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<DIV>At this point of time discussions are going on in a number of forums as
regards participation, not just here; and it would be helpful if the debate was
about whether to participate or not, not about who said what when. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>As an aid to this, and perhaps to focus discussion a little, here is a
brief summary of some of the arguments for and against that I have seen
advanced. Not a complete list, but perhaps this might help some people to
understand that other people have perspectives that differ from their own. i
would urge people to add their own perspectives to these so that an informed
decision is made.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">FOR INVOLVEMENT</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">With ITU a governments only forum
and no real will to change, and IGF as a forum with no power to make
recommendations or take decisions and again no will to change, there is no
credible venue to initiate action on non technical issues or issues not within
the remit of Istar organisations These would include surveillance issues, human
rights issues, net neutrality issues, to name a few.</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">The solid commitment to
NetMundial principles promised, if carried out in practice, would create a
credible and open initiative </FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">There is a need for<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> a representative </SPAN>forum capable of moving us
forward on a range of issues not covered by existing
institutions</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Participation is strongly
supported by some sections of civil society</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt"></FONT></FONT> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">AGAINST
INVOLVEMENT</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">The last thing we need is a
corporate takeover of internet governance and this could become
that</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">ISOC has withdrawn
</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Participation is strongly opposed
by some sections of civil society</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><FONT
style="size: +0"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">This initiative has a track
record of poor communication</FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt">Ian Peter</P>
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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #f5f5f5">
<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=jmalcolm@eff.org
href="mailto:jmalcolm@eff.org">Jeremy Malcolm</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, November 18, 2014 2:53 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=bestbits@lists.bestbits.net
href="mailto:bestbits@lists.bestbits.net">Best Bits</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> [bestbits] Whether to participate in NETmundial Initiative
- RFC</DIV></DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
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style='FONT-SIZE: small; TEXT-DECORATION: none; FONT-FAMILY: "Calibri"; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; COLOR: #000000; FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline'>
<DIV>By now everyone will have read from previous threads that ISOC and the Just
Net Coalition (JNC) have both decided not to participate in the NETmundial
Initiative, and you may have also have read some false information that Best
Bits and other networks represented on the Civil Society Coordination Group
(CSCG) *have* decided to participate. As Ian Peter's clarifying message
setting out the truth of the matter should have made clear, that is *not* the
case. All that has happened is that the we have obtained as much assurance
as we can that *if* we decide to participate, then the Secretariat (ICANN, WEF
and <A href="http://CGI.br">CGI.br</A>) will accept our self-nomination process
rather than choosing civil society representatives independently.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Now we turn to you, our communities, to provide us with guidance about
whether to proceed further or not. Some views have already been expressed
pro and con. I have been (and remain) publicly critical about the
NETmundial Initiative, but on the other hand the reasoning ISOC and JNC give for
boycotting it is rather specious, because they characterise the initiative as
being something that it doesn't purport to be - ie. a single central
policy-making body for Internet governance. This is an alarmist critique that
turns the NETmundial Initiative into an exaggerated ITU-style bogeyman.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>So whilst there is certainly room for disagreement about whether we should
bestow the benefit of our participation on the Initiative (I remain deeply
conflicted about this), let's decide on the basis of factual pro and con
arguments rather than oversimplifications about the 1% taking over the
Internet. Also note that a few civil society representatives, including
Human Rights Watch, have endorsed it already and are featured on the carousel
message on the front page of <A
href="http://netmundial.org">netmundial.org</A>.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>So what do people think? If you haven't already shared your views,
please do so on this thread, within the next few days if possible.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
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<DIV>-- </DIV>
<DIV>Jeremy Malcolm</DIV>
<DIV>Senior Global Policy Analyst</DIV>
<DIV>Electronic Frontier Foundation</DIV><A
href="https://eff.org">https://eff.org</A><BR>jmalcolm@eff.org
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Tel: 415.436.9333 ext 161</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>:: Defending Your Rights in the Digital World
::</DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV><BR>
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