- Thu
- Oct 3, 2013
- Updated: 12:13pm
Edward Snowden
30-year-old American Edward Snowden, a contract employee at the National Security Agency, is the whistleblower behind significant revelations that surfaced in June 2013 about the US government's top secret, extensive domestic surveillance programmes. Snowden flew to Hong Kong from Hawaii in May 2013, and supplied confidential US government documents to media outlets including the Guardian.
Edward Snowden to seek temporary asylum in Russia
Whistle-blower tells activists and officials he is out of options; Putin insists leaks must stop
Fugitive US intelligence whistle-blower Edward Snowden plans to seek asylum in Russia until he is able to travel to a Latin American country, he told a group of activists and officials yesterday.
Encamped at a Russian airport evading the reach of United States authorities, Snowden said he had sacrificed a comfortable life in disclosing US spying secrets but had no regrets.
"A little over one month ago, I had family, a home in paradise," he said in his first public remarks on what he sees as the personal cost of incurring Washington's anger by disclosing details of its electronic surveillance.
"I also had the capability without any warrant to search for, seize, and read your communications. Anyone's communications at any time. That is the power to change people's fates," he told human rights activists at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. He has been living in its transit area since arriving on June 23 from Hong Kong, where he made his initial revelations.
Snowden, 30, in remarks relayed by the anti-secrecy group Wikileaks, said he would seek temporary asylum in Russia.
Video: Edward Snowden talks to human rights activists at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport
Russian authorities said he should not harm the interests of the US if he wants refuge in Russia - a condition set by President Vladimir Putin.
"Snowden is serious about obtaining political asylum in the Russian Federation," said Vyacheslav Nikonov, a pro-Kremlin lawmaker who attended the meeting with Snowden, who had not been seen in public since arriving from Hong Kong.
Participants in the meeting said Snowden would seek to travel on to Latin America.
Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia have said they would be willing to grant asylum to Snowden.
"He wants to move further on, he wants to move to Latin America - he said it quite clearly," Tanya Lokshina, deputy head of the Moscow office of Human Rights Watch, said.
"But in order to be guaranteed safety here in Russia, the only way for him to go was to file a formal asylum plea."
Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, repeated earlier conditions that Snowden should stop harming the interests of the United States with more leaks if he wanted asylum.
Nikonov said that this message had got through.
"I asked him if he was ready to give up his political activity against the United States. He said, 'Definitely, yes, all this activity was in the past'," the lawmaker said.
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2:20pm
www.carbonated.tv/
10:44pm
once our whistle-blower
comes across
any unexpectied mishaps
more vital information
will be leaked
which definitely
unharmful to
Obama administration
now this blcak president
can ony
pray for his
most-wanted man's
safe and sound
or...
12:33pm
11:54pm
6:53am
If I happen to mention WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION ....or whatever ... in my private emails I immediately become a NSA and CIA target. "Guilty until proved innocent "
In fact that single capitalized 4 -word line on the SCMP comment page has probably already flashed a light in NSA and now they are trying to track me down, if they have not done so already . Guess they already know where I live and have access to all my private emails
Whereas, in fact, I work for an International hi-tech company which has internal standards of export control which go far, FAR beyond any USA - export restrictions.
In fact I would say that our company is a world-wide benchmark for internal export controls
If we even sniff the slightest , possible, vaguest hint of any use of our products for making WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION we immediately cancel the sale of our products, regardless of the cost to ourselves.
And guess who our biggest competitor is ? It's a USA company, publicly -listed , which has openly sold thousands of products to Iran to help their uranium-enrichment program for NUCLEAR BOMBS.
That is why I hate USA double-speak hypocrisy and why I support Snowden.
5:29am
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I have a very clean conscience, and have done my utmost in China business life these past 25 years to make sure none of our company's products ever ended up in the wrong hands. We operate internal export control restrictions far beyond anything imposed by the USA , either on USA companies nor on any other country's manufacturers
.
I already spoke to your HK consulate a year ago about blatant abuse of USA export restrictions to Iran by a listed - USA public company.
Check : ****thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/0103-Stuxnet-iran-nuclear-program_full_600.jpg
You know the case, I am sure. So why has the US govt not taken action against the directors of this USA company ? No need to answer, because we all know the answer : the USA protects its own, while trying to dominate the rest of the world.
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So please stop telling the free world : "Do what we say / don't do what we do"
.
You are such hypocrites !
That's why I support Ed Snowden.
10:06pm
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