watch: ai weiwei runs on a treadmill julian assange gave him in defence of press freedom

#runforourrights SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

ai weiwei has launched a social media campaign in defence of freedom of press following the news of a recent high court ruling that overturned an earlier decision and judged in favor of allowing julian assange to be extradited to the US. the campaign involves a video of the artist running on a treatmill the wikileaks founder gave him as a present when he was at the embassy of ecuador in london, and calls for everyone’s involvement through uploading similar short videos on the internet. under the hashtag #runforourrights, this collective performance is aimed at showing ‘our concern with human rights and freedom of press, as well as our pursuit of social justice,’ ai weiwei explains. read his full statement and watch the videos below.

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AI WEIWEI VOICES CONCERN OVER FREEDOM OF PRESS

‘the high court in the UK overturned a ruling earlier this year and judged in favor of the US in appeal to extradite julian assange. since 2012 he has lived under asylum and imprisonment, and his health has deteriorated. he suffered a stroke in prison and would not be able to survive the conditions he would be held under if sentenced to 175 years in prison in the US.

today, freedom of press is under attack and journalists’ safety is at stake, as the powerholders circle and suppress those who provide real information in defense of social justice. assange represents the fairness of press, which is the most important foundation to guarantee the development of a healthy society. it is only with this foundation that we can measure human rights in a society. without freedom of press, the entire society’s human rights will be damaged.

in october 2016 julian assange gave me a treadmill as a present when he was at the embassy of ecuador in london. today I decided to make a video of myself running on the treadmill and would like to call for everyone’s involvement through uploading short videos of running on a treadmill on the internet. with this performance, we can show our concern with human rights and freedom of press, as well as our pursuit of social justice. please upload your videos with #runforourrights.’

screenshot of #runforourrights by ai weiwei, courtesy of ai weiwei

JULIAN ASSANGE

ai weiwei’s campaign was initiated after the high court overturned an earlier ruling on friday, december 10, and judged that julian assange can be extradited from the UK to the US. though his lawyers announced they will seek to appeal, if the extradition goes ahead, the wikileaks founder will face espionage charges that could put him in prison for decades. assange is wanted in the US over the publication of thousands of classified documents in 2010 and 2011. though a lower court had ruled in january that he could not be extradited due to concerns over his mental health, two of britain’s most senior judges sided with the US authorities after assurances that he would not be held in highly restrictive prison conditions, as the guardian reports. earlier acts in support of assange include the ‘art for julian assange’ petition.