Non-Subscriber Extract
Amnesty uses commercial satellite imagery to monitor Darfur
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| 13 June 2007 |
By Kimberley Ebner
Commercial high-resolution satellite imaging technology is being used to monitor the conflict in Darfur by the human rights organisation Amnesty International USA.
The organisation has launched its 'Eyes on Darfur' project, designed to raise awareness of the Darfur conflict by publishing 'before and after' high-resolution satellite imagery of 12 Darfur regions on the Internet.
Supported by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and its Geospatial Technologies and Human Rights (GaTHR) project, the Amnesty programme is the latest evidence of the democratisation of commercial satellite imagery. It also underlines a growing trend towards the analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery to monitor conflict and record it from a humanitarian, rather than a defence, perspective.
Ariela Blatter, Amnesty's Crisis Prevention & Response Center director, told Jane's that this was the first time a human rights organisation had engaged in real-time satellite monitoring activities.
High-resolution satellite imagery from low earth orbit satellites can track and record the movements of militia, troops and refugees, as well as the destruction of villages, crops and livestock. Images can also be used as evidence in human rights legal proceedings.
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© 2007 Jane's Information Group
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