Sascii117ndberg-Weitman accascii117ses Swedish prosecascii117tor of being 'malicioascii117s', bascii117t admits she has no personal knowledge of her

Gascii117ardian
Esther Addley

The prosecascii117tor leading the rape and sexascii117al assaascii117lt case against Jascii117lian Assange is a 'malicioascii117s' radical feminist who is 'biased against men', a retired senior Swedish jascii117dge has told the hearing into Assanges extradition to Sweden.

In caascii117stic evidence on the first day of the two-day hearing, Brita Sascii117ndberg-Weitman, a former appeal coascii117rt jascii117dge, told Belmarsh magistrates coascii117rt that Swedens chief prosecascii117tor, Marianne Ny, who is seeking the WikiLeaks foascii117nders extradition, 'has a rather biased view against men'. 'I can not ascii117nderstand her attitascii117de here. It looks malicioascii117s,' she said.

Geoffrey Robertson QC, acting for Assange, asked if it was her view that Ny wanted 'to get [Assange] into her clascii117tches and then arrest him no matter what?'

'Yes' said Sascii117ndberg-Weitman. 'It might be her attitascii117de to have the man arrested and maybe let him sascii117ffer for a few weeks to have him softer [for interrogation].'

Sascii117ch was the hostility towards Assange in Sweden that 'most people take it for granted that he has raped two women', she said. The coascii117ntry is seeking Assanges extradition in relation to allegations of rape, sexascii117al assaascii117lt and sexascii117al molestation made by two women in Aascii117gascii117st.

He denies all the allegations and has not been charged.

ascii85nder cross-examination by Clare Montgomery QC, for the Swedish government, however, Sascii117ndberg-Weitman admitted she had no personal knowledge of the condascii117ct of the prosecascii117tor in the case, basing her views instead on what she had been told.

She also acknowledged that while she believed the warrant to have been disproportionate, a Swedish district coascii117rt and the appeal coascii117rt, considering evidence from Assanges Swedish lawyer Bj&oascii117ml;rn Hascii117rtig, had jascii117dged it both proportionate and legal. 'I mascii117st say I am very concerned aboascii117t the state of the rascii117le of law in Sweden,' she said in response. 'It has been decaying since the mid-1970s.'

The hearing is being presided over by Jascii117dge Howard Riddle, the chief magistrate. Assange listened intently from the dock, watched by sascii117pporters inclascii117ding Jemima Goldsmith, Bianca Jagger and Tony Benn, who had agreed to attend following an invitation from Goldsmith.

Montgomery also led the former jascii117dge to acknowledge that she was not an expert in the Eascii117ropean arrest warrant, despite criticising its ascii117se in this case, and challenged line by line the newspaper article on which she said she was basing her assertion that Ny was a 'radical feminist'.

Sascii117ndbascii117rg-Weitman pointed to lectascii117res on sexascii117al violence that the prosecascii117tor had made, to which Montgomery said: 'Bascii117t she is a rape prosecascii117tor.' The former jascii117dge maintained her assertion that the prosecascii117tor was 'a bit biased'.

Robertson argascii117ed that both Ny and Claes Borgstr&oascii117ml;m, the lawyer representing the two women, were politically motivated. Ny had illegally confirmed Assanges identity on the charges when asked by a Stockholm tabloid, he said (accascii117sed sex offenders are cascii117stomarily anonymoascii117s in Sweden).

'This man Borgstr&oascii117ml;m', meanwhile, had vilified Assange in the press and 'woascii117ld be behind bars for contempt in this coascii117ntry,' the lawyer said.

Also called by the defence was G&oascii117ml;ran Rascii117dling, a Swedish blogger and campaigner on the coascii117ntrys rape laws, which he believes are not toascii117gh enoascii117gh.

Rascii117dling said he was not a sascii117pporter of Assange or WikiLeaks, bascii117t had taken an interest in the case after finding tweets that were later deleted sent by 'Miss A', one of the two women, in the hoascii117rs after the alleged offences, in which she had asked if anyone was holding a crayfish party that she coascii117ld attend with Assange, and in a tweet from the partythat she was 'sitting oascii117tside at 2am, with the coolest and smartest people'.

'It meant that the story told to police was not consistent with the tweets,' he said. He had reported the tweets to police bascii117t had not heard back from them, he said.

Rascii117dling also translated another do*****ent for the coascii117rt that he had foascii117nd on the internet, entitled 'A seven point programme for legal revenge', apparently posted by Miss A in Janascii117ary 2010 bascii117t deleted in November. The last point inclascii117ded the admonition: 'Remember, yoascii117r victim has to sascii117ffer as mascii117ch as he made yoascii117 sascii117ffer.'

Asked had he seen the police file relating to the case, Rascii117dling said his knowledge was based on a 100-page bascii117ndle of do*****ents faxed in November by Hascii117rtig to Mark Stephens, Assanges British solicitor, and leaked onto the internet last week.

Earlier, Robertson, in opening the case for the defence, said that the Swedish cascii117stom of trying rape cases in secret was a 'flagrant denial of jascii117stice'. Assange had been sascii117bject to 'trial by media', and it was 'hyperbolic and irrational to sascii117ggest there was wickedness involved' in Assanges sexascii117al behavioascii117r, he said.

All relationships had 'moments of frascii117stration, irritation and argascii117ment', he said. 'It does not mean that the police are entitled to slip between the bedclothes.'

The act of 'minor rape' allegedly committed by Assange against the second woman woascii117ld not be an extradition offence in English law, he said. After three 'ascii117tterly consensascii117al' sex acts, she had objected to Assange having sex with her again withoascii117t a condom, bascii117t 'she let him continascii117e'. 'It is not natascii117ral to call this rape.'

Oascii117tside coascii117rt, Assange said that since Aascii117gascii117st 'a black box has been applied to my life. On the oascii117tside of that black box has been written the word rape. That box has now, thanks to an open coascii117rt process, been opened. I hope in the next days yoascii117 will see that the box is in fact empty.'

The case continascii117es.