Dear libtech colleagues,
This may be of interest. Full report:
http://hrw.org/reports/2012/11/19/losing-humanity-0
Press release goes below
Best,
Enrique Piraces
Human Rights Watch
https://twitter.com/epiraces
Ban 'Killer Robots' Before It's Too Late
Fully Autonomous Weapons Would Increase Danger to Civilians
(Washington, DC, November 19, 2012) - Governments should pre-emptively ban
fully autonomous weapons because of the danger they pose to civilians in armed
conflict, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. These future
weapons, sometimes called killer robots, would be able to choose and fire on
targets without human intervention.
The 50-page report, Losing Humanity: The Case Against Killer Robots, outlines
concerns about these fully autonomous weapons, which would inherently lack
human qualities that provide legal and non-legal checks on the killing of
civilians. In addition, the obstacles to holding anyone accountable for harm
caused by the weapons would weaken the law's power to deter future violations.
Giving machines the power to decide who lives and dies on the battlefield
would take technology too far, said Steve
Goosehttp://www.hrw.org/bios/stephen-goose, Arms Division director at Human
Rights Watch. Human control of robotic warfare is essential to minimizing
civilian deaths and injuries.
Losing Humanity is the first major publication about fully autonomous weapons
by a nongovernmental organization and is based on extensive research into the
law, technology, and ethics of these proposed weapons. It is jointly published
by Human Rights Watch and the Harvard Law School International Human Rights
Clinic.
Human Rights Watch and the International Human Rights Clinic called for an
international treaty that would absolutely prohibit the development,
production, and use of fully autonomous weapons. They also called on individual
nations to pass laws and adopt policies as important measures to prevent
development, production, and use of such weapons at the domestic level.
Fully autonomous weapons do not yet exist, and major powers, including the
United States, have not made a decision to deploy them. But high-tech
militaries are developing or have already deployed precursors that illustrate
the push toward greater autonomy for machines on the battlefield. The United
States is a leader in this technological development. Several other countries -
including China, Germany, Israel, South Korea, Russia, and the United Kingdom -
have also been involved. Many experts predict that full autonomy for weapons
could be achieved in 20 to 30 years, and some think even sooner.
It is essential to stop the development of killer robots before they show up
in national arsenals, Goose said. As countries become more invested in this
technology, it will become harder to persuade them to give it up.
Fully autonomous weapons could not meet the requirements of international
humanitarian law, Human Rights Watch and the Harvard clinic said. They would be
unable to distinguish adequately between soldiers and civilians on the
battlefield or apply the human judgment necessary to evaluate the
proportionality of an attack - whether civilian harm outweighs military
advantage.
These robots would also undermine non-legal checks on the killing of civilians.
Fully autonomous weapons could not show human compassion for their victims, and
autocrats could abuse them by directing them against their own people. While
replacing human troops with machines could save military lives, it could also
make going to war easier, which would shift the burden of armed conflict onto
civilians.
Finally, the use of fully autonomous weapons would create an accountability
gap. Trying to hold the commander, programmer, or manufacturer legally
responsible for a robot's actions presents significant challenges. The lack of
accountability would undercut the ability to deter violations of international
law and to provide victims meaningful retributive justice.
While most militaries maintain that for the immediate future humans will retain
some oversight over the actions of weaponized robots, the effectiveness of that
oversight is questionable, Human Rights Watch and the Harvard clinic said.
Moreover, military statements have left the door open to full autonomy in the
future.
Action is needed now, before killer robots cross the line from science fiction
to feasibility, Goose said.
Full report:
http://hrw.org/reports/2012/11/19/losing-humanity-0
***To view video feature:
http://youtu.be/3Ykfk3jfI0c
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