The foundation's director, Stuart Rees, said the award was far more significant than the organisation's annual peace prize because it was handed out so rarely. Mr Assange will be only the fourth recipient in 14 years."We think the WikiLeaks revelations and the courage to persist with them is a watershed in the struggle for freedom of expression, for freedom of speech, and that for the first time in decades, if not in centuries, the secret power of governments, of military, of business, is starting to be unveiled," he said.
Professor Rees said the release of the WikiLeaks diplomatic cables, leaked from the US State Department, and before that of the Iraq and Afghan war logs, had had a seismic effect on the world order.
"It's as though we've been hoodwinked for several centuries - allowing the people in power to do as they like, allegedly in our interests," he said.
