ONLINE TRAINING COURSE
Satellite Imagery as Evidence in International Judicial Proceedings
February 2024
ABOUT
The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Asser Institute, together with IUSTICOM, and benefitting from the support of the Geneva Science-Policy Interface, has developed an online training programme focused on the use of satellite imagery as evidence within international justice proceedings.
The training course is based in large part on the experiences of UNITAR’s UN Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) which has provided satellite imagery analyses, evidence, and testimony to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the last ten years.
Click on the course flyer below for further details (available for download).
DETAILS
Given the challenges of preparing satellite imagery as evidence for courtroom use, UNITAR-UNOSAT, the Asser Institute, and IUSTICOM have come together on this issue.
The training aims to close the knowledge gap between legal professionals and satellite imagery experts. These two disparate fields, each with deep expertise and history, must be able to seamlessly interact around this subject matter to maximise its potential.
Satellite-imagery based analysis has become commonplace among a wide variety of government and commercial entities. Its use in international criminal justice proceedings began long ago and continues in courts and mechanisms investigating and prosecuting international crimes. Over the years, the satellite imagery and legal fields have greatly expanded and developed and increased their interactions.
UNOSAT staff have, for example, testified in the courtroom for multiple cases at the ICC and have also participated in their investigations and the investigations of a wide variety of UN human rights and justice bodies.
More broadly, international and national courts are working hard to take full advantage of the range of evidence that can be provided by modern technology, including satellite imagery.
Actually achieving this can require extensive capacity-building activities to be conducted within the organisations themselves. This is in order to bring legal professionals up to speed on details of satellite imagery technology while also informing satellite imagery analysts about the particular details of courtroom usage.
Satellite imagery and geospatial technologies in general are expanding in number and scope at a significant pace. In addition to this, the fusion of these resources together with social media content, especially photos and videos, enables unprecedented levels of documentation.
UNOSAT Director Einar Bjørgo says, “UNOSAT is very happy to turn its practical experiences in providing evidence and testimony to the ICC and other legal entities into training and documentation for our colleagues to build on – and ideally improve – in coming years. Satellite imagery and analyses have enormous roles to play in the international justice system and their potential is growing every day”.
Based on these trends UNOSAT, the International Law Programme of UNITAR’s Division for Multilateral Diplomacy, the Asser Institute, and IUSTICOM have all worked together to develop four training modules that provide an introduction to geospatial technologies, the technical and legal details of satellite imagery use, analyses of satellite imagery for understanding violations of international humanitarian law, and more.
IMAGE: An example of satellite imagery analysis for understanding violations of International Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law
5km Agricultural Project. 01 October 2019 (WorldView-2) and 19 December 2019 (WorldView-3), Maxar images. U.S. Department of State, Humanitarian Information Unit, NextView License (© 2019 Maxar)
