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UNITED STATES: Washington filed a complaint against Edward Snowden for spying

 

Former consultant Edward Snowden, causing leaks in U.S. surveillance programs Communications, has been indicted for espionage by the U.S. court, which has asked Hong Kong to arrest him, a U.S. official said Friday.

The young man, a refugee since May 20 in Hong Kong, was also charged with theft and illegal use of government property. It is covered by a provisional arrest warrant, it was the same source said, confirming information from the Washington Post.

An extradition treaty is in force between Hong Kong and the United States, but Beijing has the right to veto.

In an interview with The Guardian, Edward Snowden said, supporting documentation, that the British Headquarters Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) had begun to process large amounts given Private es - obtained through access to fiber optic cables ensuring the global Internet traffic and phone calls - and shared with the U.S. National Security Agency ( NSA). 

Former consultant of the powerful U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), Snowden revealed through documents published in The Washington Post and The Guardian, that U.S. intelligence used two secret surveillance of communications programs. One can harvest since 2006 in the United States for call data (but not their contents), and the other, called Prism, designed to intercept communications of online foreign lying outside the United States.

Traitor to some, heroes to others, Snowden says he made these revelations because he could not "allow the U.S. government to destroy privacy, freedom of Internet and fundamental freedoms of persons with this huge surveillance system that they are building secretly. "

President Barack Obama has defended the legality of these programs and their usefulness, noting that "compromise" between the protection of privacy and the requirements of the fight against terrorism were born , cessaires. 

Flight to Iceland in preparation

Party of Hawaii, where he worked for a subcontractor of American intelligence, Snowden, who turned 30 Friday, chose to flee to Hong Kong by praising the tradition of defending freedom s territory. There seems to be hidden for.

His indictment by the U.S. Justice occurred the same day that the rapporteurs of the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on freedom of expression have called for the protection holders of confidential data choose "good faith" to disclose.

"A person associated with a State, obliged to keep certain information confidential, disclose information pertaining to it according violations of human rights (+ whistleblowers +) should not be subject to legal or disciplinary, administrative as it acted in good faith in accordance with international standards, "says the text of the rapporteurs. 

A businessman linked to the website WikiLeaks has also revealed Thursday that Icelanders preparing a flight to their country for Edward Snowden. In an interview with the Guardian on June 9, he said that Iceland was the closest values ​​to a free and independent internet States countries.

"We have a plane and all the logistics are in place. Now we just wait for a response from the government, "said Thursday night at Channel 2 Sigurvinsson Icelandic Olafur chain, a leader DataCell, an Icelandic company that manages fundraising WikiLeaks.

"The plane can take off tomorrow," he added.

The flight would be in a private jet leased to a Chinese company, with contributions collected by WikiLeaks. It would cost at least 40 million ISK (about 250,000 euros).

The Icelandic government has been very cautious on the issue, noting that an applicant must first make an application for asylum in person in the country.

"Since it is not in the country, I have no comment to make at this time," said the prime minister Wednesday Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson.

AFP