Autor da fuga de informação sobre espionagem nos EUA revela identidade.
Por João Pedro Pereira in Público
10/06/2013
Trabalhava na Agência de Segurança Interna e fugiu para Hong Kong com os documentos que entregou aos jornais.
Edward Snowden tem 29 anos, é um ex-funcionário da CIA, trabalhava para a Agência de Segurança Interna dos EUA e fugiu para Hong Kong para entregar aos jornais documentos que revelaram que aquela agência acede a dados dos utilizadores de empresas como o Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Skype e Apple, no chamado "caso PRISM".
O jornal britânico The Guardian, com quem Snowden estava em contacto há vários dias, revelou ontem, a pedido do próprio, a identidade do autor da fuga de informação. "Não tenho intenções de me esconder, porque sei que não fiz nada de errado", afirmou Snowden, que também disse ter consciência das possíveis repercussões legais do que fez.
Numa entrevista em vídeo ao Guardian, Snowden afirmou não querer ser uma figura mediática. "Não quero atenção pública, porque não quero que a história seja sobre mim. Quero que seja sobre o que o Governo dos EUA está a fazer."
Snowden era funcionário da empresa de consultoria tecnológica Booz Allen, contratada para prestar serviços à Agência de Segurança Interna dos EUA. Vivia no Havai com a namorada. Há três semanas, começou a preparar a fuga de informação. Pediu às chefias para estar um período fora do trabalho, alegando que precisava de fazer tratamentos para a epilepsia, e disse à namorada que teria de passar um período fora - algo comum para quem trabalha nos serviços de informação americanos. Voou para Hong Kong e instalou-se num quarto de hotel, de onde praticamente não saiu.
Os EUA podem agora fazer um pedido de extradição. A China poderá optar por enviar Snowden de volta ou poderá ter interesse nele como fonte de informação.
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden: 'I do not expect to see home again'
Source for the Guardian's NSA files on why he carried out the biggest intelligence leak in a generation – and what comes next
Ewen MacAskill
The Guardian, Sunday 9 June 2013 / http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/09/nsa-whistleblower-edward-snowden-why
Edward Snowden was interviewed over several days in Hong Kong by Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill.
Q: Why did you decide to become a whistleblower?
A: "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."
Q: But isn't there a need for surveillance to try to reduce the chances of terrorist attacks such as Boston?
A: "We have to decide why terrorism is a new threat. There has always been terrorism. Boston was a criminal act. It was not about surveillance but good, old-fashioned police work. The police are very good at what they do."
Q: Do you see yourself as another Bradley Manning?
A: "Manning was a classic whistleblower. He was inspired by the public good."
Q: Do you think what you have done is a crime?
A: "We have seen enough criminality on the part of government. It is hypocritical to make this allegation against me. They have narrowed the public sphere of influence."
Q: What do you think is going to happen to you?
A: "Nothing good."
Q: Why Hong Kong?
A: "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."
Q: What do the leaked documents reveal?
A: "That the NSA routinely lies in response to congressional inquiries about the scope of surveillance in America. I believe that when [senator Ron] Wyden and [senator Mark] Udall asked about the scale of this, they [the NSA] said it did not have the tools to provide an answer. We do have the tools and I have maps showing where people have been scrutinised most. We collect more digital communications from America than we do from the Russians."
Q: What about the Obama administration's protests about hacking by China?
A: "We hack everyone everywhere. We like to make a distinction between us and the others. But we are in almost every country in the world. We are not at war with these countries."
Q: Is it possible to put security in place to protect against state surveillance?
A: "You are not even aware of what is possible. The extent of their capabilities is horrifying. We can plant bugs in machines. Once you go on the network, I can identify your machine. You will never be safe whatever protections you put in place."
Q: Does your family know you are planning this?
A: "No. My family does not know what is happening … My primary fear is that they will come after my family, my friends, my partner. Anyone I have a relationship with …
I will have to live with that for the rest of my life. I am not going to be able to communicate with them. They [the authorities] will act aggressively against anyone who has known me. That keeps me up at night."
Q: When did you decide to leak the documents?
A: "You see things that may be disturbing. When you see everything you realise that some of these things are abusive. The awareness of wrong-doing builds up. There was not one morning when I woke up [and decided this is it]. It was a natural process.
"A lot of people in 2008 voted for Obama. I did not vote for him. I voted for a third party. But I believed in Obama's promises. I was going to disclose it [but waited because of his election]. He continued with the policies of his predecessor."
Q: What is your reaction to Obama denouncing the leaks on Friday while welcoming a debate on the balance between security and openness?
A: "My immediate reaction was he was having difficulty in defending it himself. He was trying to defend the unjustifiable and he knew it."
Q: What about the response in general to the disclosures?
A: "I have been surprised and pleased to see the public has reacted so strongly in defence of these rights that are being suppressed in the name of security. It is not like Occupy Wall Street but there is a grassroots movement to take to the streets on July 4 in defence of the Fourth Amendment called Restore The Fourth Amendment and it grew out of Reddit. The response over the internet has been huge and supportive."
Q: Washington-based foreign affairs analyst Steve Clemons said he overheard at the capital's Dulles airport four men discussing an intelligence conference they had just attended. Speaking about the leaks, one of them said, according to Clemons, that both the reporter and leaker should be "disappeared". How do you feel about that?
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