HRW: Strongest Opposition to Armed Robots in Turkey

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More than three in every five people oppose the development of weapons systems that would select and attack targets without human intervention, according to a poll announced by the Human Rights Watch (HRW).

The survey was conducted in November and December 2018, as part of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, which is coordinated by the Human Rights Watch.

The market research company Ipsos surveyed 18,795 adults from the following countries between November 26 and December 7, 2018:

Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, China, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Spain, Israel, Sweden, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

61 percent of people from 26 countries oppose "killer robots"

In the 26 countries surveyed, 61 percent of the respondents opposed fully autonomous weapon systems, dubbed as "killer robots". 22 percent of the respondents did not oppose such systems, and 17 percent were unsure or undecided.

In a similar survey in 23 countries by the same company in January 2017, 56 percent of the participants opposed, 24 percent did not oppose, and 19 percent were unsure about fully autonomous weapons.

Women oppose more than men

62 percent of women and 60 percent of the men are opposed to armed robots.

Respondents between the ages of 50 and 64 oppose armed robots more than any other age group.

Strongest opposition is in Turkey

Ipsos surveyed 500 to 1,000 people from each country. The highest rate of opposition came from Turkey with 78 percent. South Korea and Hungary followed Turkey with 74 percent.

India is where the support for armed robots is the highest, with 50 percent. Israel follows India with 41 percent.

Most common reason: 'They would cross a moral line'

In the survey, those who say they oppose armed robots were asked what concerns them the most. 66 percent answered that lethal autonomous weapons systems would "cross a moral line because machines should not be allowed to kill."

54 percent said the weapons would be "unaccountable," while 45 percent stated that "they would be subject to technical failures."

UN calls for prohibition

Mary Wareham, the coordinator of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, said, "Public sentiment is hardening against the prospect of fully autonomous weapons. Bold political leadership is needed for a new treaty to preemptively ban these weapons systems."

In November 2018, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called lethal autonomous weapons systems "politically unacceptable and morally repugnant" and urged states to prohibit them.

About the "killer robots"

Autonomous weapon systems with artificial intelligence are still under development.

These weapons differ from the current day "drones" where humans select and attack targets, with the capability of independently selecting and attacking targets.

At the annual meeting of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) in Geneva in November 2018, it was decided that diplomatic talks on armed robots continue, yet no timetable or clear objective was set.

Most of the states at the meeting did not support the idea of prohibiting armed robots with an international convention. Russia, the US, Israel, and South Korea declared that they will not support negotiations for a new convention. (AS/VK)

*Click for the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots.

*Click to read the statement by the HRW regarding the survey.