海角大神

Although Edward Snowden is ready to accept a prison sentence in exchange for a safe return home, he has a clear message to future whistleblowers: Do not be afraid.

Any sentence he'd accept would have to be light enough so that other whistleblowers won't get discouraged.

In an interview with the BBC, the controversial whistleblower who leaked documents about the National Security Agency鈥檚 mass surveillance program says he has offered in multiple instances聽to serve prison time, but the American government has yet to respond.

鈥淚鈥檝e volunteered to go to prison with the government many times. What I won鈥檛 do is I won鈥檛 serve as a deterrent to people trying to do the right thing in difficult situations,鈥� Snowden said in the interview conducted in Moscow, where he has been in exile for the past two years. In 2013, he emerged in the international spotlight for his disclosure of the NSA鈥檚 monitoring of cell phones and Internet traffic, sparking a widespread and heated debate on privacy and national security.

Snowden鈥檚 legal adviser, Ben Wizner, tells 海角大神 that Snowden's latest interview reaffirms his longstanding willingness to compromise with the Justice Department.

鈥淗e鈥檚 not going to accept felony convictions with the loss of civil rights, and he wouldn鈥檛 want any prison sentence that would serve as a deterrent to other people considering courageous acts in the public interest, but that doesn鈥檛 mean he categorically has ruled out some jail time,鈥� Wizner says.

Snowden鈥檚 desire for a fair resolution with the US government isn鈥檛 rooted in a fear for punishment, Wizner continues, 鈥渂ut that he doesn鈥檛 want to contribute to a climate of fear of retaliation.鈥�

Snowden has been charged with three felony counts, including violations under the US Espionage Act for revealing classified information. Although he said he would consider a plea deal, he has not said how long he鈥檚 willing to spend in prison.

In March, former Gen. David Petraeus聽and his prosecutors agreed on a plea deal in his leak case in which he provided binders of classified information to his lover. Petraeus pled guilty to a misdemeanor and got off with a $40,000 fine and two years鈥� probation. One of Snowden鈥檚 legal advisers, Jesselyn Radack, has said her client .

But the former CIA director鈥檚 arrangement may have been an exception that other whistleblowers 鈥� namely, those without ties to top Army officials and the president 鈥� to secure.

In the case of Chelsea Manning, who unveiled more than 700,000 classified documents to WikiLeaks, the ex-soldier was dealt a much harsher penalty: . Under the Espionage Act, Snowden could face similar sentencing.

"So far, they've said they won't torture me, which is a start, I think, but we haven't gotten much further than that," Snowden said.

Richard Rashke, an author and journalist whose book, , is set to come out in December, tells 海角大神 he isn鈥檛 convinced a plea bargain will be attained, especially considering Snowden鈥檚 reluctance to admit to actual wrongdoing.

鈥淚s he going to give up the opportunity to fully air why he did what he did in the witness chair, or is he going to say that getting the truth out is worth spending a number of years in jail?鈥� Mr. Rashke asks. He says he isn鈥檛 so sure Snowden will choose the latter.

In May, Snowden and his lawyers said they鈥檝e yet to receive any guarantee of a fair, open trial.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder has said there is a possibility that the Justice Department with Snowden if he were to return.

鈥淲e are in a different place as a result of the Snowden disclosures,鈥� Holder told Yahoo News in July, emphasizing the importance of the debates regarding national security and privacy rights that his leak had catalyzed.

鈥淚 certainly think there could be a basis for a resolution that everybody could ultimately be satisfied with,鈥� he continued. 鈥淚 think the possibility exists.鈥�

But Holder鈥檚 successor, Loretta Lynch, has said the US government stands by its charges against Snowden. And Michael Hayden, former NSA director, told the BBC he thinks Snowden will most likely .

Wizner did not comment on the current status of their correspondence with the US government regarding the plea. "We're still waiting for them to call us back,鈥� Snowden said in the interview.

Earlier this summer, the Courage Foundation launched a campaign of support for the whistleblower as well as for the protection of whistleblowers worldwide. A separate petition had gathered more than 167,000 signatures, calling for President Obama to pardon Snowden, but the White House rejected it in July.

Considering the government鈥檚 currently handling of Snowden鈥檚 case, Rashke says this climate of fear will intimidate future whistleblowers from coming forward.

鈥淸Already], the vast majority of people who see crimes do not whistleblow because of their fear of retaliation,鈥� Rashke explains. 鈥淩ight at the moment, this whole fiasco is really discouraging whistleblowing.鈥�