Arrest of ex-CIA agent fuels Hong Kong’s reputation as spy hotbed
Before and after Edward Snowden’s earthshaking stopover, the city has known its fair share of shadowy characters and tales
Ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu was certainly not wrong when he said there is no place where espionage is not possible. However, there are some places where it is more possible than others. And Hong Kong is one of those places.
While the bespectacled frat boy lookalike and former US Central Intelligence Agency contractor was quick to flee, hiding in the dingy shadows of Sham Shui Po for barely a month before flying to another centre of international intrigue, Moscow, his Hong Kong stopover cemented the city as a place where the craft of spying was alive and well.
While his story is far from over, Mandarin-speaking Snowden’s decision to take his chances here as the state intelligence apparatus of the most powerful nation on the planet closed in on him, was undoubtedly a watershed moment for the city. Hong Kong is where the former imperial power created that most British of spies – Agent 007, James Bond – was no longer calling the shots. China was, and history had started a new chapter.