Drones for Human Rights

Drones have useful purposes besides military surveillance and firing missiles, argue Andrew Stobo Sniderman and Mark Hanis in an opinion essay for the New York Times: “With drones, we could take clear pictures and videos of human rights abuses, and we could start with Syria.” Increasing violence in Syria forced official observers from the Arab League to suspend operations in January. High-definition footage provided by remote-controlled drones could augment YouTube videos and replace human observers to monitor any dangerous territories and document crimes for the United Nations. As with any technology, drones are increasing in size and becoming more affordable for groups that oppose human rights violations, environmental destruction or genocide. The two op-ed writers concede that reliance on drones is surveillance and could violate some laws, but so is taking photographs, supporting opposition leaders and collecting graphic evidence of wrongdoing in any brutal regime. – YaleGlobal