Jemima Khan likens Julian Assange to alien space cult leader L. Ron Hubbard
Jemima Khan, celebrity backer of whistleblower Julian Assange, has recanted her faith in the renegade Australian holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy by likening him to deceased cult leader L. Ron Hubbard.
Formerly one of Assanges staunchest supporters, stumping up his forfeited bail money and speaking out publically in his defence, Khan has now reappraised her opinions – concluding that Assange has gone from seeking the truth to just ‘blinkered, cultish devotion’.
Writing in the New Statesman Khan said WikiLeaks was now ‘guilty of the same obfuscation and misinformation as it sought to expose’ and recanted her personal hurt at her descent from ‘admiration to demoralisation’ in the face of Assange’s antics.
Khan added: “I have seen flashes of Assange’s charm, brilliance and insightfulness. But I have also seen how instantaneous rock-star status has the power to make even the most clear-headed idealist feel they are above the law and exempt from criticism. And he should definitely be standing trial in Sweden.
“It would be a tragedy if a man who has done so much good were to end up tolerating only disciples and unwavering devotion, more like an Australian L. Ron Hubbard.”
In addition to losing his liberty Assange has seen scores of former friend’s desert him in the wake of his voluntary confinement in a desperate bid to dodge sex crime charges in Sweden.