Assange: UK as bad as Egypt under Mubarak

Sunday, 3 July 2011 11:55 AM

By Ian Dunt Follow @IanDunt

Life in London is very similar to that under Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said yesterday.

The comments come as the Australian campaigner appeals a court decision to send him to Sweden under the European Arrest Warrant to answer allegations of sexual assault.

Speaking at an event at the Frontline Club with Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek and investigative journalist Amy Goodman, Mr Assange spoke about his experiences living in Egypt in 2007.

"“The economic basis and the technological basis of Cair, seems pretty much the same as London," he said, according to the club's report.

"If we say that it is democracy that rules and manages the United States, or it is electoral democracy that rules and manages London - then this is completely ridiculous. Because when we look at countries that are dictatorships - or soft dictatorships - the day to day life for most people are exactly the same."

Mr Žižek compared Mr Assange to Mahatma Ghandi, arguing that both had been branded a terrorist in their campaigns.

"As he tried to subvert the British colonial system, Assange is trying to interrupt the normal flow of information. This is a real revolution," he said.

The speakers also commented on the fact that the original location for the evening had cancelled the debate, as the heated controversy over Wikileaks refuses to die down.

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• egypt
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• julian assange
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• wikileaks