Sydsvenskan publicerar idag 29 augusti en artikel av Professor Stefan
Svallfors:
*"Låt Snowden få Sacharovpriset"*
http://www.sydsvenskan.se/opinion/aktuella-fragor/lat-snowden-fa-sacharovpriset/
Nedan en engelsk version.
//Erik
*A Sakharov for our time?
*
Since 1988, the European Parliament has awarded the Sakharov Prize. According
to its statutes, this is given to a person or group "who made remarkable
efforts to defend human rights and fundamental freedoms" and thus "worked
against intolerance, fanaticism and oppression."
The award is given in memory of the Russian physicist Andrei Sakharov
(1921-1989), known as one of the men behind the hydrogen bomb but even more as
a Soviet dissident with his Human Rights Committee and his defense of political
prisoners. Sakharov stands as a symbol of the individual human being who dares
to stand up against tyranny and oppression, even when the personal cost is very
high.
A most deserving recipient of the 2013 price would be the American whistle
blower Edward Snowden. In May, The Guardian published his disclosure of the
extensive, illegal and deeply intrusive monitoring conducted by the American
National Security Agency. For this heroic effort Snowden has paid a heavy
personal price. He is hunted as an outlaw by the U.S. government, accused of
crimes that will put him in jail for the rest of his life. The U.S. government
has threatened the governments that dare to offer him asylum with serious
consequences. In a painful irony, the only sanctuary that had been found for
Snowden is Russia, a country whose democratic problems and authoritarian
tendencies are obvious.
But is really Snowden a worthy recipient of the prize, someone may sneeze. Is
not America the world's leading democracy, a friend of Europe, committed to the
rule of law? Yes. But even democracies can hide pockets of tyranny in their
hearts, a democratic state may well coexist with other systems that are
characterized by anything but democracy and law. As the monitoring system which
now puts its global tentacles far into the private lives of citizens. By
exposing this system Snowden made it possible for us to say No -- this is not a
development and a society we want, we protect our civil rights and freedoms
when they are threatened.
Snowden's revelations make explicit demands on citizens and politicians to act
and react. How have we responded to these demands? Not in any impressive way
one must say. Individual politicians and many citizens have reacted, expressed
support for Snowden, trying to act in his defense. They see the unpleasant
consequences of a surveillance system where innocent citizens get their
electronic communication and their phone calls tapped and mapped. The German
President Joachim Gauck, with his personal East German experience, for example
stated that Snowden "deserves respect" for his actions. But otherwise an
awkward silence, evasive answers, gentle tiptoeing. Merkel hums, The European
Commission whispers, the parliaments remain silent.
On the Swedish side, even more depressing inaction is observed. Sweden acts
together with Britain to make sure the question should not be addressed at
European level. This is a bilateral issue and by the way, no Swedish interests
are at stake, the Foreign Minister distractedly announces before returning to
Twitter. The government obviously sees no reason to allow this issue to eclipse
the splendor of Obama's forthcoming state visit. From the political left, a
complete disinterest is shown. No social democratic position is advanced or
even formulated.
It is tragic to see how thin the liberal veneer is in many places. When
liberalism is no longer easy and obvious, when it requires courage and
sacrifice, when we are forced to choose and our choices have real costs, what
happens then? We fall into line, we bend to power. Without grumbling we let
fairly manageable threats from terrorists sweep away fundamental rights and
freedoms.
We must demand more of ourselves and our elected officials than that. We could
start by giving Edward Snowden the price whose name symbolizes a man who
refused to bow to oppression and thereby actually changed history.
Stefan Svallfors
Professor of Sociology at Umeå University
& the Institute for Future Studies
