Assange Attack on Sweden May Give Appearance of ‘Mud Slinging’
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Julian Assange’s U.K. lawyers, seeking to block the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition to Sweden on rape claims, may have chosen the wrong tactic by criticizing Swedish justice and labeling the prosecutor behind the case as a “radical feminist,” lawyers say.
Witnesses at hearings last week in London said Swedish rape trials are secretive and portrayed prosecutor Marianne Ny as a “crusader” on gender issues who had a hand in shaping Sweden’s “harsh” rape laws. The tactic may be a sign of desperation and is unlikely to stop Assange’s extradition, said Neill Blundell, a lawyer with Eversheds LLP in London.