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Summary
Recently it has been brought to global attention that China has begun using Artificial Intelligence to monitor its population, specifically it is being used to target the Uighur's, a Muslim minority in China's Xinjiang province. The government there has placed over a million Uighur's in what they have labelled "re-education facilities". These recent steps towards controlling the population have been faced with backlash from the international community, however this is not the first time China has implemented a monitoring program that has been met with negative views. China also implemented a social credit surveillance program in which civilians are encouraged to report on their neighbors and publicly shame those with a low social credit and prevent those from accessing resources as easily. The nature of combining civilian monitoring with artificial intelligence also presents the threat of cuber attacks that western nations are far more tedious to accept the risk of.
David Kaye, United Nations Special Rapporteur
David Kaye stated that "a great global challenge confronts all those who promote human rights and the rule of law: how can States, companies and civil society ensure that artificial intelligence technologies reinforce and respect, rather than undermine and imperil, human rights?" This quote highlights the international view on the changing state of technology and its use to control certain populations. The relation to universal human rights is heavily apparent here as the technology China is currently using completely disregards the privacy of its citizens.
Xi Jinping, Chinese President
China has rocketed forwards in growing international markets as a power house, initially beginning as a cheap manufacturer but soon transitioning into a research and development behemoth. This rapid development has aided them as the country becomes ever more technologically integrated it becomes a clear choice to combine these two industries. “AI is a vital driving force for a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, and accelerating AI development is a strategic issue to decide whether we can grasp opportunities," This statement states his opinions on the advancement of artificial intelligence and while not directly on the integration with security it clearly states his opinion on why artificial intelligence should be used in this manner to open new possibilities in security
My Perspective
I firmly stand that the combining of artificial intelligence and national security is a massive mistake. The implications of authoritarian China using this technology only hinders the democratic progression of that country and is a massive threat to privacy. This was a logical next step to their social credit program which is based on a good idea but thoroughly miscued due to the possibility of corruption and the threat of neighbors lying as a way of increasing their social status.