Hong Kong’s decision to let Edward Snowden leave despite a U.S. warrant for his arrest spared the city a legal battle that would have left it trapped between the competing interests of Chinese and American leaders. In allowing the ex-National Security Agency contractor to board a flight to Moscow yesterday, Hong Kong no longer has to weigh American extradition demands against signs China didn’t want the city to give up Snowden, who exposed programs in which he said the U.S. monitored its own citizens and millions of Chinese text messages. The consequences include U.S. ire over the move and cast a spotlight on the city’s respect for legal procedures. Enlarge image Hong Kong Rebuff on Snowden Averts China Strain as U.S. Protests A woman walks past a banner displayed in support of Edward Snowden in Hong Kong, China, on June 18, 2013. Photographer: Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images Snowden to Seek Asylum in Ecuador, U.S. to Pursue 3:52 June 24 (Bloomberg) -- Edward Snowden, the former U.S. intelligence contractor who disclosed details of classified government intelligence activities, is seeking asylum in Ecuador as U.S. officials expressed anger at China and Russia for their role in allowing him to leave Hong Kong. Rosalind Chin reports on Bloomberg Television's "First Up." (Source: Bloomberg) Snowden Damaged U.S. Security, Ruppersberger Says 5:37 June 20 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Representative C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, talks about federal surveillance programs, Edward Snowden, the former national-security worker who leaked secret documents on the programs, and Google Inc.'s request to publish the national security inquiries it receives from the government. He speaks with Emily Chang on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg West." (Source: Bloomberg) Hong Kong’s government yesterday found “no legal basis” to stop Snowden, less than two weeks after Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said any extradition request would be handled according to the law. American senators decried the move and a Justice Department official said it raised concerns for the U.S. “It’s a neat option from the Hong Kong government’s point of view but there are also consequences,” Willy Wo-Lap Lam, a politics professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said by phone. “The decision risks being judged as a pretext and not respecting the rule of law and also not respecting the spirit of the extradition agreement with the U.S.” Hong Kong said the U.S. arrest warrant didn’t meet legal requirements. The Justice official, asking not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, said U.S. authorities believed the documents provided for the extradition request met the requirements of the agreement between the two countries. Discussions between the two countries over how and why the incident occurred will continue, the official said.
new source: bloomberg.com
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