US lacks respect for HK

The US Justice Department failed to show its respect for Hong Kong's judicial system when its spokesperson on Thursday accused Hong Kong of using a "pretext" not to hand over former NSA staffer Edward Snowden.

While Hong Kong has treaty obligations to extradite fugitives wanted in the US, and treasures its good relationship with the country, the city's law enforcers are as much obligated to conduct the procedure of arrest and extradition in accordance with law.

The Hong Kong authority's request for essential information - including the correct name and the nature of the alleged offences of Snowden - from the US side to fulfill the legal requirements for a provisional warrant of arrest is exactly part of the due process of law enforcement.

The remark by the US Justice Department spokesperson that "because Snowden's image was widely available through news outlets, Hong Kong's request for information was not genuine" has shocked the world as it has exposed the US authority's blatant disregard of due process.

It constitutes a due-process violation, which offends against the rule of law, should the Hong Kong authority hastily arrest and extradite Snowden without first fulfilling the legal requirements.

The Hong Kong authority has reasonably safeguarded its reputation as a place ruled by law, and won applause from most of its residents.

It is understandable that the US Justice Department has viewed the event from the US angle and spoken for its own interest. What has bewildered and infuriated many Hong Kong people is that Martin Lee Chu-ming, founding chairman of the Democratic Party, has assailed the Hong Kong authority for its way of handling the Snowden case in exactly the same tone of the spokesperson.

Lee has been trumpeting niceties such as democracy, freedom and rights. But this time when Hong Kong people's rights have been infringed, for whom has he spoken?

Instead of condemning the US for the NSA's violation of the rights of Hong Kong people by illegally intruding into their online communication, Lee has decried the Hong Kong authority as "foolish" in handling the Snowden case.

The author is a current affairs commentator.

(HK Edition 06/28/2013 page9)