China: Demonstrators in Hong Kong support Snowden

Hundreds demonstrated in Hong Kong in support for Snowden's asylum plea and his revelation of NSA snooping in the USA and around the World. 

Both pro-Beijing and opposition forces have similar position in this matter, being Hong Kong, unlike mainland China, a place where Internet freedom is real and a coveted right.

Protesters gave a missive with their demands to US general consul Steve Young. 

Sources: Webguerrillero[es], EXSKF.

Update on whistleblowers: Snowden missing, Manning's mock-trial transcripts

It has been reported that US NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has disappeared after his asylum request in Hong Kong. It is unclear at this moment if Snowden is in hiding, he has been kidnapped or arrested by Chinese police. He was last seen yesterday at noon, when he checked out of a luxury hotel in the semi-autonomous Chinese city. Hong Kong has an extradition treaty with the USA since 1998.

Both Julian Assange (Wikileaks' leader, refuged in Ecuador's embassy since a year ago) and Daniel Ellsberg (who leaked the Pentagon Papers back in the 1970s) have issued separate communications in solidarity with Snowden.

Assange declared that:

Edward Snowden is a hero who has informed the public about one of the most serious events of the decade, which was the creeping formulation of a mass surveillance state. 

Ellsberg wrote an article at The Guardian in which he said, among other things that:

In my estimation, there has not been in American history a more important leak than Edward Snowden's release of NSA material – and that definitely includes the Pentagon Papers 40 years ago. Snowden's whistleblowing gives us the possibility to roll back a key part of what has amounted to an "executive coup" against the US constitution.

And also:

... what is not legitimate is to use a secrecy system to hide programs that are blatantly unconstitutional in their breadth and potential abuse. 

Manning and Snowden depicted as superheroes by Webguerrillero.

Manning's mock trial transcripts:

The Freedom of the Press Foundation is making a major effort to independently transcript the military trial against Bradley Manning (official transcripts are not available to the public). They explain:

The US military has refused to release transcripts of Bradley Manning's trial. In addition, they've denied press passes to 270 out of the 350 media organizations that applied. Without public transcripts or a press pass, it's virtually impossible for media organizations to accurately cover the trial and for the public to know what the government is doing in its name.

In response, Freedom of the Press Foundation has crowd-sourced funding to place a professional stenographer in the media room covering the trial. We will post full transcripts shortly after each day's proceedings end. The morning session with be posted by 7 pm the same evening. The afternoon session will be posted by 9 am the next morning. The transcripts will be released under an Attribution 3.0 Unported Creative Commons license.

Depending on how long the trial lasts, transcriptions will cost between $60,000-120,000, so please help support this project by going here to donate.

The transcripts are freely available HERE.

NSA whistleblower exiles himself in Hong Kong

Edward Snowden, who allowed his identity to be published, is seeking refuge in Hong Kong (China). It remains to be seen how keen are the equally autocratic Chinese authorities to have him in their soil.

An extensive interview is available at The Guardian (which was also the paper reporting the extensive surveillance network in the USA and abroad). Excerpts:

The NSA has built an infrastructure that allows it to intercept almost everything. With this capability, the vast majority of human communications are automatically ingested without targeting. If I wanted to see your emails or your wife's phone, all I have to do is use intercepts. I can get your emails, passwords, phone records, credit cards. 

I don't want to live in a society that does these sort of things … I do not want to live in a world where everything I do and say is recorded. That is not something I am willing to support or live under.

...

Manning was a classic whistleblower. He was inspired by the public good.

...

I think it is really tragic that an American has to move to a place that has a reputation for less freedom. Still, Hong Kong has a reputation for freedom in spite of the People's Republic of China. It has a strong tradition of free speech.

...

Someone responding to the story said 'real spies do not speak like that'. Well, I am a spy and that is how they talk. Whenever we had a debate in the office on how to handle crimes, they do not defend due process – they defend decisive action. They say it is better to kick someone out of a plane than let these people have a day in court. It is an authoritarian mindset in general.

...

The only thing I can do is sit here and hope the Hong Kong government does not deport me … My predisposition is to seek asylum in a country with shared values. The nation that most encompasses this is Iceland. They stood up for people over internet freedom. I have no idea what my future is going to be.

Occupy Hong-Kong: indignant movement extends to China (video)

I feel Hong-Kong of all places on Earth is peculiar meeting point where the Capitalist West meets the also Capitalist (under a "communist" pretext) China. The fact that thousands of Chinese have taken to occupy the central district of Hong-Kong and intend to stay there is quite remarkable:

From Protestation.org blog.

200,000 demonstrate in Hong-Kong against Capitalist speculators

How ironic it is that the People demonstrate against the ultra-Capitalist policies promoted by a self-defined "communist" party. How sad!

Besides the cost of housing and speculation around it, demonstrators also protested for attempts to restrict the democratic prerogatives that Hong-Kong has, notably the issue of byelections, which can be forced by representatives' resignations (a good idea we should copy, so majorities don't get too arrogant on risk of being forced by the minority to call new elections).

The turnout was surprising. Later, some thousands attempted sit ins and were arrested. 

Source: China Worker (via PO). The article includes some analysis comparing this movement with those around the Mediterranean and claiming that both the reasons (Capitalism) and lack of clear understanding by the People are the same.