Benetech’s Human Rights program takes tens of thousands of stories — most of them anecdotal evidence of individual and community suffering — and systematically turns them into analysis that strengthens the arguments made by human rights defenders.

Such formal collection and collation of data and large-scale analysis can prove that many cases of mass violence are not isolated incidents, but rather planned and systematically executed policy. Such findings can build strong, defensible claims about what has been endured by victims and societies. The result: perpetrators can be brought to justice, which then helps prevent the recurrence of atrocities.

No other organization dedicates itself to applying technology and scientific methods exclusively to human rights. The rigorous data processing and analysis we apply withstands adversarial critiques, helping to transform the debate about human rights from politics to science.

Our analysis has literally changed history:

• We helped the UN Commission for Historical Clarification prove that genocide was committed against the indigenous population in Guatemala.

• We provided expert testimony before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia that Slobodan Milošević's defense theories were inconsistent with the data in Kosovo.
   
• Our analysis demonstrated that the civil war in Perú was much bloodier than the elites in Lima ever imagined.

Setting the Stage for a Better Future

Our products and services, from Martus to the Human Rights Data Analysis Group (HRDAG), use scientific methods from demography, epidemiology, and mathematical statistics to help societies clarify the truth about their violent pasts. The result is strong evidence that can be used to advocate for political and criminal accountability for mass atrocities.

The Human Rights Data Analysis Group (HRDAG) offers expertise and tools for each stage of human rights data projects: collection, management, processing and analysis. HRDAG provides consulting in a variety of areas as well as standard and customized technical tools and services. HRDAG provides assistance with computer networking, backup, and security, as well as building database and classification systems, and with advanced statistical analysis of mass atrocities. Learn more about HRDAG.

Martus, the Greek word for “witness,” is a software tool that allows users to document incidents of abuse by creating bulletins, uploading them at the earliest opportunity, and storing them on redundant servers located around the world. Using Martus helps countries torn apart by civil conflicts come to a consensus and rational understanding of their histories, leading to reconciliation and reform processes. Learn more about Martus.

Objective and scientific evidence about mass violence can influence processes of truth, justice and contemporary policy-making on human rights throughout the world.
We are currently working on the historical accounting of violations in

• Colombia
• Perú
• Burma
• Sierra Leone
• East Timor

Help us continue developing technology solutions that profoundly transform and improve lives. By investing in Benetech, you’ll enable us to expand our work and take on new challenges.

Find out more about donating to Benetech.

Download our brochure (PDF).

We are committed to equal access to technology. Our software is freely available, and anyone may share our technology and modify it to suit their needs — all without asking our permission.

Benetech created Martus and Analyzer specifically for human rights data collection, coding and processing. These tools include cryptographic security features and flexible data structures that can be adapted to the needs of each human rights project.

By releasing our software as open source, we participate in the technological community where tools can be audited and improved by others, as well as enabling widespread access to our ideas.