Leonard Peltier granted clemency
Leonard Peltier granted clemency

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Outgoing US President Joe Biden granted clemency to lifelong political prisoner and Indigenous rights campaigner Leonard Peltier in a surprise move in the final minutes of his presidency.

Now aged 80, under the terms of his release from US federal prison, Mr Peltier can live at home but must live under house arrest.

Mr Peltier is a member of the American Indian Movement which has fought against the enforced poverty, racial discrimination and police brutality against American Indians.

He was serving two consecutive life sentences after being convicted of a crime he says he did not commit, the killing of two FBI agents at a ranch in South Dakota.

He was recently refused parole, with his next hearing not due for 15 years, when he would be 94 years of age.

Human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, and political figures including Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa, and the Dalai Lama, had all called for clemency for the octogenarian.

In 1981, he fasted for forty days in solidarity with the Hunger Strikers in Ireland in their protest against the criminalisation of the Irish freedom struggle. He saw parallels with efforts to combat the campaign of the indigenous people in the US.

At the time, he wrote: “Our suffering, our fasting and our struggling links us together with a common bond. That is why I say to you, there in Ireland, you are my relatives”.

Mr Peltier was one of the longest serving political prisoners in the world having served nearly fifty years in federal custody.

Biden’s decision was the result of decades of grassroots organising and the unveiling of increasing amounts of evidence of prosecutorial misconduct and constitutional violations during the prosecution of Peltier’s case.

“It’s finally over – I’m going home.” he said. “I want to show the world I’m a good person with a good heart. I want to help the people, just like my grandmother taught me.”

His freedom is the result of 50 years of intergenerational resistance, organising, and advocacy, said Nick Tilsen of the NDN Collective.

“Leonard Peltier’s liberation is our liberation – we will honour him by bringing him back to his homelands to live out the rest of his days surrounded by loved ones, healing, and reconnecting with his land and culture.”

Former Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has been among the most vocal campaigners for his release.

“After spending almost 50 years in prison for a crime he has consistently denied, Leonard Peltier’s life sentence has been commuted by President Biden and he is being released to spend his remaining time with his family,” he said.

“For decades many people, including Nelson Mandela, President Mary Robinson, have lobbied for Leonard to be pardoned.

“He is now 80 years old and suffers from several severe health issues. The decision to commute his sentence is welcome.”

Sinn Féin National Chairperson Declan Kearney said the move had “reversed a great injustice and a stain on the US judicial system.”

He added: “Leonard’s refusal to be criminalised for five decades is a testament to his unbreakable spirit and resilience.”

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