Edward Snowden: a threat to U.S.?

Edward Snowden (29 years old), a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee, who leaked secret documents detailing a widespread surveillance programme, is reported to be hiding out in a Hong Kong five-star hotel as the U.S. considers launching a criminal case against him. Mr. Snowden’s decision to flee to Hong Kong from Hawaii, where he was employed by the defence contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, has come as a surprise, given that Hong Kong and the U.S. have, in the past, worked together closely on criminal cases under an extradition treaty Hong Kong signed with Washington shortly before the territory returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.

Mr. Snowden told The Guardian that he chose Hong Kong because they have a spirited commitment to free speech and the right of political dissent. Should the U.S. eventually choose to extradite Mr. Snowden as it begins a criminal prosecution, his fate will rest in the hands of Hong Kong’s courts, and on the possibility — however unlikely — of intervention by Beijing.

As a ‘Special Administrative Region’ of China, Hong Kong enjoys freedoms that the mainland does not have, such as a free press and an independent judiciary. Hong Kong also has its own Constitution — known as the Basic Law — although Beijing controls foreign policy and defence matters.

While the extradition treaty does make an exception for political cases, there is no recent record of Hong Kong refusing an extradition request from the U.S. It could, however, take months — if not years — for the Hong Kong courts to decide whether the case is political or criminal, if and when the matter comes before them. And, given the recent history of close cooperation on criminal cases, many Hong Kong lawmakers themselves see little likelihood of the territory openly defying on the U.S. on this case.

That the former CIA employee fled the U.S. for the Chinese territory has also raised some eyebrows, particularly in the wake of heightened tensions between both countries over cyber security and hacking attacks, an issue that figured prominently during the recent talks between Presidents Barack Obama and Xi Jinping.

Snowden enrooted from Hong Kong:- Rejecting requests from the U.S. for Edward Snowden’s extradition, the Hong Kong government allowed the whistleblower to board a flight to Moscow. The former CIA employee arrived Moscow and was said to be headed to a third country, where he is likely to seek asylum.

            WikiLeaks, the whistle blowing website, had been closely involved in facilitating his ‘safe exit’ from Hong Kong and was helping him find ‘asylum in a democratic country’.

            The Hong Kong government in a statement said it could not stop          Mr. Snowden from leaving because there was ‘no legal basis’ for it to do so. Explaining their decision, authorities said documents provided by the U.S. seeking Mr. Snowden’s arrest did not fully comply with the legal requirements under Hong Kong law. U.S. officials said they were puzzled by how            Mr. Snowden had been allowed to travel to Moscow as they had revoked his passport earlier.

{Earlier, Russia said it is willing to consider granting asylum to American whistleblower Edward Snowden if he applies, the Kremlin has said.  The Kremlin offer came as Mr. Snowden checked out from a five-star hotel in Hong Kong and disappeared. He had fled to Hong Kong from Hawaii after leaking top secret documents about a U.S. global electronic surveillance programme. Experts said Hong Kong was not a very safe place for                      Mr. Snowden to hide from American authorities as it has an extradition treaty with the U.S.

Russia has a consulate in Hong Kong. There is no extradition pact between Russia and the U.S. and the Kremlin may be all too happy to thumb its nose at America. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the U.S. rejected several Russian requests to extradite businessmen accused of economic crime. Moscow was also infuriated by what it called the “kidnapping” and conviction in the U.S. of Russian nationals, Viktor Bout and Konstantin Yaroshenko, accused respectively of arms and cocaine smuggling. A senior Russian parliamentarian said Russian asylum for Mr. Snowden would send a signal that, “Moscow takes under its wings victims of political persecution.”}

U.S. certain Snowden in Russia, Moscow pleads ignorance:- The United States has warned countries against giving shelter to fugitive Edward Snowden, or letting him travel internationally, as the former CIA contractor landed in Moscow and is said to be on his way to the South American country of Ecuador through Havana and Venezuela. The United States has been in touch via diplomatic and law enforcement channels with countries in the Western Hemisphere through which Snowden might transit or that could serve as final destinations.

The US is advising these Governments that Snowden is wanted on felony charges, and as such should not be allowed to proceed in any further international travel, other than is necessary to return him to the United States. Meanwhile, top US lawmakers doubted the intentions of both China and Russia in the latest unfolding development regarding Snowden, who flew from Hong Kong to Moscow.

Related Links:-

Edward Snowden: a timeline of events