Peace or oppression: Marking the International Week of Science and Peace, we reflect on science’s dual potential.

This week, as we observe the International Week of Science and Peace and the International Day of Science for Peace and Development, we reflect on the ways science and technology shape our world. Established in 1986 and 2001, respectively, these observances highlight the profound impact of science on international peace, security, socio-economic development, and human rights. In December 1988, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution[1] emphasizing the need to direct scientific achievements toward socio-economic progress and the advancement of human rights. The resolution called for diverting resources and talent away from the arms race to address humanity's pressing challenges in a more peaceful and secure world.

While these initiatives highlight the transformative potential of science to promote peace and sustainable development, they also expose a troubling reality: science and technology are frequently weaponized to perpetuate inequality, suppress human rights, and exploit vulnerable populations, including women and children. Scientific advancements frequently fall into the hands of profit-driven corporations, authoritarian governments, and other powerful entities, with scientists working under their direction, turning tools of liberation into instruments of control.

Throughout history, science and technology have been exploited in several critical ways. First, they serve the agendas of powerful nations and their proxies, often at the expense of impoverished and developing countries, enforcing dominance through war and bloodshed. Second, by transforming the universal 'right to benefit from science and technology' into an exclusive 'privilege,' they reinforce systems of exploitation, leaving the majority of society marginalized. The stark disparity, where the combined wealth of a small group of billionaires surpasses the assets of billions of people, demonstrates how these systems worsen inequality and increase human suffering. Children bear the heaviest burden of these injustices. Those in war zones, suffering from poverty and malnutrition, forced into labor, or deprived of education, healthcare, and housing are casualties of a deeply unequal world where science and technology are misused to fuel conflict instead of being used to promote peace and improve the lives of future generations.

In oppressive authoritarian regimes like the Iranian government, science is misused to maintain state control and suppress the population rather than to advance society. The regime exemplifies this through its contributions to global conflict and unrest[2], alongside its deployment of advanced surveillance technologies such as facial recognition[3],[4] and digital monitoring[5]. These tools are used to suppress dissent, target women protesting compulsory hijab laws, and uphold systemic gender apartheid. By combining street-level surveillance with digital methods to monitor encrypted platforms, intercept communications, and infiltrate universities, educational centers, and even high schools, the Iranian government has institutionalized persecution and violated fundamental human rights, including the rights of children.

Iranian universities, lacking academic independence, are deeply intertwined with the regime’s oppressive agenda. Their research extends beyond military objectives to the strategic use of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, internet science, and cyber technologies. This alignment is orchestrated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)[6], its Cyber Command, the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), and the Iranian Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA), which use university resources to develop sophisticated systems for surveillance and control. This systematic co-opting of academic institutions suppresses independent thought, prioritizes state propaganda and oppression over the public good, and reinforces mechanisms that violate ethical standards and fundamental rights.

These are stark reminders of how authoritarian regimes adapt science and scientific innovations to consolidate power and enforce repression rather than promote peace and justice.

Iran’s systematic targeting of women highlights the intersection of gender-based oppression and technological control. Despite this repression, Iranian women continue to fight for justice and equality; however, their courage requires ongoing international support to ensure that digital technology serves as a tool for empowerment rather than oppression.

Access to education, knowledge, and the ability to utilize and expand these resources to improve living conditions, promote peace, and secure equal rights are fundamental and inherent rights for all individuals and societies. Yet, oppressive regimes and exploitative systems systematically deny these rights.

This cycle of repression must end. Transforming it requires immediate and collective accountability, with societies and individuals taking decisive control over how science and technology are developed and used. By demanding ethical oversight and redirecting advancements toward justice and equality, we can create a peaceful, equitable, and dignified world, especially for children, whose well-being reflects the dignity of humanity as a whole.

A dignified life for children is a dignified life for all.

[1] https://undocs.org/A/RES/43/61

[2] https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/irans-game-drones

[3] https://www.wired.com/story/iran-says-face-recognition-will-id-women-breaking-hijab-laws/

[4]https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/14/academics-in-us-uk-and-australia-collaborated-on-drone-research-with-iranian-university-close-to-regime

[5] https://www.mei.edu/publications/mahsa-amini-and-future-internet-repression-iran

[6] https://www.trellix.com/blogs/research/the-iranian-cyber-capability/