murder this month.

MAN: And when did you first
know about Julian and Stella?

Generally speaking...

(SIGHS)

..unlike other people...

..I don't invade
people's privacy,

nor I am...

..curious as to what...
who's going out with whom.

Um...

..so...

..if I saw anything that
intimated...

..intimacy...

..I...

..ignored it

or put it under the list
of familiarity.

They've spent 10 years

being pursued

by four powers,

one of them being
the foremost power on earth.

In an extraordinary twist
to the WikiLeaks story,

Julian Assange, the founder
of the whistle-blower website,

has taken refuge in
the Ecuador Embassy in London.

WOMAN: Assange
is seeking asylum

because he fears
extradition to Sweden

may lead to his transfer
to the United States,

where he could potentially face
charges relating to WikiLeaks.

STELLA MORIS:
It was around 2015

that we got together
in the embassy,

and we discussed

the impossibility of having
children for a long time.

And we experienced
this both as...

..as a massive tragedy, because
we had found each other.

And in 2016...

It seemed like
2016 was a turning point,

because the UN Working Group
on Arbitrary Detention

had just ruled in favour of
Julian and against the UK,

saying that they were holding
him without any legal basis

and that they were actually
violating international law

by keeping him in the embassy,
and...and...

..and it just seemed like...

..clearly,
it was just a matter of time

before Julian could walk free.

So when we decided to
start a family,

it was in a context
where there were no charges,

there was no investigation,

there was no reason for Julian
to be stuck in that embassy.

So we had Gabriel in mid-2017,

and then I would bring him
into the embassy

with my friend Stephen,

and...and that way, Julian
was able to see our baby.

And that continued
for about six months.

(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)

(WHOOSHING)

STELLA MORIS:
You know, the whole place

was basically
bugged by the CIA.

Beginning of 2018,

there was a grab team
posted outside the embassy

during the Christmas period.

You know, the streets
were deserted outside,

and there this was car
that was there, conspicuous,

for...for us to see.

And I remember John was there,
and we had...

..we had
Christmas dinner and...

..and we...you know,
we knew these...

..these guys were
sitting out there.

We found out that
there were plans to kill Julian

by poisoning him and...

..abducting him
from the embassy.

Um...

They grew...

..increasingly aggressive.

It got so bad that I had...

..I was afraid
about walking home at night.

Because I thought, you know...

..I could just be beaten up
and assaulted or even killed

just as a message to Julian.

And that's why towards the...

..the final three months
of my second pregnancy,

we decided it was best
for me not to go in.

And then Julian was arrested.

(CHILD CHATTERS)

STELLA MORIS: No?

Oh, wow. We have a lot of
stories to get through tonight.

- (SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
- I will help you, Mama.

Thank you.

Alright. Shall we start
with The Gingerbread Man?

Yeah.

Alright.

"Once upon a time,
there was a little old man.

"One day, the little old woman
made a gingerbread man."

Maybe Fergus Finds A Friend?

The Saggy Baggy Elephant?

That's quite good.

And the Going on a Lion Hunt?
Did you say you knew that one?

Mmm.

It's the...the bear hunt one.
They know the bear hunt one.

- "We're going on a bear hunt."
- Oh, yeah.

"We're gonna find...a big one."

Can we come in?

Ah.

She cannot talk
'cause we've got to keep still.

STELLA MORIS: Extraditions
are 99% politics and 1% law.

It's entirely the...

..political climate
around the case

that decides the outcome,

and that is shaped by the...
by the media.

And for many years, there was
a climate that was created,

deliberately created,
through false stories,

through smears,
through kind of a character...

..relentless character attacks
on Julian,

to try to reduce that support

and make it more possible,
um...

..more likely,
to successfully extradite him

to the United States.

And...I think it took
about a year

to really feel like
I was in a place

where I could go
public.

Oh, where are those notes?
Can I just have a look?

- (MAN SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
- Yeah.

Thank you very much
for talking to us.

I want to ask you first of all

how you first met Julian
Assange

and what you thought of him

when you first met him
nine years ago.

I met Julian in Paddington,
at the Frontline Club.

I thought he was intriguing,
a man with a...with a mission.

INTERVIEWER:
Julian Assange went into the
Ecuadorian Embassy in London

because he wanted to avoid
being extradited to Sweden

to face questioning about
allegations of sexual assault.

You know that case very well.

What did you think
of the allegations made

by Miss A and Miss W
against him?

What has to be understood

about the Swedish
preliminary investigation -

because it was always
a preliminary investigation -

was that Julian
always cooperated.

He did not go into the embassy

because he was
avoiding questioning.

In fact,
he was offering questioning.

Julian was never charged.

None of their names
should have been leaked,

including
Julian's.

I think
the Swedish prosecution...

It's too long.

I told him it's too long,

but they don't take
any notice of me.

One hour, maximum.

These stupid PR people.
Just sick of them.

Earlier this year, you said,
"Everyone has failed Julian.

"We've all failed Julian."

What did you mean?

I mean that Julian...

..is...extremely vulnerable.

Now physically in the country's
highest-security prison,

he's in there
because he exposed torture.

The contrast...

..just the... Sorry.

..the injustice
is overwhelming.

And it's hard, year after year.

I don't think
this is people's values.

I don't think they think that
people who expose war crimes

should go to prison
for the rest of their lives.

(SNIFFS)

WOMAN: Uh, perhaps...

(SNIFFS)

Do you want some...
tissue, yeah?

(JOHN SHIPTON
SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

- Use this one.
- (SNIFFS) Thanks.

- Pear.
- You're eating pear.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

(INAUDIBLE)

INTERVIEWER: How do you
deal with the fact that...

..your fiance may lose
his fight against extradition,

he may be sent to America,

he may be tried,
he may be jailed?

How do you cope with that?

(SNIFFS, SIGHS) It's not a...
It's not a choice.

Um...
You love who you love, and...

..I love Julian for the
courageous person he is,

and I'll stand by him.

Open the door.

NILS MELZER: When Julian's
legal team contacted me,

I have to admit, I mean, I...
I just saw the message

kind of coming up on my screen,

"Julian Assange's legal team
asks for your protection."

And I immediately
had this reaction of,

"No, I'm not gonna
get into this."

But this reaction was not based
on an objective evaluation,

and I have to admit today,
to my shame,

it was just an emotional
reaction based on prejudice

that I had in myself
I wasn't even aware of.

Why am I admitting to
my prejudice?

Because I think...

..all of us had them
at some point, maybe...

..all of us who had not
been in personal contact

with Julian Assange

have been affected by this,

because this is
the public narrative

that has been spread
in the media for 10 years,

and no-one has been able to...

..actually see
how much deception there is.

Why is this being done?

For 10 years, all of us have
only focused on Julian Assange,

when he never wanted it
to be about him.

It never WAS about him.

It was about the States

and their war crimes
and their corruption.

That's what HE wanted
to put the spotlight on.

And he did.

And that's what
made them angry.

They put the spotlight on him.

JOHN SHIPTON: You know,
over the last 10 years,

journalists,
for some reason or other,

have seen fit to service...

..the government's
attacks on Julian

at the collapse
of their own self-interest

and their stature.

After so many years
of smearing and lobbying,

this is...a good sign,

that the newspapers...

..realise that the extradition
of Julian Assange

and the destruction
of WikiLeaks

is the collapse of THEIR power.

The mass media serves
only power and money, really.

Each...outlet serves

a different cohort of the
society.

That's their function.

And if they drift from that,
then they will no longer exist.

WOMAN: In 1971, Ellsberg was
a high-level Pentagon analyst

when he leaked
a top-secret report

on US involvement in Vietnam

that became known
as the Pentagon Papers,

which documented how officials
had lied to the public
about the war.

If Julian is extradited
to the United States

to face these charges,

he will be the FIRST journalist
and publisher,

but not the last.

New York Times probably
won't be the second either.

It might be
the third or the fourth.

Really, the American press
has remained

in kind of a state of denial
for 40 years, really,

since my case,

that the Espionage Act
has wording in it

that could be aimed
directly at them,

at the journalists
and publishers,

although until THIS case,
it hasn't done so.

So the stakes here
are enormous,

and for freedom of the press
all over the world, in this.

- PROTESTERS: Free Assange!
- MAN: Free! Free!

- Free Assange!
- Free! Free!

Free Assange!

- Free! Free!
- Free Assange!

WOMAN: Julian Assange
is preparing to head to court,

where a hearing will begin into
whether he'll be extradited

to the United States.

Protesters have marched
across Central London,

calling on Britain to reject

the WikiLeaks founder's
deportation.

JOHN SHIPTON: Thanks for
waiting, ladies and gentlemen.

What's at stake?

For Julian, his life.

For you guys...

..any prestige that you
can gather, as a journalist,

protects you.

So this'll be the end.

Nobody, ever again,

will be able to
get the assistance

of 100,000 people worldwide
to defend them,

100 lawyers,

six jurisdictions,

in order to defend
Julian Assange.

It'll never happen again.

If he goes down,
so will journalism.

- (APPLAUSE)
- Thank you. Thank you.

- Thank you very much.
- Thank you.

- Can we get one?
- Yeah. Yeah. Oh, yeah. OK.

Everybody...we're here...

We're here until
everybody's satisfied.

Yeah. Perfect.

WOMAN: How does it feel
to be the father

of such a controversial figure,

somebody who's known
around the world?

Well, I don't see Julian,
myself, as controversial.

I see him as a...a good man.

I support Julian Assange
because he's my son

and this is what a father does

when their children are
in difficulty or in trouble.

We are...

..very trusting
of our governments,

because we believe
we elect them.

And I'm sure that
governments all over the world

will begin to realise

that they're faced with
a tremendous credibility gap.

Just want to shake your hand.
Thank you for Julian, honestly.

Thank you. Thank you.

You've done a really good job.

- So proud.
- Thank you.

- Could I just do a quick...?
- I can't do 15 minutes.

- No, you can't. I know. OK.
- We'll just be...I'll be five.

I'll be dead.

- My name's Fionn O Lochlainn.
- Fionn. Fionn.

- Fionn O Lochlainn.
- OK.

My first album is
called Spawn Of The Beast.

I should have been
on that stage today,

but for some reason,
your organisation
won't get in touch with me.

It's not MY organisation.

- I'm not even in it!
- Of course.

- WOMAN: ..seconds.
- WOMAN 2: Sorry. I'm so sorry.

Just please let him know
when you see him tomorrow

there are many people
from Australia,

me being one of them, that
are deeply thinking of him.

JOHN SHIPTON: Go?

My name is John Shipton.
I'm Julian Assange's father.

I've come to the rally here
today in Parliament Square.

Yeah, let's sit down. I mean,
I'm fuckin' worn out, you know?

MAN: Britain enters lockdown.

Now people can only leave their
homes for very limited reasons.

From this evening,
I must give the British people

a very simple instruction.

You must stay at home.

That is the critical thing
we must do

to stop the disease
spreading between households.

WOMAN:
The Australian Parliament

have called on
British officials and the judge

to release Julian Assange

due to the rapid spread
of coronavirus

among the prison population

and the workers
at Belmarsh Prison,

where Assange is being held

23 and a half hours a day
in a solitary confinement cell.

Yeah. OK. Yeah. OK.
Yeah, alright.

I just...you know,

I've got the young family
back in Australia

I haven't seen now for months.

So that's a bit awkward.

And Julian's now
23 hours a day in the cell,

because it's locked down

and half the staff are off

because they're
all sick with COVID

or too frightened
to come to work.

The jail's in lockdown.

I don't know how
they're getting papers

backward and forward.

They say that they have
only had one hour with Julian

in five weeks.

"According to prosecutors..."
Yeah.

This is why
we need you on bail.

We need... Yeah.

I mean, I...I can't see
how we can possibly...

..prepare a defence on these
fucking phones that are...

Anyway.

"According to prosecutors,
Assange obtained evidence...

"..access to..." Sorry.

You have to call me back.

Call me back.

JOHN SHIPTON: Did you hear
the story I sent you?

SEVERINE: No.

JOHN SHIPTON: It's about
the Snoceros and Rapunzel.

(SNIFFS)

And Jill and Princess Mouse.

SEVERINE: Do you want to
talk to me all day or...

..would you...
or have a little rest?

I want to talk to you forever.

SEVERINE: No! I can't talk
forever. I need to eat food.

(LAUGHS) OK. Alright.

I'll talk to you
tomorrow, then.

How do we communicate this
to Julian?

Because...

..we're 10 days away
from the evidence deadline.

We can't give him documents.
We can't go to see him.

Basically,
what we'll have to do

is we'll have to read out

this 49-page document over the
phone.

He can't even
take notes on a laptop,

because he
doesn't have a laptop.

JOHN SHIPTON: Hi.

Yeah.

Anyway, that's where
I work to fit in,

as I'm an old man,
and I...you know.

- Um...
- JULIAN ASSANGE: Yeah.

(STAMMERS)

OK. OK.

Your question to my answers
always gets a raised eyebrow.

- JULIAN ASSANGE: Yes.
- (LAUGHS)

JULIAN ASSANGE: Yeah. Yeah.

MAN: Was that him
on the phone before?

- Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
- MAN: Yeah.

MAN: What are you talking about
on a kind of regular basis?

What sort of things?

JOHN SHIPTON: Mmm.

I think it must be nearly
11 years since Julian...

..was in the company
of a tree or a plant...

..or a caterpillar
or a butterfly, and...

..so he asked me, you know,

did we have a walk
in the forest?

(LAUGHS)

And, yeah,
it was pleasant enough.

It's a sunny day out here.

Bonding, I suppose, you know,

when walking with his family
and so on, yeah.

I think if you applied
you know, your understanding

to what it would be like

to live in a room
for seven and a half years...

You'd just know
every nook and cranny and...

Ugh.

Everything would be familiar
with. And it's still ongoing.

So, yeah, the challenge is to
make him laugh, you know,

when he...

..rings up,
which I do, you know?

WOMAN: A happy family
relaxing in a London park,

but there's a hole
at the heart of it.

Stella Moris was
part of Assange's legal team

before she got engaged to him.

Today, Stella will be
at the Old Bailey

for the start of up to
four weeks of legal arguments

over whether her fiance should
be extradited to America.

Julian hasn't seen his lawyers
for six months.

The first day that
he'll have seen his lawyers

will be today.

(SPEAKS SWEDISH)

- (CHILD CRIES)
- Bye, sweetie.

(SPEAKS SWEDISH)

Julian Assange
is in our headlines.

He's in a London courtroom
this morning

finally facing
an extradition hearing.

The court is
to decide if Assange

should be extradited
to the United States

to face a trial over
the publication of secrets.

MAN: The Trump administration
wants the Australian

to face charges of espionage.

Legal observers say
it's an unprecedented breach of

US free speech protections.

The US Department of Justice
is going after him

under a different law now -
the Espionage Act.

That law has been used
against whistle-blowers before,

but never against a publisher.

WOMAN: We've never
in this country

successfully charged somebody
for publishing secret material.

There is a reason - it's
called the First Amendment -

that the US government

has never successfully
made that a crime before.

But here, with Assange,
they are trying to do it.

If Assange's publishing
of classified information

runs afoul of the law,

so does the work of just about

every single
serious press outlet -

this one included.

The First Amendment protects
the basic right

of a free press -
and a free people -

to publish truthful information
about matters of public import,

whether the government
likes it or not.

- (SHOUTING)
- (WHISTLING)

JOHN SHIPTON: All good?

- Morning, John.
- Good morning.

Good morning. Good to see you.

Good morning, Stella.

Please move, please!

Please. Move round these
people.

Let the ladies through, please.

- MAN: Free Julian Assange!
- (HORNS HONK)

WOMAN: When did you last
speak to him

and see him face-to-face?

Six months ago,
when COVID locked down.

They're not allowed
to see anybody.

Have you seen him today?

- Only in the glass box.
- Oh, OK.

- Yeah.
- Yeah. And how is he?

Uh...is he...

I can't answer that.
How do I know?

I was sitting upstairs. He's
in the glass box downstairs.

I would love to go and see him,
but it's not allowed.

I'll bring you a coffee here.

I'm going to go
and have a coffee.

Yeah. I...I met you
and I know you.

I have to go. I have to go.
I have to look after...

Can I ask one question
for the news?

No. No. No!
I just did 10 questions.

- You have to come to this...
- Thank you so much for this.

Thank you.

- Free Julian Assange!
- I'm done. I'm done. I'm done.

- Just...just...just one thing.
- I'm done.

(PROTESTERS SHOUT)

(MURMURS) Oh, dear.

Yeah. Oh, yes.

(LAUGHS) Well, you know...

Thank you.

Oh, you...you...
Yeah?

..if you were fighting
for YOUR kids, you would.

Yeah. I...I hope so.

(BLOWS RASPBERRY)

Bit scared.

MAN: Scared?

Running out of juice.

MAN: But Julian Assange,
right now, today,

is in court in the UK,

fighting an extradition trial
to the United States.

Now, he really
fell out of favour in 2016

because he published
the Hillary emails

and everything like that,
or Podesta emails.

But he's not
being charged for that.

The extradition trial
has nothing to do with that.

Actually, the US government
is trying to extradite this guy

and put him in prison
for the rest of his life

for the BEST work
that WikiLeaks ever did,

which is the Iraq and
Afghanistan War logs, right?

Detainee records
in Guantanamo Bay -

things that are about explicit
war crimes and abuses of power.

JOE ROGAN: There's many things
that are disturbing
about this case,

but another thing
that's been disturbing was,

he was a guy
who the left supported

up until 2016, and then
it became inconvenient.

EDWARD SNOWDEN: When he was
dragging Bush, it was great.

- Then when he's dragging...
- JOE ROGAN: Yes!

..Clinton, it's not so great.

JOE ROGAN: He was
the darling of the left.

I mean, they were all,
"Free Julian Assange."

And it's so interesting

how that narrative
can shift so completely,

to, all of a sudden,
he's a puppet of Russia.

It's amazing how that
kind of propaganda,

when you just get
at the surface veneer

of whatever the narrative
they're trying to push,

how well it spreads.

JOHN SHIPTON: Snowden
was across the material
really well.

Yeah.

- MAN: One second, John.
- JOHN SHIPTON: Yeah.

What happened today, John?

It was a very strong day
for the defence.

There's nobody,
in the last 10 years,

been harmed
when the files were released,

and all of the cables,
15,000 cables, were redacted,

so overall, the intensity
of the week is demonstrating

the thoroughness of redactions

and the care for people and
treasuring and cherishing life.

- We've covered...
- OK.

..the case for
a long, long time. So...

- OK. OK.
- ..an update from you...

- Here's John.
- Hi. How are you?

- Hi.
- Nice to meet you.

- Keir?
- Keir. Yeah.

- Keir? Oh.
- Yeah.

Your son is somebody that
everybody thinks they know

and has an opinion about.

But he's YOUR son.

- JOHN SHIPTON: Yep.
- Must be...

Generally...generally,
I don't...

Yeah, I keep away
from commentary about Julian.

Do you think that
he has been naive at times?

Naive?

Expecting states to obey
their own laws is hardly naive.

Are you proud of...
of...of what he did there?

I'm proud of his endurance
and courage, intelligence.

Do you think that
Julian is a journalist?

Well, of course.

He now has, I think,
it's 26 journalism awards.

And what are your worst fears?

That he...

..that he just collapses
under the strain, I mean, yeah.

- Yeah. Good. Good? Yeah.
- WOMAN: Mm-hm.

- Great.
- WOMAN: Yep.

We'll need a walk-in shot,
if that's OK.

- Do you need a shot of them...
- There's a...

..standing by,
one listening to the other?

JOHN SHIPTON: Listen, why don't
you people wind this up?

You must do...you...

Oh, yeah, OK. Sorry.
Just wondering.

- Worried about your crew?
- Yeah.

Like, he's looking
at the computer.

He should be over here
winding you up

and saying,
"You've had enough."

MAN: Did you feel that
interview was too soft?

- No.
- No?

No, it was fine.

Just too long.

MAN: Will you watch things like
that back or you're not...?

Or you just wait?

Like, how do you monitor
the interviews that you do?

Or do you at all?
Can you keep up with them now?

Oh, I've never
watched one, ever.

MAN: No?

Sometimes I listen
to Seven Stories,

to remember what
the characters are doing,

but I...I've never
watched an interview.

MAN: And why is the reason
for that, for you?

Mmm... I don't like them.
(LAUGHS)

MAN: I guess
what I was getting at is

how hard are you on yourself?

'Cause such a big part
of what you're doing

is to be clearly understood.

Well, my...

..Great-Uncle Vivian,

he died youngish, you know,

at 35 or 38,
something like that.

On his gravestone is the...

..his name and the date he died

and the inscription
"Not understood."

Yeah.

I don't much like
talking about myself,

because it's always sectional,

and a life is really
a rich thing, you know?

But I find myself...

..distinct...

..and...

..consequently, not understood.

You know, the more
distinct you are,

you just become more lonely,

until...

..you are faced with
the abomination of desolation

and existential panic

as you become
more and more distinct,

and so you become silent,
you know?

And this is your burden,
the essence of your being.

Situations like this,
you know, um...

..it's sort of
an interior conflict for me.

MAN: But if people walked away
from this film

understanding you...

..well, got the sense
of understanding you

a little bit...

..more deeply...

..how would you feel
about that?

Oh...

Well, I'd be very grateful
and moved, you know?

That'd be nice.
It'd be more than nice.

But...

We're here,
and this has only come about

because we have a problem,
you know?

We have a child in the shit.

- MAN: Mmm.
- And...

..I want to get him out.

The energies aren't with me.

It's not 'John Shipton',
you know?

The energies are with US
and the...

..you know, "Cometh the hour,
cometh the man."

The Greeks always say,
"Of gods, there are many.

"Of men, there are few."

MAN: Mmm.

(INDISTINCTLY CONVERSATION)

I bought them because
Ai Weiwei was here today.

- And he's a man of peace.
- Yeah, yeah.

JOHN SHIPTON: Now...come on.

You're always cranky.
You have to have a flower.

- Cranky? Me?
- (LAUGHS)

Good morning. Good morning.

How are you?

It's good to see you.
You look well.

- Huh?
- (MORE LOUDLY) You look well.

- You look well.
- I...yeah.

Yeah. We...we go in together.

Yes. Yeah.

OK.

Yes.

Yes.

No. No. Yeah. Yeah.
In the fight. Yeah. Yep.

Yep.

WOMAN: Why do you think

there's not a great public love
of Mr Assange?

MAN: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

- (SIREN WAILS)
- (SHOUTING)

Oh, God. Here we go.

I don't like to start
too early,

but what can you do?

(INDISTINCT SHOUTING)

Well, the big ones were
the dispute over sentencing.

Then they went on
to the sort of jail

that Julian would be held in

and the conditions in the jail.

One of the wardens
did go as much to say

that time in his jail
is worse than death.

MAN: Thank you very much, John.

JOHN SHIPTON: Thank you.

MAN: Supermax is
life after death.

It adds punishment
to the crime.

Today, there's 420 inmates
in the prison.

They've killed staff.
They've killed guards.

They've earned, if you will,
the right to go to supermax.

You're designing it
so the inmates can't
see the sky, intentionally.

And it's far...
much worse than death.

So today, the... (SIGHS)
..three days of medical...

..evidence begins.

It will start with...

..the US will
try to argue that...

..yes, that he has, um...

..mental health problems

but that these can be managed
in the US setting.

Um...

So it kind of dovetails with

the US prison conditions
as well.

When I was speaking
to Julian yesterday,

he said,
"They're burgling my mind,

"and they're doing it
in a judicial setting."

MAN: And, John,

did this psychological
cross-examination
of Julian's...

..state at the moment,
was this something that...

..that you had a similar...

..feeling towards?

Oh, in some senses,
I don't think it matters much.

There's so...

There's, uh...

..so many...

..opinions about Julian.

It just joins them, you know...

..in the layer of opinions,

that Julian's
this, that or the other.

MAN: Mmm.

It matters
in the legal context.

But in a...
in a spiritual sense, it is...

..depraved...

..tearing the liver,
over and over again, from...

..the person, the...

..that brought...brought
the gift of fire to...people.

Do you know that legend?
Prometheus.

It's extraordinary.

Very hard to explain to people.

- (SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
- Yes.

- MAN: Let's go?
- Yep.

- MAN: Yep?
- Oh, gee. It was torrid today.

Oh.

Are you OK from that?

Yep.

MAN 2: Can we talk about
his health at the moment

and his autism diagnosis?

JOHN SHIPTON:
I'm not interested in that.

He is as he is, to me.

- MAN: Yeah.
- Yeah.

MAN: Can you explain
how that...

- I have no interest in it.
- ..manifests itself?

I have no interest in it.
He is as he is.

MAN: What do you understand
of autism? What do you...?

JOHN SHIPTON:
Oh, I've no idea what it is.

You know, I don't relate
really well to people myself.

In fact...

..generally speaking, I...

..I had no idea what people
were like until quite late...

..in life.

But I just was always throwing
myself up against ideas that...

Well, people said
I was angry, you know,

but I'm mild-natured,
so I can't have been too angry.

MAN: When's your earliest
memory of that occurring?

JOHN SHIPTON: I suppose the
earliest memory was 11 and 12,

writing the works of Voltaire
on the blackboard

while everybody was...

..in chapel,

because I knew their beliefs
are otherwise.

You know, I...

..I think...from the age of...

..15 onwards

suffered from
varying depths of depression

until about 28 or 29.

Um...

So I was pretty quiet,
you know?

MAN: Mmm. Mmm.

JOHN SHIPTON:
I was a hermit for a while.
That's not much fun.

But I found myself
riddled with fractures

and objections and...

..guilts and shames and...

..all of those devilish things.

MAN: What brought you
out of that period, then?

JOHN SHIPTON:
Well, I don't know.

You know, just...
you just learn techniques

of how to relate to people,
yeah.

Also, my curiosity, you know,
was boundless,

so I gradually discovered ways
to be with people

without collapsing into
nervous distress, um...

You might say one was Aspergic

and, through suffering,
learnt technique.

- MAN: Mmm.
- You know? So...

..I had a burning desire,
still have it,

to be able to...

..to give love.

I just wanted to do that.
I wanted to love people.

But people are funny creatures.

Um...

And in order to love them,

you have to find
what they want,

how they want love
to come to them.

And so learning that
was a bit of a craft.

MAN: But did you feel that
came easier to others than you?

Or is that something
you sense...?

Oh, no, no. I don't...
People don't do it.

You know,
they only do it out of...

They do it as
a transactional exchange,

that they WANT love,

so they give it
in order to get it.

I just wanted to be able to...
to love.

- MAN: Mmm.
- Um...

Mmm.

MAN: Have you just
stepped into the film now?

- Me?
- MAN: Yeah.

Yeah. That's... (LAUGHS)

MAN: This is our routine
in the morning.

Oh, right.

- (SHOUTING)
- (DRUMS BEAT)

Good morning. Good morning.
Good morning. Good morning.

- Are you well today?
- Good morning.

Yes, yes. Good morning.
Well, thank you.

This is Gabriel,
Julian's brother.

Hi. How are you?

This is Gabriel.
This is Julian's brother.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

This is Gabriel,
Julian's brother.

MAN: Julian Assange has been
suffering terrible deprivation,

and all because
he published the truth.

And much of that truth
revealed terrible crimes -

war crimes
and crimes against humanity,

and lies and corruption
by government.

And not one of the people
who committed those war crimes

is on trial anywhere.

Instead, we have the man

who had the courage
to reveal those war crimes

is the one
whose liberty is at stake,

and that is not right.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

I mean, I think
this is an important...

..process overall
that you're going from...

..that the criminality
is not Julian.

Julian is, like, the...

..he's the victim, right,

and there's all this
criminality surrounding him,

and he's the one exposing
the criminality and so on.

Um...

So you have to shift the...

..perception of...
of where the crime is.

MAN: (ON TV) ..concerned
about how he will handle

the end of his presidency.

President Trump's
brazen and delusional push

to overturn the 2020 election

is alarming
some senior officials

and people
close to the President,

who say they're concerned about

how he's handling
his final weeks...

STELLA MORIS:
My parents were engaged in

the apartheid struggle
in South Africa.

We were living in Botswana,

and, as a child, growing up,

we would be going to
the rallies and singing the...

..the freedom,
the liberation, songs

and have these stories about

the heroes
and the martyrs, I guess,

the ones who...who
didn't survive.

And that kind of shaped
a lot of my early years,

my early political education.

You know, there was a very
clear sense of right and wrong

and of...clear oppression,

of things that were
being done to good people.

So I studied politics and law,

and it was definitely
because I was drawn to...

..issues to do with
justice and power, I guess.

Should I go for the rest?

Wait, wait.

Hold on.

OK.

So this one in Belmarsh a few
minutes ago, outside Belmarsh.

- (CHOIR SINGS)
- It's a gospel choir.

And they're standing outside,
like, the main entrance,

where you're
not supposed to film.

- That's Daddy.
- JULIAN ASSANGE: Yep.

- I think they sang two songs.
- That was Daddy.

- Daddy.
- It's Daddy, isn't it?

(CHOIR SINGS)

- My daddy.
- It's Daddy.

# Something inside so strong

# I know that I can make it

# Though you're doing me wrong,
so wrong

# You thought that
my pride was gone

# Oh, no

# Something inside
so strong... #

STELLA MORIS:
Well, they're all in...

..you know...

..winter jackets and...

(CHUCKLES)

There was a lot of singing
in South Africa as well.

This too much?

Mama! Look!

It's time to get ready for bed.

- But, look...
- Toys in the box.

GABRIEL: It was so good,
the music.

- JULIAN ASSANGE: Mm-hm.
- STELLA MORIS: Music?

JULIAN ASSANGE:
It was good, that music.

STELLA MORIS:
Do you want to show Daddy

how you can sing
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star?

GABRIEL: # Twinkle,
twinkle, twinkle... #

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

JULIAN ASSANGE:
Keep going. Keep going.

# Twinkle, twinkle,
little star... #

- (GABRIEL BABBLES)
- # How I wonder what you are.

GABRIEL: # Twinkle,
twinkle, twinkle... #

(BELLS PEAL)

Hi.

JULIAN ASSANGE: How are you?

Alright.

- So...
- Yes?

..there's someone else using...

..Purple Visits next to you?

Oh, OK.

Um...

..how are you?

Are you covering
your neck beard?

A power nap? You see?

I can tell.

(LAUGHS)

Well, I'm in the kids' room.

Well, where I sleep as well.

- See?
- JULIAN ASSANGE: Yeah.

And it's a sunny day outside.
Want to see?

It's the inner yard.

STELLA MORIS: Yeah.

- (HOOVES CLOP)
- Do you want me to go out?

(HOOVES CLOP)

Yeah.

(HORSE WHINNIES)

Yeah. (LAUGHS)

- (BABBLES)
- Come here.

STELLA MORIS:
I think many people

who have had
a family member with a...

..you know, a depressive
disorder or severe depression,

you just don't know
how you can help,

and specially
in this situation,

where you're not even there,

you don't really know
what's going on,

only what they tell you, um...

it can be really, really tough.

Uh, so...

Yeah, I mean, it's...

Without the phone calls,
it would be...

..enormously...

..challenging and difficult.
Uh...

With the phone calls,
it's still challenging
and difficult,

but it's...

..it's really important,

for both of us.

No, it's OK. I have to go.
I have everything.

All the important stuff
is in this...

- (BABBLES CHILDISHLY)
- (YAWNS)

- You OK?
- Yeah.

(SEVERINE BABBLES
IN SING-SONG VOICE)

So...

..how long...when are...

How longer
are you gonna be in...

..in...in London?

It won't be long now.

Just another 60 story times.

(LAUGHS)

JOHN SHIPTON: If I could give,
illustrate, something about us,

in Moby-Dick, they would
spot a whale pod from the mast,

and they'd launch the boats.

Now, if the whales
are disciplined,

they can probably
outrun the rowing boats

that are after them.

But the rowing boats
keep on coming,

keep on coming, keep on coming,

keep on coming,
keep on coming.

And this translates to a...

..a fear...

..in the pod.

And the...

..the fear...

..generates urgency,

and urgency generates panic,

and the panic...

..causes them to break form.

Once they break in form,

they fall victim
to the hunters.

MAN: Mmm.

JOHN SHIPTON: You learn,

through practice after practice
after practice

to keep form.

As long as you keep to form...

MAN: For publishing
hundreds of thousands
of classified documents,

he faces
a maximum jail sentence

of 175 years
under the Espionage Act.

He's already spent 21 months
in a UK prison.

On Monday, a judge
at London's Old Bailey

will decide whether
he can be extradited
to the United States,

but both sides
can appeal a decision
that goes against them,

so either way,

Julian Assange's legal
struggles are set to continue.

JOHN SHIPTON:
More police this time, huh?

It's fascism!
Get that into your heads!

I am giving you a warning.

Are you going
to give my property back?

(SHOUTS) I have been

a loud voice
for Julian Assange!

We could have been there,
but this...

..is a really strong
opportunity

to put Julian's case before...

..people in the United States

that are responsible
for these decisions.

- (SHOUTING)
- Free Julian Assange!

Julian's just
entered the courtroom.

Ah.

- Is that Twitter?
- Yeah.

MAN: Free Julian Assange!

PROTESTERS:
Free Julian Assange!

Free Julian Assange!

Judge enters.
Judge giving her na...his name.

PROTESTERS: Free Julian
Assange! Free Julian Assange!

Judge says that she found

that notwithstanding
his support from family,

Mr Assange has remained
either severely or moderately

clinically depressed
during detention

and that he is at risk
of suicide or self-harm.

He has the intelligence
and determination

to circumvent
suicide protocols.

No extradition.

- No extradition?
- That's what Mary's saying.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Yeah! Free Assange!

- Free Assange!
- (CHEERING)

- (LAUGHS)
- PROTESTERS:
Free Julian Assange!

Free Julian Assange!

Yeah, good work,
all those people.

PROTESTERS: Free!

Free, free, free Assange!
Free, free...

Developing news -
this is coming out of the UK

just in the past few minutes.

A court has denied a request
from the United States...

A very significant
decision made

to refuse this extradition
of Julian Assange.

Well, the judge ruled
against extradition

because she said
she was concerned about
Assange's mental health.

MAN: She said,
and to quote her words,

"I'm satisfied that
the procedures
described by the US will not

"prevent Mr Assange
from finding a way
to commit suicide."

- PROTESTERS: Free Assange now!
- They're coming out now.

Keep to the side.
Keep it to that side.

Let's have some room, guys.
Come on.

Keep moving back, please.

Move back. Keep moving back.
Keep moving back.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

STELLA MORIS:
Please bear with me,

because I've had to
rewrite my speech.

(LAUGHS) Oh, dear. Oh, dear.

I had hoped that today

would be the day that
Julian would come home.

Today is not that day.

But that day will come soon.

WOMAN: Yeah.

We are extremely concerned

that the US government

has decided
to appeal this decision.

It continues
to want to punish Julian.

We will never accept
that journalism is a crime,

in this country or any other.

I ask you all to shout louder,
lobby harder until he is free.

Free Julian.

Free the press.

- Free us all.
- (SHOUTING)

CROWD: Free Julian Assange!

Free, free! Now!

Free Julian Assange! Now!

Free Julian Assange!
Now!

Free Julian Assange! Now!

Free Julian Assange!
Now!

Free Julian Assange! Now!

Free Julian Assange!
Now!

Free Julian Assange! Now!

Free Julian Assange!
Now!

Free Julian Assange! Now!
(CHEERING)

(SHOUTING)

(CHANTING CONTINUES
INDISTINCTLY)

Oh, Dad, do you... How do
you feel, not being there?

Huh?

How do you feel,
not being there?

Oh, OK. OK. I...I...

I like to...to, um...

..build the house
and see other people move in.

It's my nature.

PROTESTERS: Free Assange now!
Free Assange now!

FIDEL NARVAEZ: Every journalist
should be concerned

about what was said
today in court.

Because...

..the political arguments
provided by the United States

were upheld
by the British judicial system.

I repeat, it's only
the doctor's assessment

of the fragile health condition
of Julian Assange

that have saved him
from extradition.

So, what does this case mean
for media freedoms,

and especially
in light of today's judgement?

ANDREW FOWLER:
Well, it looks as though

what journalists do
for a living

is seen by the British courts
to be a criminal act.

In a sense,
the system has succeeded

in intimidating the world

and in passing
the message that,

"This is
what's going to happen to you

"if ever you have the idea of
publishing our dirty secrets."

We're wrong to think

that it's about
who wins the extradition case.

As long as
Julian Assange is silenced,

in solitary confinement,

this proceeding
can last as long as it wants.

The US has won.

I can guarantee you
that already today,

people who might otherwise
leak secret information

are now
very careful about this,

because they can see
with their own eyes
what's going to happen.

And that's...
THAT'S the dangerous thing.

We have to
control our government.

That's what democracy is about.

How can you be
controlling your government

if you don't know the truth?

(VACUUM CLEANER WHIRRS)

Can I show you around?

I guess as long as
there's no...

..no-one in the frame, right?

Your books.

Oh, tent?

Yep.

Your books are here,

and your awards, a few of them.

And a Australia map.

MAN: Now, good morning
to you, Stella,

and it is a very good morning
for you.

You're his fiancee,
but you're also his lawyer.

What was going through
your mind

when that verdict was given?

Um...well, I...I had prepared
myself for the worst, and...

..but once I realised
that Julian has...had won,

I...I wept with relief,

and it was
a very emotional moment.

Um, so I'm...I'm hopeful
that what follows from that

is that he'll be released today
from Belmarsh,

because the conditions
in Belmarsh

are absolutely atrocious.

(INDISTINCT CLAMOURING)

This is a huge disappointment.

Julian should not be
in Belmarsh Prison

in the first place.

I urge the Department of
Justice to drop the charges

and the President of
the United States

to pardon Julian.

OK.

OK.

I'm just so tired.

Yeah.

Oh, God.

Trump supporters have stormed
the US Capitol Building.

MAN: The peaceful
transfer of power,

the cornerstone
of American democracy,

seemed a highly abstract
concept today...

(SHOUTING)

..as Trump supporters
clashed with police

as they tried, and succeeded,
to storm the Congress,

where America's elected leaders

had gathered to certify the
election victory of Joe Biden.

Leading Republicans
have distanced themselves

from the President,

who has not condemned
the rioters,

and now there are growing calls

for President Trump
to be removed from office,

with just 13 days to go
before the end of his term.

Donald Trump
will reportedly issue

around 100 pardons
and commutations

on his final days in office.

Free press advocates
are calling on the President

to pardon WikiLeaks founder
and Australian citizen

Julian Assange.

OK.

Yep.

- Hi.
- JOHN SHIPTON: Hi.

STELLA MORIS: Um, Trump
might get...

..uh, removed before the 20th.

Yeah, I think on balance,
it's a good idea to...

..to...to hire this,
or appoint this, lobbyist.

Oh. Well, uh, um,
if you say so.

But I don't know. I...I can't
see what's in it for Mr Trump.

People say that it'd be great
to get up Hillary's nose

on the way out.

Well, that's not
much of a motivation

for a...a...a president,

you know, to...to, uh...

No, it's not about that.

It's about his base
wanting the pardon.

JOHN SHIPTON: Well...

The...the base that he needs to
be able to go for...

...run for president
in four years' time.

Well, that's not
an argument for him doing it.

That's a description
of the situation.

STELLA MORIS:
Yes. I hadn't finished.

- I hadn't finished.
- Oh, sorry.

- Yes?
- STELLA MORIS: Um...

He says he can put something
in front of Trump,

you know, within 24 hours,
so if that's true...

What's he going to...
I mean, what's he going to say?

STELLA MORIS: And I'm not sure
we have anyone who CAN do that.

JOHN SHIPTON: You don't
need to look desperate.

It's not desperate.

Everyone does it.
Everyone does it.

JOHN SHIPTON: Anyway, uh...

It...it doesn't smell good.

Hi, Julian.

Yep.

Um, he's...he's
a little bit spooked,

because they've threatened him.

They're threatening his family.

Um...

He says he's
been called a traitor,

that he should
lea...leave America,

he's betraying his country...

..um...

..that
the National Security apparatus

is pushing back very strongly,

and while he was optimistic
24 hours ago or so,

there are very powerful forces
that want to...

..stop it from happening.

And then I said,
"Well, my view is that

"the legal case
is just a pretext.

"They're just finding
any way they can

"to keep Julian in prison for
the longest amount of time."

And he said,
"I would go further than that,

"and I'm afraid to say that...
that people want him dead."

MAN: Mr President!

You won this election
fair and square!

STELLA MORIS:
So how are things there?

Mmm.

Mmm.

JULIAN ASSANGE: Yeah.

(SIGHS)

JOE BIDEN: My distinguished
guests, my fellow Americans,

this is America's day.

This is democracy's day.

A day of history and hope,
of renewal and resolve.

What are the common objects
we as Americans love,

that define us as Americans?

I think we know.

Opportunity.

Security.

Liberty.
Dignity, respect, honour.

And, yes, the truth.

(APPLAUSE)

Recent weeks and months

have taught us
a painful lesson.

There is truth
and there are lies.

Lies told for power
and for profit.

And each of us has a duty
AND a responsibility,

as citizens, as Americans,
and especially as leaders,

to defend the truth
and defeat the lies.

JOHN SHIPTON: Truth is,
uh, very vexatious, yeah.

I mean...

You know, you see people
writing all the time

"The truth will set you free."

Well, that's probably correct.

But the truth may be

that human beings
are collective animals

and always will act
in a collective group to a...

And that collective group
will be guarded and guided

by an ideology,

so your uttering an actuality

and your favoured insight
into things as a truth is...

..can be awfully misleading,
you know?

I suppose that's
our only thing, you know,

I really would like
to reveal to you.

I don't mind the truth, yeah.

The truth is, it can on...

things can only get worse
for Julian.

It cannot get better.

That time has gone.
It's all gone away.

He's 49.

It's all gone.

And the same for me.

It's all...it's used up,

'cause...well,
me more so than him,

but his situation
is parlous, parlous,

because it might
take his sanity as well.

That's the destiny.

And that's the hard bit that

you guys won't face
in your filming,

because it's not popular.

Yeah.

MAN: You must believe
things are going to get better.

I know they can't.

I'm 76. What the fuck?

I've got a 5-year-old daughter.

MAN: Mmm.

I'm here and she's there.
How can that get better?

Is there any...

..way that
I can reclaim the year,

and go and spend it
with my daughter,

who'll never have
that year again?

So it can only get worse.

MAN: I don't know.

I don't think you'd be doing it
unless you thought

it WOULD get better,
in some way.

Mmm.

The strongest...

..justification of life
is to say,

"Look, I'd do it all again,
the same."

- MAN: Yeah.
- OK.

Well, that's where I am.

Look! Mama! Big squirrel!

STELLA MORIS: Come here!

- Sweetheart.
- Squirrel.

- Squirrel! He's coming down.
- (PHONE RINGS)

(LAUGHS)

- Mama?
- STELLA MORIS: Yep.

Um, how are you doing?

JOHN SHIPTON: Yeah, OK. OK.

Uh, tomorrow, um...

(PHONE RINGS)

Oh, goodness.

Sorry. Sorry. Sorry, John.

Let me...let me call you back.
It's Julian.

Sorry. Sorry.

Bye. Hi.

OK.

Mmm...

"What Julian stands for
goes to the very heart

"of what it means
to live in a democracy."

I'd like to thank everyone
for being here,

in the city that embodies

the values that
Julian defended.

Um...it's...it's the first time

that I see the statue
in person,

and it's also the first time

I see Julian's likeness...

(EMOTIONALLY)
..in three dimensions...

..since 6 January.

We're in a situation now where

the only two outcomes
that will happen

is either Julian
regains his freedom

or he loses his life.

I am here to remind you

that Julian isn't a name,
he's not a symbol.

He's a man, he's a human being,
and he's suffering.

He has children.
He has a family.

(SNIFFS)

They're hiding him from view.
They're silencing him.

It is an aberration
that Julian is not a free man.

In no sane world
can this be normalised.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

(HOOVES CLOP)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

(CHILD WHINES)

What keeps you calm

is a particular sort of energy,

an energy that comes from...

..return on energy that
you invest...

..in...

..in what you're doing.

You find yourself not...

..procrastinating...

..and...

..just taking...

..what comes towards you
in the stream of life

without opinion and prejudice,

and just doing what you can
with that,

that comes towards you.

Not being frightened...

..is a great help.

(HOOVES CLOP)

Oh. Here's another horse.

(HOOVES CLOP)

A lovely sound, that.

(CLOPPING CONTINUES)

- (CLOPPING FADES)
- (CHUCKLES)