Hail the power of technology blogged by Joyce Schwarz @ www.hollywood2020.blogs.com. According to Reuters and National Geo reports .....Satellite images confirm reports earlier this year of burned villages, forced relocations and other human rights abuses in Myanmar, scientists said on Friday.
Satellite images of human rights violations in Myanmar (formerly called Burma) according to Reuters and National Geo.
Reuters reports, "The American Association for the Advancement of Science said the high-resolution photographs taken by commercial satellites document a growing military presence at 25 sites across eastern Myanmar, matching eyewitness reports.
"We found evidence of 18 villages that essentially disappeared," AAAS researcher Lars Bromley said in an interview.
News reports say that Myanmar, formerly Burma, is suffering its worst unrest since a 1988 rebellion by students and monks.
MONITORING VIA SATELLITE:
How is all of this possible? Turns out that Bromley's group got grant funding from Open Society Institute and MacArthur Foundation to book satellite time over Myanmar and to buy archived images. Then they scroll inch by inch to compare what has been destroyed or if a certain forest still exists etc. Because of cloud cover it's tough to find out what's happening via even those views.
All I can say is hurrah to the power of technology and human ingenuity to do this. What's up with television, radio, cell phones, email, text messaging and Internet from Myanmar (formerly Burma) -- let me find out and get back to you on that js.
Great post, Joyce. I hadn't seen this one at all. You might find this report of interest, too. http://committeetoprotectbloggers.org/2007/09/26/burmese-blogger-goes-dark/
Posted by: Marshall Kirkpatrick | September 30, 2007 at 06:49 PM