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A Marianne Ny Takeaway

What the latest tranche of FOI docs reveal. A first look.


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DUCKPOND (Rixstep) — The indefatigable 'Undermattan' (English: 'Under the Rug') has been at it again, persevering in his digging into the mysteries of the 'development centre' on Sweden's west coast.

For those who feel so inclined, here are the relevant links.

ASSANGE - Justitiedepartementet - Undermattan 2015-1
ASSANGE - Justitiedepartementet - Undermattan 2015-2
ASSANGE - Justitiedepartementet - Undermattan 2015-3
ASSANGE - Justitiedepartementet - Undermattan 2015-4
ASSANGE - Justitiedepartementet - Undermattan 2015-5


What's been particularly clever about 'Undermattan' is that he sent requests (for the same materials) to both Marianne Ny's office and to the department of justice.

The department of justice was involved this time because the correspondence was with the Republic of Ecuador, and then Marianne Ny's words had to be translated into Spanish, and it's a section of the department of justice - known as 'BIRS' - who take care of translations and copyediting.

So as 'Undermattan' knew that the correspondence between Marianne Ny and the Republic of Ecuador would be going through 'BIRS', he sent the same FOI requests to the department of justice as well - with surprising results.

The department of justice ('BIRS') responded with mostly all the documents requested. Marianne Ny's office basically blanked out anything they could.

For the record: here are the documents from the office of Marianne Ny.

Assange - Marianne Ny - Undermattan 2015 -1
Assange - Marianne Ny - Undermattan 2015 -2
Assange - Marianne Ny - Undermattan 2015 -3
Assange - Marianne Ny - Undermattan 2015 -4

First Takeaway

Obviously there's a lot in all these documents, and a lot of people are currently studying them to see what they find both on and between the lines, but here's a first taste of what they reveal.

8 June 2015: First Contact

It's today Marianne Ny makes the first direct contact with her Ecuador counterparts. Note that the planned meet is, at this point, only nine days away. Note that she asks for a room big enough for six (6) people and that she wants to be given two consecutive days. The translator given is not registered as living in Sweden, nor is the translation bureau known. Marianne Ny also wants (via proxy) to start at 09:00 and take an 'ordinary lunch break' (Swedes and Brits don't eat lunch at the same time but Marianne Ny is probably unaware of this).

Note that she is only asking informally at this point, and she evidently expects all wheels of government to get into motion in just over a week, even though she's had five full years to do something (but done nothing). It will later emerge that her formal request doesn't reach Ecuador until two work days before the planned meet.

'For security reasons'

Marianne Ny's little note to the 'other side'.

'For security reasons, we prefer that the exact time of our visit be kept secret. This case has garnered a lot of attention, and there is a risk that our visit will be otherwise jeopardised by the presence of the media and the public supporters outside the embassy.'

Those supporters are almost always there, and it's hard to see how entering an embassy from a London cab would be difficult. Nevertheless: the media were not told (but the supporters were still there) when all of a sudden a photographer from Expressen's offices in Paris turns up - and he's having a chat on his cellphone with Marianne Ny! (Read the eyewitness accounts here.)

Receipt of Request (in Stockholm)

Ecuador finally receives Marianne Ny's application for legal assistance. Note the date, note the day of the week, and note the time. It's 17:35 on a Friday and the meet is supposed to take place the following Wednesday.

Note as well who sends the message: the Ecuador ambassador in Sweden. The application materials still have to be sent to the UK (and possibly to Quito).

The message is sent not to Marianne Ny, but to the 'man in the middle' at 'BIRS' - Markus Hellsten.

The meaning of the clarification of arrival dates ('in spite of...') is not clear.

Marianne Panics?

This is a memo from Marianne Ny to Markus Hellsten at 'BIRS', with Cc to Ingrid Isgren, Karin Rosander, Cecilia Redell, and Per Hedvall. It's dated Tuesday 16 June, at nine minutes to nine in the morning, the day before the questioning in London (still not processed) is to begin.

Hi!

I got this message yesterday afternoon. I've now read it again and, if I understand the end part correctly, this means that the Swedish embassy in London still had not turned over the documents to the Ecuador embassy. Can you check up on that?

Is there any way to inquire of the Ecuador ambassador in Stockholm how far they've got in processing our application, without making a mess of things?

It's hard for me to see today if our plans will still work out. We've assumed that Ingrid Isgren, Cecilia Redell, and Karin Rosander will travel to London even if we don't receive prior approval. In my defence I've stated that we still assume our plans will still work out. If we have to cancel our plans to travel to London this afternoon, we're in a hurry.

Best regards,
Marianne


Time for a Holiday!

Marianne Ny's not the only one leaving on holiday - so is Markus Hellsten, the day after (but he has a replacement).

'To be continued...'

See Also
Justice4Assange.com
Assange Defence Fund
WikiLeaks: Support WikiLeaks
The Police Protocol (Translated)
Rixstep: JA/WL (Assange/WikiLeaks)
Rixstep: Assange/WikiLeaks RSS Feed
Radsoft: Assange/WikiLeaks RSS Feed

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