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On 10/05/11 21:15, Jeanette Hofmann wrote:
<blockquote cite="mid:4DC93A88.6020602@wzb.eu" type="cite">Can we
perhaps set a deadline?
<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
Yes, I'm going to put it to consensus call in the form below
(incorporating the latest minor points). Expect a poll invitation
soon. For the press release, we'll basically just lose the "Basic
courtesy stuff" at the start and the "closing and salutations" at
the end, and add a heading such as "Civil society censures French
plan for closed meeting on Internet's future".<br>
<br>
Dear President Sarkozy,<br>
<br>
The Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus (IGC) is an open forum
of individual and organisational civil society actors who came
together in the context of the World Summit on the Information
Society (WSIS) to promote global public interest objectives in
Internet governance policy making (see <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.igcaucus.org">http://www.igcaucus.org</a>).<br>
<br>
We understand that the French Presidency of the G8 proposes to hold
a G8 Internet meeting - the "eG8 Forum" - immediately prior to the
G8 Summit in Deauville, with a view to prepare or influence the
agenda for the G8 Summit regarding key global Internet issues. We
also understand that many heads of states of G8 countries are
expected to attend this meeting. The meeting is especially important
since in the past G8 has set up the global agenda on many key
issues, especially in the information society arena.<br>
<br>
We are very concerned about the manner in which the eG8 Forum is
being organised which is ignoring current best practice in public
policy making. It also jettisons the principle of multistakeholder
participation that has evolved globally, especially in the area of
Internet governance. It appears that the eG8 Forum is organized by
large Industry with access given only to industry and government
actors. We have also understood that there is a linkage between
donations and invitations.<br>
<br>
Big businesses already have a disproportionately large influence on
public policy processes. For governments to sanction a dedicated
meeting with top G8 leaders and officials to plan the global agenda
for Internet related policies is inappropriate. What is required is
a discussion that includes civil society actors, who will bring to
the table the concerns of global public interest derived from a
diversity of people's, of many sections of society, interests and
concerns.<br>
<br>
It is also pertinent to state here that since the Internet is
essentially a global phenomenon, policies framed together by the
most powerful nations, quite likely, will become the default global
norm. This is most true for architectural and economic issues, while
the global impact on other areas will also be substantial. It is
therefore appropriate that G8 countries engage with the same, and
other issues, of Internet policies at the more democratic global
forums where all countries are present at an equal footing. In this
connection, there is the World Summit on the Information Society
(WSIS) mandated set of processes for dealing with pressing global
Internet related issues. Multistakeholder participation is an
important part of these global IG related processes. We see the eG8
Forum as a significant step backwards both for global democracy and
for multistakeholder participation.<br>
<br>
The issues we face with internet governance and internet
developments are global in nature, and adequate solutions to the
problems we face will need to involve all countries, as well as a
wide range of civil society, business and technical interests.<br>
<br>
We therefore request you, and other G8 leaders, to make the
eG8 Forum genuinely multistakeholder, following the model of the UN
Internet Governance Forum (IGF). We are impressed with the solid
support provided by the G8 countries for upholding a
multistakeholder model for the IGF. The strong support that many G8
countries, including your own, have shown for full multistakeholder
participation in relation to the IGF makes this current decision to
limit discussion to vested interests of governments' industry
partners is baffling, and unacceptable to the IGC, which advocates
for civil society's Internet governance interests.<br>
<br>
Yours sincerely,<br>
Jeremy Malcolm and Izumi Aizu<br>
Coordinators<br>
Internet Governance Caucus<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
<p style="margin-bottom: 12pt;"><b><span style="color: black;">Dr
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