THE US FINALLY GIVES AN ANSWER ON SPYING ON BAHAMIANS
viagra shop times;”>It will probably not satisfy the critics as at all, malady the short and cryptic statement quoted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the House of Assembly on 15th April from the United States government. However, it is the first direct and official explanation given by the United States government to the startling revelations made last year by US whistleblower Edward Snowden that the United States was taping the phone calls of all Bahamians and storing them for future review. This caused an uproar and a public protest from the government but no concrete action. The Minister confined himself when asked about it to saying that the US had promised an explanation and one would be forthcoming. One came on 26th January and the Minister got the Cabinet’s approval to report what it said to the House last Wednesday. The statement seems to say that without admitting that they were spying on Bahamians, that they will in the future confine themselves to lawful interceptions. The full statement follows:
Mr. Speaker
The matter of the alleged surveillance and the taping of conversations of Bahamians by the United States agencies in The Bahamas has been the subject of public interest for some time. The Bahamas government has made inquiries on this matter and received the following answer from the United States State Department by way of an oral communication on 26th January:
The US will going forward use the lawful authority that was mutually agreed between the two countries to obtain surveillance information for drug interdiction and criminal activities.
Thank you Mr. Speaker.