'I Pled Guilty To Journalism': Freedom Over 'Unrealizable Justice'

journalism is not a crime. It's a vital pillar of democracy and free societies. It plays a crucial role in holding power to account, exposing injustices, and informing the public.

Unfortunately, many journalists around the world face significant risks, including imprisonment, threats, and even violence, simply for doing their jobs.

Julian Assange, the founder of whistleblower media group WikiLeaks, is one of the most prominent figures.

He spoke out about his ordeal, emphasizing that his work as a journalist should not have led to his prolonged detention.

In front of the European lawmakers, Julian Assange said that he pled guilty to U.S. espionage accusations because the legal and political efforts to protect his freedom simply don't exist, if if not sufficient.

During his first public comments since his release from prison, Assange said that:

A report by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe concluded Assange was a political prisoner and called for the UK to hold an inquiry into whether he had been exposed to inhuman treatment.

Assange is labeled guilty for his whistleblowing activities, before he was embroiled in a nearly decade-long legal battle to avoid extradition after publishing classified military documents.

And here, Assange made the statement to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights at the Council of Europe, the international organization that includes lawmakers from 46 European countries, best known for its human rights convention.

Dressed in a black suit with a burgundy tie and wearing a slight white beard, Assange sat between his wife Stella, and WikiLeaks’ editor Kristinn Hrafnsson, Assange revealed that he had agreed to a plea deal, by emphasizing that the laws meant to protect him “only existed on paper” and were ineffective within any "remotely reasonable time."

Assange also pointed out that his plea agreement with the U.S. government prevents him from filing a case at the European Court of Human Rights or making a "Freedom of Information Act request" about the impact of the extradition request against him.

He expressed hope that his testimony would "highlight the weaknesses of the existing safeguards and help those whose cases are less visible."

Assange also raised concerns about the state of press freedom globally:

Assange's life work is to support and protect journalists to ensure that freedom of expression and the right to information are upheld

But being one of the most-wanted men, means that he needed to sought refuge.

Assange only managed to return to his home country Australia in June after a deal was struck for his release which saw him plead guilty to violating US espionage law, ending a 14-year British legal odyssey.

Now a free man, Assange said that he would need some time to regain his health and sanity after his long incarceration, as well as to be with their two children who he had never seen outside of a prison.

Speaking of his five years in a UK prison, Assange said it was a "relentless struggle to stay alive, physically and mentally."

From years in a maximum security prison to addressing the European parliamentarians has been a “profound and a surreal shift,” Assange said as he detailed the experience of isolation in a small cell.

"It strips away one’s sense of self, leaving only the raw essence of existence," he said.

“I’m not yet fully equipped to speak about what I have endured — the relentless struggle to stay alive, both physically and mentally,” Assange said.

"It strips away one's sense of self."

"isolation has taken its toll."