Iceland
parliament declines Snowden's citizenship bid
A
bid by Edward Snowden for Icelandic citizenship failed when the
country's parliament voted not to debate it before the summer recess,
lawmakers said on Friday, with options for the U.S. fugitive
narrowing by the day.
5
July, 2013
The
vote leaves Snowden - believed to be staying in a transit area at a
Moscow airport - with one option fewer as he seeks a country to
shelter him from U.S. espionage charges.
Following
the news in Iceland, WikiLeaks announced that Snowden had applied to
another six countries for asylum, adding to a list of more than a
dozen countries which he has already asked for protection.
The
anti-secrecy organization, which has been supporting Snowden's
efforts to find a safe haven since his exit from Hong Kong 12 days
ago, said on Twitter it could not reveal the names the countries due
to "attempted U.S. interference".
Six
members of Iceland's parliament tabled a proposal late on Thursday to
grant Snowden citizenship after they received a request from him via
WikiLeaks, opposition parliamentarian Birgitta Jonsdottir said.
But
a majority of parliamentarians voted late on Thursday against
allowing the proposal to be put on the agenda, a day before
parliament went into summer recess. It does not reconvene until
September.
"Snowden
has formally requested citizenship. But nothing is now going to
happen. We could not even vote on it," Jonsdottir told Reuters.
In
a letter dated July 4, posted on Jonsdottir's blog, Snowden wrote
that he had been left "de facto-stateless" by his
government, which revoked his passport after he fled the country and
leaked information about U.S. surveillance operations.
Most
of the countries he has already sought asylum in, including Iceland,
say he must be on their soil for his application to be accepted.
His
request for citizenship was a different tack, hoping that Iceland
would give him a passport, as it has done in at least one similar
case in the past.
"I
appreciate that Iceland, a small but significant country in the world
community, shows such courage and commitment to its higher laws and
ideals," he wrote in the letter.
Under
Icelandic law, parliament can grant citizenship to foreigners, which
can otherwise usually only be gained through naturalization after a
period of residence.
Chess
master Bobby Fischer was granted Icelandic citizenship by parliament
after he got into trouble with the United States over tax evasion and
breaking sanctions by playing a match in Yugoslavia in 1992.
After
years living abroad, he was detained in Japan, where he applied for
and was awarded Icelandic citizenship in 2005. He spent his last
years in Iceland before dying in 2008.
Iceland's
recently elected center-right government is seen as far less willing
to engage in an international dispute with the United States than the
previous government, even if it will want to maintain the country's
reputation for promoting Internet freedom.
"It
is a disappointment that he is facing limited options,"
WikiLeaks Icelandic spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson told Reuters. "I
am not optimistic that the new conservative government will take
steps of courage and boldness to assist Mr Snowden."
Russia
has shown signs of growing impatience over Snowden's stay in the
country.
Its
deputy foreign minister said on Thursday that Snowden had not sought
asylum in the country and needed to choose a place to go.
Moscow
has made clear that the longer he stays, the greater the risk of the
diplomatic standoff over his fate causing lasting damage to relations
with Washington.
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