Four refugees who sheltered Edward Snowden in their cramped Hong Kong apartment in 2013 landed in Canada Tuesday, where they have been granted asylum eight years after assisting one of the world’s most wanted men at the time.
Supun Thilina Kellapatha, Nadeeka Dilrukshi Nonis and their children Sethumdi and Dinath are en route to Montreal, where they will settle down as permanent residents of Canada.
FINALLY! After five years of waiting, four of the Snowden refugees are on a plane to Canada, and will start their new lives as Canadians today.
Read the story, and help cover their living expenses with a donation at https://t.co/1zd69aSuoi.https://t.co/dUoNpvFNua #cdnpoli
— For the Refugees (@4TheRefugees) September 28, 2021
“We are thrilled beyond measure to see this long ordeal finally come to an end for Supun, Nadeeka and their children,” Marc-André Séguin, president of For the Refugees, said in a statement. The nonprofit sponsored their applications for refuge status.
The family joins Vanessa Rodel and her daughter Keana (who is also Supun’s daughter). The pair were accepted as refugees in Canada in 2019.
A seventh asylum seeker who hid Snowden, Ajith Pushpakumara, is still in Hong Kong. For the Refugees is also assisting him with his application, and it is hoped that he too can resettle in Canada.
Read more: Edward Snowden slams Hong Kong gov’t over refugees
Snowden, a former CIA contractor, became one of the world’s most sought-after fugitives after flying to Hong Kong and leaking classified US intelligence to journalists. Staying at the Mira Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui then, Snowden took off when he learned that the US was pursuing a criminal investigation.
Canadian human rights lawyer Robert Tibbo, who was assisting Snowden, arranged for him to seek refuge at the apartments of asylum seekers whose cases he was representing.
The group of asylum seekers—who are Sri Lankan and Philippine nationals—played an instrumental role in Snowden’s run from the authorities.
“This is the best news I’ve heard in a long time,” Snowden, now living in Russia, wrote on Twitter in a post about the four landing in Canada. “It would not have possible without the generosity of so many of you who made this happen.”
