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Strasbourg, France
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange told European lawmakers on Tuesday (Oct 1) that his guilty plea to American espionage accusations was necessary as legal and political efforts to protect his freedom were not sufficient.
Assange spent most of the last 14 years either holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in London to avoid arrest or locked up at Belmarsh Prison in London. He was released from jail in June after serving a sentence for publishing hundreds of thousands of confidential US government documents.
After being released, Assange went back to his home country, Australia.
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On Tuesday, the 53-year-old addressed the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights at the Council of Europe.
'Eventually chose freedom over unrealisable justice'
"I eventually chose freedom over an unrealisable justice," Assange told the committee.
"I am free today after years of incarceration because I pleaded guilty to journalism, pleaded guilty to seeking information from sources, I pleaded guilty to obtaining information from a source and I pleaded guilty to informing the public," he added.
"Journalism is not a crime, it is a pillar of a free and informed society. The fundamental issue is simple. Journalists should not be prosecuted for doing their jobs," the WikiLeaks founder further told the committee.
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The most controversial leaks by WikiLeaks featured classified American military documents and videos from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in the early to mid-2000s that it said highlighted issues such as abuse of prisoners in US custody, human rights violations and civilian deaths.
American authorities said that the leaks were reckless, damaged national security, and endangered the lives of agents.
'More impunity, more secrecy and more retaliation'
Assange further told the committee that during his incarceration "ground has been lost", regretting that he now sees "more impunity, more secrecy and more retaliation for telling the truth."
"Let us all commit to doing our part to ensure the light of freedom never dims and the pursuit of truth will live on and the voices of many are not silenced by the interests of the few," he said.
(With inputs from agencies)