Edward Snowden to Appear Via Video Link at Libertarian Convention

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Edward Snowden will appear via video link as a featured speaker at a New Hampshire convention of libertarian activists.

The Valley News reports that the former National Security Agency contractor will participate in a 30-minute discussion and Q&A at the New Hampshire Free State Project's convention in Manchester in February.

National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden appears on a live video feed broadcast from Moscow at an event sponsored by the ACLU Hawaii in Honolulu on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)

The Free State Project describes itself as an effort to recruit "liberty-loving people" to move to New Hampshire. The group says it is trying to recruit 20,000 people who agree that a government should act to protect people's rights.

Snowden leaked millions of documents about government surveillance to a United Kingdom newspaper in 2013. He has been living in Russia under a grant of asylum and faces charges in the U.S. for leaking details of the once-secret program.

Free State Project President Carla Gericke confirmed the speaking engagement at their Liberty Forum, which runs from Feb. 18-21. She said the topic has yet to be decided.

"He's a really insightful and brilliant man," she said. "From our perspective, we're really excited to give him a platform."

Gericke said Snowden doesn't deserve to be labeled a "traitor."

"I think what he did was incredibly courageous and brave," she said, comparing Snowden's disclosures with those of Daniel Ellsberg, who released the Pentagon Papers.

Snowden was the subject of a 2014 Academy Award-winning documentary called "Citizenfour," which chronicles his work with Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald and filmmaker Laura Poitras to reveal the secrets.