The famed whistleblower continues to garner international praise even as the US government continues to claim that he is a traitor who must be punished.
Whistleblower Edward Snowden received several standing ovations in the Swedish parliament after being given the Right Livelihood award for his revelations of the scale of state surveillance.
Snowden, who is in exile in Russia, addressed the parliament by video from Moscow. In a symbolic gesture, his family and supporters said no one picked up the award on his behalf in the hope that one day he might be free to travel to Sweden to receive it in person.
His father, Lon, who was in the chamber for what was an emotional ceremony, said: “I am thankful for the support of the Right Livelihood award and the Swedish parliament. The award will remain here in expectation that some time – sooner or later – he will come to Stockholm to accept the award.”
…The awards jury, in its citation, said Snowden was being honoured “for his courage and skill in revealing the unprecedented extent of state surveillance violating basic democratic processes and constitutional rights”.
Maybe Julian Assange of Wikileaks could have picked it up, for helping Snowden to a safe place.
Oh, wait…
Yep, America is so much better than that awful Soviet Union that spied on its citizens and lied about it and built huge walls at its borders and killed innocent people. So glad I never had to live in a place like that…
Butbutbut…Sweden is an evil lackney of the USANSACIA, they are part of a consiracy to bring down Saint Julian of Assange, that purehearted soldier of virtue who singlehandedly invented the concept of the whistleblower….This must be some clever ruse!
How did I miss this news? Here’s how: it doesn’t seem to be covered by any American newspaper! It’s in the Guardian, a Bagladesh newspaper, a Chinese English-language newspaper, a Japanese English-language newspaper, and an Australian online affiliate of ABC. That’s it!