Electronic Guantanamo Bay Cell

Amnesty International Australia have constructed a full-scale replica of a Guantánamo Bay cell, as part of a campaign to have the detention center shut down. This is a good example of a creative use of a deployable computer system.

The cell is a transportable wooden box the size of a standard shipping container, which resembles a containerized housing module. The unit includes a broadband wireless computer system for information displays and workstations for collecting signatures for an electronic petition. The unit also transmits video and audio to be used on the web site as part of the campaign. All the electronic equipment packs into the "cell" for transport on a truck.

The Amnesty International staff were having some difficulty with the computer equipment when it was deployed at the ANU on 2 May 2007. So I have made some suggestions to help improve the display and as an example of the use of web based technology for students of ANU Course "Networked Information Systems" (COMP2410 / COMP6340).

The campaign is interesting as it incorporates both an online element, as used for the "One Voice" campaign in 1999 in support of the release of Care Australia workers imprisoned in Yugoslavia, plus a physical display.