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New Zealand First leader Winston Peters believes former US National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden’s allegations about New Zealand’s spy agencies will hurt National in Saturday’s election.
Mr Peters says Prime Minister John Key is trying to shift the ground by claiming there was no programme of mass surveillance, when the issue should be whether there was any illegal surveillance of New Zealanders at all.
Mr Snowden told Monday’s Moment of Truth public meeting in Auckland by videolink that as an NSA contractor in Hawaii he had access at the touch of a button to New Zealanders emails, texts and other electronic data.
Mr Peters says the fall-out of New Zealand’s pursuit of Internet mogul Kim Dotcom on behalf of Hollywood film studios is that other unsavoury aspects of the Government’s relations with the US are now coming out.
"What’s the real issue here is that now our international reputation is at stake because of a tawdry, sordid deal with Hollywood that the Prime Minister entered into and it really calls into question seriously his judgment. As a consequence now we are there with all our neighbours we used to work with looking at us and thinking what on earth is going on down in New Zealand," he says.
Mr Peters says New Zealanders are right to fear their privacy is being breached.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH WINSTON PETERS CLICK ON THE LINK
https://secure.zeald.com/uma/play_podcast?podlink=MjIyMTU=
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