US, China, EU Unlikely to Sign Snowden Treaty as They Have Much to Hide

The United States, China and the European Union are unlikely to sign the so-called Snowden Treaty aimed at setting global standards for surveillance limits and enhancing the protections afforded to whistleblowers, a member of the European Parliament for the Austrian Freedom Party told Sputnik Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik), Daria Chernyshova — The draft international pact is being developed by Edward Snowden together with investigative journalist Glenn Greenwald and civil liberties advocate David Miranda. The document, dubbed the Snowden Treaty, is intended to be offered to countries around the world that want to protect whistleblowers.

“I fear that the big players in the game will not accept this,” Franz Obermayr said, mentioning the United States, China, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden and Finland in particular. He explained that "the big players have a lot of information, a lot of things to hide."

Obermayr stressed the importance of protecting whistleblowers as they were the ones who reveal sensitive information.

“In our time, it is necessary to protect whistleblowers because otherwise, the forces standing behind the systems have a monopoly position. So it is important to have that simple human responsible person to talk about the information,” Obermayr said.

After the revelations of governmental mass surveillance and eavesdropping made by the former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, the issue of whistleblowing has been high on the agenda of the international debates, including the European Parliament, the Council of Europe and others.

Snowden has been residing in Russia since the summer of 2013, after the United States revoked his passport and initiated steps for his extradition on espionage charges.

The United Nations stepped up its efforts to curb illegal surveillance three months ago by appointing its first special rapporteur on the right to privacy, with a mandate to recommend measures to ensure the promotion and protection of this right at both international and national levels.