Protesters supporting Edward Snowden. Photograph by Mike Herbst
US fugitive Edward Snowden has requested to meet with human rights groups in Moscow according to officials.
The former intelligence contractor is presumed to have been staying in the transit area of Sheremetyevo airport since June 23rd when he left Hong Kong, with the US President Obama reportedly “disappointed” with China for not handing him over during his brief stay there. He is wanted in the US for leaking state secrets about NSA spying programmes which have made headlines around the world.
Snowden has applied for political asylum in at least 21 countries, and while most denied his application, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Venezuela have indicated that they would offer him asylum. Russia had offered him asylum if he agreed to stop leaking information about the NSA’s spying programmes.
The issue for Snowden now will be how to leave the no-man’s land of Sheremetyevo airport transit lounge, with the US putting pressure on all countries around the globe not to offer him passage through their airspace, even forcing an aircraft carrying Bolivian President Evo Morales to reroute across European airspace and land to be checked for carrying Snowden.
Snowden is reportedly hoping to make a statement later today, after sending meeting requests to members of a number of leading human rights organisations including Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International for a meeting at 16:30 local time.
Tanya Lokshina from HRW published the alleged invitation from Snowden on her Facebook page:
I have been extremely fortunate to enjoy and accept many offers of supportand asylum from brave countries around the world. These nations have my gratitude, and I hope to travel to each of them to extend my personal thanks to their people and leaders. By refusing to compromise their principles in the face of intimidation, they have earned the respect of the world.
Unfortunately, in recent weeks we have witnessed an unlawful campaign by officials in the U.S. Government to deny my right to seek and enjoy this asylum under Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The scale of threatening behavior is without precedent: never before in history have states conspired to force to the ground a sovereign President’s plane to effect a search for a political refugee. This dangerous escalation represents a threat not just to the dignity of Latin America or my own personal security, but to the basic right shared by every living person to live free from persecution.
I invite the Human Rights organizations and other respected individuals addressed to join me on 12 July at 5:00PM at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow for a brief statement and discussion regarding the next steps forward in my situation. Your cooperation and support will be greatly appreciated in this matter.
Sincerely,
Edward Joseph SnowdenMEETING DETAILS:
Please meet at 4.30pm at Sheremetyevo airport in Terminal F, in the centre of the arrival hall. Someone from airport staff will be waiting there to receive you with a sign labelled “G9”. Please bring a copy of this invite and ID to show that you work for your organization as security will likely be tight at this meeting. A maximum of three people are able to attend from each organization. For any questions please contact the airport administration on +8 916-816-4335.
