THIS WEEKEND, Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald’s partner, David Miranda, was detained at Heathrow Airport for nine hours. Greenwald alleges this was an act of intimidation by the US and UK because of his Edward Snowden-informed writings revealing the NSA’s widespread surveillance programs.
This is a profound attack on press freedoms and the news gathering process. To detain my partner for a full nine hours while denying him a lawyer, and then seize large amounts of his possessions, is clearly intended to send a message of intimidation to those of us who have been reporting on the NSA and GCHQ. The actions of the UK pose a serious threat to journalists everywhere.
But I mean really, who hasn’t been detained at Heathrow Airport? In the spring of 2009 I was, and probably not for political reasons. More for just being an idiot.