Snowden may be too hot for China to handle
Posted on June 16, 2013
By ADAM MINTER
BLOOMBERG NEWS
... Of the many mysteries surrounding Snowden is why he decided to flee to Chinese territory. One of his stated reasons — that Hong Kong has “a spirited commitment to free speech” — is undeniably true. Yet when it comes to the subject most dear to Snowden’s heart, an encroaching surveillance state, Hong Kong falls short of the United States. This is in large part due to a 2006 digital surveillance law approved by a legislative committee dominated by pro-Beijing lawmakers.
Snowden’s view of Hong Kong often seems ill-informed about China’s encroaching influence on the city, as when he told Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post in an article published Thursday, “I have had many opportunities to flee HK, but I would rather stay and fight the United States government in the courts, because I have faith in Hong Kong’s rule of law.”
Even some Hong Kong rights activists seem bewildered by this viewpoint. Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor Director Law Yuk- kai told the South China Morning Post that, “Snowden’s positive view of Hong Kong no longer matches the reality.” This is the sort of thing a former NSA contractor should know in passing, if not in detail ...
What’s becoming clear is that it’s in China’s best interest that Snowden leave Hong Kong — and soon. No doubt, there has been no small amount of gloating in Beijing at the thought of a former U.S. intelligence analyst contemplating asylum on Chinese territory. But that satisfaction likely gave way to a wary recognition that Snowden is an advocate for digital privacy and against the surveillance state. Whatever benefit he might serve as an intelligence asset, or as a source of national prestige, is outweighed by the prospect of the world’s most famous whistle-blower living out his days in Hong Kong with nothing better to do than turn his attention to the surveillance state across the border ...
http://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/latestoped/1230833-8/snowden-may-be-too-hot-for-china-to
