[Flug] Fwd: (fwd) New software to assist NGO documentation of human rights abuses [marcogaio@inwind.it]

[paolo palmerini]

ciao,

a proposito della domanda di franco sul remailer,
segnalo questo progetto che, pur essendo di natura diversa,
si basa su motivazioni simili. Si tratta di un software
distribuito per l'archiviazione di denunce di violazioni di diritti
umani, basato su un'architettura tipo P2P. In questo ambito le
motivazioni a mantenere l'anonimato sono forti.
forse franco puo' trovare spunti per la sua trasmissione
sul sito di questo progetto.


On 2003.01.17 06:53 Marco Gaiarin wrote:

...credo possa interessare...

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Bytes For All readers -

I wanted to let everyone know that the nonprofit I work for, The
Benetech Initiative, just released our human rights software,
The Martus Human Rights Bulletin System.  The release (with URL)
is below; the main Martus site where people can download the
software is http://www.martus.org.

Sincerely -
Brendan Nyhan

http://www.martus.org/project_update.html

NEW SOFTWARE PROVIDES SECURE WORLDWIDE
TRACKING AND DOCUMENTATION OF HUMAN
RIGHTS ABUSES

The Benetech Initiative and The Asia Foundation team up to
deliver The Martus(tm) Human Rights Bulletin System

Palo Alto, Calif. - Jan. 15, 2003 - The Benetech Initiative, a
Silicon Valley nonprofit, today announced the release of The
Martus Human Rights Bulletin System, an open source technology
tool designed to assist human rights organizations in collecting,
safeguarding, organizing and disseminating information about
human rights abuses. Through a partnership with The Asia
Foundation, a U.S.-based nonprofit working on the ground in Asia,
Martus will first be implemented in the Philippines to provide
better resources to groups combating hundreds of human rights
violations per year.

Currently, much of the violation and abuse information gathered
by grassroots human rights groups is lost to confiscation,
destruction, or neglect, making it difficult or impossible for
prosecutors, truth commissions and others to use the information
as evidence to hold the perpetrators of human rights abuses
accountable for many of their crimes. The Martus software enables
grassroots NGOs to securely store their records on off-site
servers with easy-to-use software, preserving crucial evidence
for research, investigation and prosecutions.

"Grassroots NGOs told us it was essential that the software be
easy to use, so we modeled it after the simple interface of
email," said Jim Fruchterman, CEO of Benetech.

In the Philippines, The Asia Foundation is sponsoring and
facilitating the first implementation and training of the Martus
software in the 22 offices of the Philippine Commission on Human
Rights, and a network of domestic human rights organizations. In
February, the software will be installed on Internet-connected
workstations, allowing these organizations to securely document
and disseminate information on human rights cases for the first
time, which in turn will facilitate and improve the process of
investigation, prosecution, assistance, and advocacy for victims
of human rights violations.

"Information technology has the potential to dramatically improve
the ability of human rights groups to manage information, giving
them evidence to prosecute perpetrators," said Dr. Steven Rood,
Country Representative of The Asia Foundation in the Philippines.
"The Martus software provides a platform for nongovernmental
human rights advocates to communicate with the Commission on
Human Rights in a secure manner, and will provide detailed
information to help press for broader reforms."

The software was designed in consultation with human rights
groups and experts worldwide, including Dr. Patrick Ball of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science, one of the
world's leading human rights statisticians and Senior Advisor to
the project. Beta testing took place in Guatemala, Russia, Sri
Lanka and the US.

Aspiration, an organization specializing in nonprofit technology
implementation, has supported the development and introduction of
the Martus system. Jonathan Peizer, Aspiration's President, says,
"The Martus software is essential for human rights groups working
to document abuses. We are now working actively to help support
its deployment."

Future applications of the Martus software for social justice
groups include monitoring other issues like violence against
women, human trafficking, environmental destruction and hate
crimes. The software and its source code are available for
download at http://www.martus.org.


-- 
Paolo Palmerini                 Email: paolo.palmerini@cnuce.cnr.it
CNUCE-CNR                       Fax  : (+39) 050 313 8091
Via V. Alfieri, 1               Tel  : (+39) 050 315 2967
56010 Ghezzano, Pisa, Italy     http : www.miles.cnuce.cnr.it/~palmeri
Key fingerprint  =  12B7 8482 5153 5AE8 0883  34D6 DDF2 E9E2 231D 285C