'Assange Spent Six Years Without Seeing His Children, Being Home' – Associate

June 19 marks the sixth anniversary of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange’s refuge at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Assange has not stepped outside the embassy since sexual assault allegations against him emerged in Sweden in 2012. Sputnik spoke with Randy Credico, Assange’s long-term associate.

Sputnik: When did you last speak with Julian Assange and how is he marking this date?

Randy Credico: Well the last time we spoke was basically not in person and not by phone but through communications by text message. That’s been like three and a half months, ever since the Ecuador President Lenin Moreno cut off all communications with the outside world. So I would say early March was the last time.

Prior to that, I saw him November 13, 2017 in the embassy, a few times that week, and he was pretty optimistic, he looked very well then and we talked about a range of subjects. We had some expensive food from Harrods that I had brought over, so I don’t know how he is celebrating. 

I mean look, he is in this compound now for six years and I was reading this book recently about some of those who were incarcerated under Alexander II: Peter Kropotkin, who was at the Peter and Paul Fortress. Assange is that character. He is resilient, he is brilliant and he is able to occupy himself the same way a lot of these dissidents did in the 19th century in Saint Petersburg in that Peter and Paul fortress.

But still, six years without sunlight is a long period of time. Six years without seeing his children, not being at home it is pretty onerous situation he is living under.

Sputnik: What does he do for exercise and now that he doesn’t even have internet access, how is he shopping just for food? What’s the arrangement?

Randy Credico: The arrangement is that people bring him; he has got an assistant that brings him, and works with him as a lawyer, who brings in the food. I just had a friend of mine who is a lawyer and he said that he actually looked better than he did the last time when this person saw him. But everybody brings food in.

What he does for exercise is just a lot of sit ups, a lot of pushups. He probably does a lot of reading right now, but for someone that likes to be active, likes to be involved, and likes to publish. He is a journalist and to suppress his ability, to practice his vocation is what’s really psychologically, you may think, is undermining him psychologically, but like I said, he is a very resilient person. 

It’s just that the waiting game, getting up and not knowing if the CIA is going to go in there and grab him or whatever. I mean there are a lot of people outside, there’s surveillance outside.

You have people in paramilitary garb that show up in the neighborhood. If it were me, I would have been insane by now, but like I said, he is one of those very special individuals.

The views and opinions expressed by Randy Credico are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.