Accessible Workflowsfor Collecting & Preserving
Human Rights Video Evidence
No Time to Wait Symposium
London, 26 Oct 2018

Yvonne Ng, Senior Archivist, WITNESS
yvonne@witness.org | @ng_yvonne

WITNESS trains and equips human rights
defenders around the world to use video
and technology to expose abuses and fightfor justice and lasting change.

Accessible Workflows for Collecting &Preserving Human Rights Video Evidence● Human rights video evidence examples● WITNESS collaborations○ Community documentation of police violence in the US○ Social media documenting state violence against Rohingya in Burma● Gaps / needsVideo evidence example: DRC military tribunal

Source, Eyewitness to Atrocities, https://www.eyewitnessproject.org/

Video evidence example: Walter Scott caseVideo evidence example: War crimes arrest warrant

Source: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/09/04/geolocating-libyas-social-mediaexecutioner/

Source: Bellingcat: How a Werfalli Execution Site Was Geolocated,
https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/10/03/how-an-execution-site-was-geolocated/Projects● Profiling the Police: Archiving
community documentation of policemisconduct in the US.
● Rohingya Genocide Archive: Archiving social media ofstate violence against Rohingya in Burma.

Profiling the Police

Profiling the Police

Archiving El Grito’s video collection
1. Planning.
2. Collecting /selecting videos.
3. Capturing miniDV tapes.
4. Processing and ingesting video files to storage.
5. Description, developing basic cataloging scheme.
6. Using videos and other public information to create officer timelines.

El Grito - Collection planning

Planning Workbook
https://elgrito.witness.org/

El Grito - Pre-ingest
Virus scan

Nous nepouv ons pasafficherl’image.

Copy

Sync toworkspace

Inventory

Selection

Google apps
script bymesgarpour

Inventory

CaptureCompress and Stitch

Handbrake

Sync toworkspace

El Grito - Ingest and Description

Exactly(BagIt)+elgrito.witness.org
Nous ne pouv ons pas afficher l’image.

● Advocacy information● Sample officer timeline● Workflow toolkit

Part 2: Berkeley Copwatch database● Started in 1990, co-foundedby Andrea Prichett.
● Regular copwatch patrols,
Peoples’ Investigations,
Know Your Rights trainings,
UC Berkeley DeCal class.

Berkeley Copwatch database project●Clarifying video collection policy.

●Re-design database with end uses inmind, with more structure, and better
documentation.

●Streamlining video ingest workflows fromcamera --> storage, and input todatabase.

Where we’re at now
Collaborative Workflow documentation

New database●For information aboutofficers, participants,incidents, videos,other documentation,
follow up actions●Filemaker - pros andcons

Rohingya Genocide Archive● Working with a Rohingya organization in SE Asia to establish sustainable
Rohingya-led archive.
● Collect and preserve video and social media documentation of genocideand crimes against humanity against Rohingya people for purposes ofinvestigation, accountability, justice, and truth-telling.

Background●Rohingya people - marginalized and persecuted stateless minority in Burma.

●

Numerous crackdowns by military using horrific violence, including on 25 Aug 2017 “clearanceoperation”.

●

Major humanitarian crisis - thousands killed, missing; 700,000 Rohingya have fled.

●UN Fact Finding Mission recommends investigation and prosecution of Burmese military forcrimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide.

●Preliminary examination at ICC underway on Rohingya forced deportation to Bangladesh.

RGA Collecting Workflow
Nous ne pouv ons pas afficher l’image.

FB GRaph API Explorer+ CurlTwurl
youtube-dl --id -write-info-json -format best

Built-in “Export Chat” button,“Attach media”
Built-in “Export Chat” button (phone) +Download from desktop app

YouTube Data API Explorer
Youtube.videos.list service+ CURLRGA Collecting Workflow

ExactlyCataloging

Where we’re at now● Policies, workflows and data dictionary are documented.
● Continuing to build collection.
● Exploring how collection can be used in investigative, accountability, andjustice efforts.
● Exploring how the collection can be made accessible to Rohingya
community as a resource.
● Exploring how to make workflow documentation accessible for others touse.

Needs / Gaps
● For the most part, tools exist, but not all easy to use, or not all open
source.
○GUIs for existing media + metadata collection tools and easy step-by-step guidance
and/or recipes.

○

Open source alternatives, e.g. to FileMaker [?]● WhatsApp metadata, strategies for collecting from closed networks.
● Easy data modeling tools and walkthrough resources.
● Identifying duplicate content across different format/files.

Thanks!
Witness.org | yvonne@witness.org | @ng_yvonne