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Strategies & Market Trends : 2026 TeoTwawKi ... 2032 Darkest Interregnum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: THE ANT who wrote (101028)	6/12/2013 11:02:23 PM
From: TobagoJack	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 217931

issue: brazil probably had not much trade w/ england back whenever (1) usa is one of the largest trading partners of hong kong (2) hong kong govt left on own would probably boot edward in a hurry but must consider what beijing really wants hk to do and consider what hk's very independent court would say and consider every person on the street thus we have a delicious situation :0) (3) beijing would not want to be seen to be interfering in hk, and would hint rather than say anything, even as beijing would be hard-pressed to press hk court thus lovely setup (4) usa would not want to be seen interfering in hk, whereas china would not mind usa be seen to be interfering in hk so wonderful giddy w/ anticipation hk govt probably wishing young edward would go to singapore ;0) beijing probably doesn't care one way or another as long as usa embroiled in a no-win public-relation situation usa authorities may not even know the nature of the game they are in, and if they know, they would know to tread very carefully one of the big issues per wsj / nyt / usa consulate office / capitol hill way back a few years ago was the hong kong legislature tee-ing up sedition law & regulations, and made clear they were uniformly against the language, which actually is much less harsh than the patriot act. let us anticipate with hunger and ready to enjoy the twists and turns with lust.

To: THE ANT who wrote (101028)	6/12/2013 11:39:19 PM
From: TobagoJack	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 217931

and so the positioning starts (the comments at the end are typical of the expats) scmp.com Washington is bullying Hong Kong to extradite me, says Edward Snowden America is desperate to prevent me leaking further information, whistle-blower says Thursday, 13 June, 2013, 12:24am Lana Lam Most Popular VIEWED SHARED COMMENTED Edward Snowden: US government has been hacking Hong Kong and China for years EXCLUSIVE: Whistle-blower Edward Snowden talks to South China Morning Post Whistle-blower Edward Snowden tells SCMP: 'Let Hong Kong people decide my fate' EXCLUSIVE: Whistleblower Edward Snowden talks to South China Morning Post Washington is bullying Hong Kong to extradite me, says Edward Snowden YanktheYanksJun 13th 2013 9:16am Watch out Hong Kong! Bankrupt and declining USA will follow the historic Anglo Saxon ‘tradition’ of justifying any means to have it their way, if they think it is in their ‘national interest’, and continue to show no respect for the national sovereignty, laws, and democratic processes of other countries. They will roll out ANY method to get their hands on Snowden – probably by telling all other countries to respect THEIR national sovereignty, laws, and processes! What a sorry state of a most hypocritical society and nation! The Whistle-blower !Jun 13th 2013 9:07am C.Y.said that he would not comment on Edward Snowden's case but his administration would tackle it according to law and policies--------he probably is awaiting the instructions from Beijing:whether to comply to the request of Obama's government to have this whistle-blower extradicted back to the US.for trial on charges of treason and leaks of top national secrets which might cause the death penalty of this 29-year-old young man with conscience who would rather abandon his U$200,000 yearly salary and a comfortable life in Hawaii working on cyber episonage tasks for his mother country to disclose the dirty acts of the No.1 power in the world--Big Brother is watching:not just Mainland China but the U.S.A. as well.We Hongkongers have moral obligations to help him stay here safely before he is accepted by another nation which would accept him. See you all this coming Saturday at 3 p.m. in the march for supporting this whistle-blower ! Okay ?

To: THE ANT who wrote (101028)	6/13/2013 7:03:16 PM
From: TobagoJack	Respond to of 217931

... i observe that those who even try to denigrate hong kong based on the premise that 'oh, it would only last another 34 years' misses the crucial point, that most domains do not even have 34 weeks. further, i believe w/ good-enough reasons that the one country two systems approach would be extended another 50 years, good enough for most life times. challenging freedom hong kong based on our legal regime would make team usa look more than silly even if all of the usual suspect usa media jumps on the smear band wagon the truth hurts only those afraid of the truth team usa is worried about the truth, that ... scmp.com Snowden right to put his trust in Hong Kong's fair and open courts \| South China Morning PostHong Kong has been thrust into the international spotlight after it was revealed that American whistle-blower Edward Snowden sought refuge in our city while he exposed the magnitude of America's secretive state surveillance programme. Snowden has reiterated his intention to stay and fight any extradition to the US, saying: "I have had many opportunities to flee Hong Kong, but I would rather stay and fight the US government in the courts, because I have faith in Hong Kong's rule of law." The wisdom or otherwise of Snowden's choice has since been much debated in the international community and here in Hong Kong, with some casting doubt over how the Hong Kong government would react to pressure from the United States for extradition. Those who do, however, are missing the crucial point, one that Snowden appears firmly aware of: even if our government should succumb to political pressure at home or from abroad, his fate would ultimately be decided by our courts. The key lies in our common-law legal system, which is based first and foremost on the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. Judges are supposed to, and do, decide cases based solely on the Basic Law, local legislation and common-law principles. For extradition of "fugitives" from Hong Kong to the US, the legal procedure is contained in the extradition treaty signed between the city and the US in 1996 and in the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance enacted in 1998. If and when the US government makes a request for extradition, the Hong Kong government would have a legal obligation under the extradition treaty to consider ordering the arrest of Snowden, who would then be brought before a court of law as soon as possible following his arrest. From there on, it becomes a judicial process, much like those in any other common-law jurisdictions. The court would have a duty to assess the validity of the extradition order, the underlying evidence, and the charges brought against Snowden. As a defendant fighting extradition, Snowden would be offered full legal representation, time and resources to fight his case and, most importantly, the guarantee of due process and the right of appeal to the Court of Final Appeal. In court, Snowden could well argue that the charges he faces fall under the "political offences" exception, as provided for under the extradition treaty and our local legislation. Under this exception, a person cannot be extradited if it appears to the court that the offence he is charged with is "of a political character", that the extradition request was "in fact made for the purpose of prosecuting or punishing him on account of his race, religion, nationality or political opinions", or that he might be prejudiced at his trial for the same reasons. Again, the question of whether a case falls under the political offences exception would ultimately be a matter for our courts - and the courts alone - to decide. This stands in sharp contrast with the position in the US, where the competent authority to decide on this question is the US Department of State, which is responsible for America's international relations. Its decision would be heavily influenced by political considerations. There is nonetheless one potential complication with the Hong Kong extradition process. The extradition treaty between Hong Kong and the US specifically provides that the central government in Beijing can veto any decision to extradite Snowden on the grounds that it would contravene "the interests of the People's Republic of China in matters of defence or foreign affairs". This proviso was included because even though we enjoy a "high degree of autonomy" under the Basic Law, matters of defence and foreign affairs are strictly within the ambit of the central government. In other words, if Beijing considers that it would not be in the national interests to extradite Snowden to the US, then it could put a stop to the process. However, no matter what the central government or the US government may wish to do, Snowden's rights under the extradition procedure, including his right to defend and fully argue his case, are well protected and shielded from all geopolitical considerations, as these matters would be dealt with by our legal system based on the rule of law. Snowden chose to come to our city because he believes we "have a spirited commitment to free speech and the right of political dissent". He also said that his intention "is to ask the courts and people of Hong Kong to decide my fate". We have every reason to believe that the courts of Hong Kong would do just that in an open and fair manner. These are Hong Kong's core values. Dennis Kwok is a legislative councillor of the Hong Kong SAR representing the legal profession