Oz govt disappoints WikiLeaks founder Assange

Canberra, Dec 5: Julian Assange, founder of the whistleblower website 'WikiLeaks', still considers Australia his home, but said that the Government of that country is not keen on calling him back following his website's release of 250,000 confidential US government cables.

Assange also alleged that Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, and the Attorney-General, Robert McClelland, have made it clear that not only is his return impossible but that they are actively working to assist the United States Government in its "attacks on myself and our people," Assange wrote in The Guardian.

"This brings into question what does it mean to be an Australian citizen - does that mean anything at all? Or are we all to be treated like David Hicks at the first possible opportunity merely so that Australian politicians and diplomats can be invited to the best US embassy cocktail parties," the Telegraph quoted him, as saying.

According to the paper, McClelland had also ordered a taskforce of Australian soldiers, intelligence officers and officials to investigate whether Assange and his organisation had breached any Australian laws.

His comments have come as the WikiLeaks chief waited for his likely arrest so British authorities could extradite him to Sweden over allegations of rape and sexual molestation. Assange has been denying rape charges against him, and added at this point in time, he missed his country "a great deal".

However Assange warned that he had sent the politically sensitive US diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks to 100,000 people and they would be released if the website was brought down. He further stated that the cables had been copied in encrypted form and would be automatically published online if "something happens to us".

ANI