Hong Kong's role in kidnapping of Libyan dissident Sami al-Saadi back in spotlight
US Senate report of CIA's use of torture has some asking what really happened to al-Saadi
The case of Sami al-Saadi, Hong Kong's only known involvement in the rendition of a terrorism suspect, was thrown back into the spotlight last week after the US Senate released a report on the CIA's use of torture in the wake of the September 11 attacks on US soil.
In March 2004, Saadi and his family - including four young children - were detained at Chek Lap Kok airport for almost two weeks before they were forced onto a secret flight to Tripoli.
Saadi, a vocal opponent of former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, had spent years living in exile in Britain and later in mainland China. He was considered a terrorist by the West as he had links to al-Qaeda.
While Saadi's case is not mentioned in the Senate report, it found that the CIA's torture of suspected terrorists between 2002 and 2008 was "far more brutal" than the agency admitted and that its detention and interrogation programme - which included brutal techniques and secret jails around the world - was "inadequate and deeply flawed".
The report, which cost US$40 million, was heavily redacted and the UK government had requested that all references to its involvement be edited out.
A spokeswoman for the Security Bureau refused to say whether the Hong Kong government had also asked the US to redact any mention of Hong Kong's role in the alleged rendition. "We have no comment," she said.
Hong Kong's complicity in the 2004 kidnapping continues to be shrouded in secrecy with the Security Bureau and key players linked to the rendition all refusing to comment despite years of inquiries by this paper.
The details of Hong Kong's involvement only came to light after the Gaddafi regime was toppled in late-2011 and secret documents about the rendition were unearthed at the offices of Gaddafi's spy chief.
Among those named in the documents was Stanley Ying Yiu-hong, who was the permanent secretary for security at the time, who was listed as a key contact to ensure the rendition was carried out quickly.
The papers also named Madonna Fung from the Hong Kong Business Aviation Centre - a private jet hub at the airport - as an intermediary.
In December 2012, Britain - without admitting liability - reached a £2.23 million (HK$27.17 million) compensation deal with Saadi after he launched legal action against MI6.
A spokeswoman for the Security Bureau confirmed there have been "ongoing communications" with Saadi's lawyers.
"At this stage, it would not be appropriate for the government to make any comments," she said.
