US bullies Hong Kong

The Americans will bully any country that tries to assist Edward Snowden.

US urges Hong Kong to act soon on NSA whistleblower extradition - report

The US says bilateral relations will suffer if Hong Kong won’t act soon on its request to extradite NSA whistleblower, Edward Snowden, Reuters reports quoting anonymous officials.

RT,

22 June, 2013

"If Hong Kong doesn't act soon, it will complicate our bilateral relations and raise questions about Hong Kong's commitment to the rule of law," a senior Obama administration official told the news agency.

Earlier, the outgoing White House National Security Adviser, Tom Donilon, said that Washington has already contacted Hong Kong on the issue of Snowden’s extradition.

"Our law enforcement officials are in conversation... with the Hong Kong authorities at this point," he told CBS News.  

Former US National Security Agency contractor, Edward Snowden, fled to Hong Kong after exposing secret US surveillance programs, including PRISM, which is alleged to harvest private user data through cooperation with such corporations as Facebook, Yahoo, Google, Apple and Microsoft.

On June 21, the US federal prosecutors charged the whistleblower with espionage, theft and conversion of government property. They also reportedly contacted their colleagues in Hong Kong, requesting Snowden’s detention on a provisional arrest warrant.

Chinese media meanwhile report that Snowden has not been taken into custody yet and is hiding in some “safe place” in Hong Kong. 

Assange slams Snowden charges ‘intimidation of sympathizing countries’

RT,
22 June, 2013



WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has said that the Obama administration charging NSA leaker and requesting his arrest is a move to “intimidate any country” that may wish to protect Edward Snowden.



“The charging of Edward Snowden is intended to intimidate any country that might be considering standing up for his rights,” reads a post on Wikileaks webpage on behalf of Assange after his address from the Ecuadorian embassy in London was canceled due to security concerns.



“Tell your governments to step forward,” he added.



Assange stressed that Edward Snowden, who continues to leak classified information on the NSA’s surveillance program, is the eighth leaker “to be charged with espionage” during US President Barack Obama’s terms in office.



“It is getting to the point where the mark of international distinction and service to humanity is no longer the Nobel Peace Prize, but an espionage indictment from the US Department of Justice,” he said.



US federal prosecutors have charged Snowden with espionage, theft, and conversion of government property, and asked Hong Kong to detain him ahead of a move to extradite him. The former CIA contractor fled to Hong Kong before disclosing the NSA’s PRISM surveillance program.



Snowden has reportedly requested asylum in Iceland earlier this week via WikiLeaks spokesperson Kristinn Hrafnsson. The Icelandic government has confirmed that it received Snowden’s appeal, but no decision has yet been made.



As a US citizen, Snowden is free to enter Iceland without a visa and can immediately apply for asylum. However, the US may move to arrest him before Icelandic immigration authorities decide his case. The asylum process could ultimately take more than a year, Reuters reports.



“The effort to find asylum for Edward Snowden must be intensified,” Assange wrote in his speech.



Assange also said earlier this week that he has been “in touch with Mr. Snowden's legal team,” and that they are working on “the process of brokering his asylum in Iceland."