Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has accused his publisher Canongate of a breach of contract for releasing drafts of his autobiography without his approval, saying "the events surrounding its unauthorised publication by Canongate are not about freedom of information…they are about old-fashioned opportunism and duplicity - screwing people over to make a buck," BBC news said.
But the independent publisher said he had paid Assange a substantial six-figure sum for the rights to the memoir last year and since he had not repaid it had decided to publish the first draft received in March and announced the memoir will be sold in shops and online from Thursday.
The memoir tells the story of Assange’s early life growing up in Australia, how he became enchanted with the wonders of computers and how to hack them to become the founder of the secret-spilling Wikileaks website.
The Edinburgh-based Canongate publishing firm said, "We have decided to honour that contract and to publish. Once the advance has been earned out, we will continue to honour the contract and pay Julian royalties."
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