Fun

Julian Assange Bitcoin donation shows how crypto can support transparency

News Feed - 2024-06-28 11:06:00

Daniel Ramirez-Escudero10 hours agoJulian Assange Bitcoin donation shows how crypto can support transparencyThe Bitcoin community came to Julian Assange’s aid, helping ensure the WikiLeaks founders’ safe and debt-free return to Australia.4849 Total views2 Total sharesListen to article 0:00Follow upOwn this piece of crypto historyCollect this article as NFTJoin us on social networksWikiLeaks founder and prominent free speech advocate Julian Assange has developed strong connections with the Bitcoin community. 


Both he and WikiLeaks have benefited from the unique properties of Bitcoin (BTC) as a cryptocurrency, as well as from its vibrant community.


Assange and WikiLeaks have also played a crucial role in boosting the relevance of Bitcoin, with the symbiotic relationship being mutually beneficial and contributing to Bitcoin and WikiLeaks’ survival and progress.


On June 25,Assange won his freedom after a 14-year legal battle in which he was imprisoned for five years. The dispute ended when Assange agreed to a deal with United States authorities, pleading guilty in exchange for avoiding extradition to the U.S. and receiving credit for his time served in the United Kingdom, ultimately leading to his release.Source: WikiLeaks


The Bitcoin community has strongly supported WikiLeaks and its founder because they share similar goals, Joshua Bate, founder of DeSciWorld and core member of AssangeDAO, explained to Cointelegraph. “They are closely intertwined and both equally dangerous to an authoritarian regime,” he said.


Bate believes that “WikiLeaks enables free information exchange, [and] Bitcoin allows more free value exchange.” Therefore, “both WikiLeaks and Bitcoin fight against censorship.” For this reason, Assange has received ongoing support from the Bitcoin community throughout his legal fights.


A recent testament to this solidarity is ananonymous donation of 8 BTC, which has covered virtually all of Assange’s $520,000 debt incurred for his repatriation to Australia.


No commercial airline would accept Assange as a passenger, so he used a private jet to return to Australia. Assange’s wife Stella asked for an emergency donation to cover the expense of the plane.


A few hours later, a BTC donation allowed Assange to land in Australia debt-free. Assange protected Bitcoin as Satoshi Nakamoto requested


WikiLeaks was founded in 2006 but didn’t become a significant journalistic entity until 2010 when it released the infamous video dubbed “Collateral Murder.” The footage showed a U.S. Army helicopter shooting and killing a group of 18 civilians in Baghdad, including two Iraqi Reuters journalists.


The video brought much attention to WikiLeaks, culminating in a widespread effort from U.S. and British authorities to close down the nonprofit organization.


Under U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration, the U.S. State Department labeled WikiLeaks activities illegal. This action provoked a financial blockade of WikiLeaks involving PayPal, Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America and Western Union, impacting donations and threatening its existence.Banking blockade and donations campaign. Source: WikiLeaks


WikiLeaks was desperate to find a means of payment for donations, especially one that is uncensorable by governments. On Nov. 10, 2010, a Bitcoin developercontacted WikiLeaks to offer cryptocurrency as a means of payment. 


However, Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, pleaded with WikiLeaks not to use BTC for donations, as it would bring undue attention to the fledgling cryptocurrency.


Nakamoto believed the software was still in its infancy, and association with WikiLeaks would bring undue attention to the cryptocurrency.Satoshi Nakamoto didn’t want Bitcoin to become synonymous with WikiLeaks. Source: Reddit


In 2014, Assangeadmitted to acquiescing to Nakamoto’s request to avoid using Bitcoin until it had become “more established.”


However, anarticle in PC World publicized the idea of WikiLeaks accepting Bitcoin. The sudden attention paid to Bitcoin didn’t please Nakamoto, who believed it could threaten the network. On Dec. 11, 2010, Nakamotoposted on the Bitcoin Talk forum:“WikiLeaks has kicked the hornet’s nest, and the swarm is headed towards us.”


Assange kept his “promise, but Nakamoto left the project shortly after Bitcoin became more popular.


Assange and WikiLeaks continued to struggle financially and had almost no fundraising options. In June 2011, WikiLeaks had no choice but to break the financial blockade by setting up a Bitcoin address to receive BTC donations. This step would become a crucial decision for the survival of WikiLeaks.Bitcoin donations graph. Source: Casa


The uncensorable properties of Bitcoin have been instrumental in sustaining WikiLeaks, allowing funds to flow in without the risk of seizure or interference.


The organization received 171 BTC in the first week, and a secure fundraising channel was created, which is stillworking today.


Overnight, WikiLeaks showcased a clear use case for Bitcoin.


The nonprofit organization’s decision to accept Bitcoin donations turned out to be one of the best decisions it made.


While Assange was involved in ongoing legal battles, he ironically appreciated the U.S. government for the banking blockade, admitting that WikiLeaks adopted Bitcoin in response.Source: Defend Assange Campaign


On Oct. 14, 2017, Assangeclaimed that he and WikiLeaks benefited from the 50,000% return on their Bitcoin funds. The organization had already received 4,000 BTC at that time. Months later, the 2017 bull market launched Bitcoin to $20,000.Was it all worth it for Assange?


Assange and his family have suffered significantly in defending freedom of speech.


In August 2010, shortly after WikiLeaks massive exposure, Swedish authorities issued an arrest warrant for Assange for allegations of sexual misconduct.


Assange fled Sweden and sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.


Assange could not exit the premises of the Ecuadorian Embassy for seven years. A shift in Ecuador’s leadership then prompted the withdrawal of Assange’s asylum.


U.K. authorities arrested the hacker and imprisoned him for five years in the high-security Belmarsh Prison, dubbed the country’s Guantánamo Bay.


Assange continued to face possible extradition to the U.S., where the most severe punishment could potentially await him. Like otherwhistleblowers, such as Edward Snowden, Assange’s life was radically transformed after exposing sensitive government secrets.


Was Assange’s struggle worth it?


Harry Halpin, the CEO of Nym and member of AssangeDAO, told Cointelegraph that he believes society may not have learned enough from Assange’s struggles.


However, he did say that thanks to Assange’s efforts, war crimes and the suppression of truth are topics that appear daily in parliamentary debates, on daytime TV and even on YouTube podcasts.“Ultimately, we must use Julian’s partial triumph as a catalyst to create more powerful communication and resistance structures.”


Since his arrival in Australia, Assange wants to remain out of the spotlight and enjoy his privacy. His wife Stella said that the founder of WikiLeaks plans to “enjoy his freedom” in the meantime and urged journalists to pressure the U.S. government to disclose details related to the criminal case against her husband.


As shementioned in her latest public appearance, one of the conditions of the plea deal with U.S. authorities means “Julian isn’t allowed to request freedom of information [or] make information requests [to] the U.S. government.”


However, she emphasized that other citizens still have this power and urged the public to press U.S. authorities to explain their actions.# Bitcoin# Government# Australia# Privacy# Payments# UK Government# Bitcoin Payments# US Government# WikiLeaks# Julian Assange# RegulationAdd reaction

News Feed

Derek Andersen3 hours agoVodafone, Sumitomo team up with Chainlink to explore trade documents networkVodafone’s Digital Asset Broker platform and Sumitomo have been working together since May on this proof-of-concept.1
Brayden Lindrea6 hours agoChatGPT-coded smart contracts may be flawed, could ‘fail miserably’ when attacked: CertiKCertiK’s security chief thinks inexperienced programmers using AI tools such as ChatGPT to write sm
Pump.fun to give $80 if tokens complete bonding curve — will it stop rugs?
Tom Mitchelhill4 hours agoPump.fun to give $80 if tokens complete bonding curve — will it stop rugs?Pump.fun is incentivizing memecoin creators to get their tokens off to a successful launch, but the jury’s out wheth
FTX Publishes Creditor List, Owes Millions to Well-Known Institutions and Government Agencies
FTX Publishes Creditor List, Owes Millions to Well-Known Institutions and Government Agencies The now-defunct crypto exchange FTX has published its list of creditors, with the name
Daniele Servadei7 hours agoBinance caves to pressure over coin listings, scoring a win for privacyThose of us in Italy and surrounding countries will be allowed to continue trading Zcash, Monero and other coins that Bina
LBank Exchange Will List FutureCoin (FUTURE) on February 9th, 2022
LBank Exchange Will List FutureCoin (FUTURE) on February 9th, 2022 press release PRESS RELEASE. INTERNET CITY, DUBAI, Feb. 8, 2022,LBank Exchange, a global digital asset trading pla
Bitcoin Whale Entry Prices Diverge Sharply – Confidence Builds At Higher Levels
Reason to trust Strict editorial policy that focuses on accuracy, relevance, and impartiality Created by industry experts and meticulously reviewed The highest standards in reporting and pu
Janet Yellen Defends Tax Compliance Agenda — 3 State Treasurers Promise Not to Comply
Janet Yellen Defends Tax Compliance Agenda — 3 State Treasurers Promise Not to Comply The 78th United States secretary of the treasury, Janet Yellen, is very concerned about tax
MicroStrategy sells another $604M of notes to buy 9K Bitcoin
Helen Partz11 hours agoMicroStrategy sells another $604M of notes to buy 9K BitcoinMicroStrategy keeps aggressively buying Bitcoin while completing another $603.75 million offering of convertible notes.3413 Total views2
Opensea NFT Marketplace Claims Employee Profited From Insider Information
Opensea NFT Marketplace Claims Employee Profited From Insider Information On September 15, the top non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace, Opensea, revealed that an Opensea executive
Flight Radar Report Shows FTX Co-Founder’s Private Jet Flew to Argentina, SBF Says He’s Still in the Bahamas
Flight Radar Report Shows FTX Co-Founder"s Private Jet Flew to Argentina, SBF Says He"s Still in the Bahamas According to Flightradar24’s official Twitter account, the most track
EU to Launch Comprehensive Crypto Regulation by 2024: Report
EU to Launch Comprehensive Crypto Regulation by 2024: ReportThe European Union is planning to implement comprehensive cryptocurrency regulation by 2024, two EU reports have reported