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Following on from the post about the Declaration of Internet
Freedom, this had me thinking that at least they have issued a
declaration of principles (even if a sub-standard one), which is
what the IGC has not done despite talking about doing it since last
IGF. So, I should give credit where credit is due.<br>
<br>
But we need to make sure that we don't continue to allow the current
Internet governance debates to be monopolised by such popular
movements, which are well-intentioned but often rather uninformed
and demographically narrow. With all our criticisms about the IGF
failing to deliver outputs, the IGC should practice what it
preaches, and produce more concrete results of its own. (This is no
criticism of Izumi or Sala, who would emphasise that the IGC is
member-led rather than coordinator-led.)<br>
<br>
So it seems to me that there are at least two main areas in which we
have long been talking about making a contribution, but are yet to
actually get around to doing so. These are:<br>
<ol>
<li>the development of a civil society statement of principles on
IG and a broader civil society network to subscribe to this; and</li>
<li>the development of one or two (for CIRs and non-CIR public
policy issues) tangible models for enhanced cooperation or at
least a working group to develop such.<br>
</li>
</ol>
In respect of the first of these, no progress that I know of has
been made since last IGF, and meanwhile the ground is moving under
the IGC's feet. At least three other groups (Access, and two others
I'm not sure if I can mention publicly) are trying to take
leadership to link NGOs together for purposes of agreeing on
principles (I know at least of an Asia-Pacific document) and/or
mobilising against bad laws. This is something that the IGC itself
should be doing, and indeed had committed to do last year.<br>
<br>
In respect of the second, we have at least four different
approaches: Norbert's Enhanced Cooperation Task Force that would
develop "Request for Action" documents, Wolfgang's multistakeholder
expert group to look into enhanced cooperation mechanisms (much like
what the CSTD could have formed but didn't) that he says "could"
(but would it?) emerge from the IGF this year, Parminder's
suggestion that civil society propose our own concrete models first,
and the widely-supported suggestion that we hold a pre-event in Baku
to discuss all this (or at least do so in the "Quo Vadis" workshop).<br>
<br>
Can those with ownership of these suggestions please give us an
update as to whether there is any progress to report? If not, what
is lacking (funding, support, time?), and how could others help?
Would the formation of small working groups with mailing lists on
the IGC server assist to convert these ideas into action? Let's not
let another IGF go by without something to show for both of these
important areas for action.<br>
<br>
-- <br>
<div class="moz-signature">
<p style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><b><span style="color:black">Dr
Jeremy Malcolm<br>
Senior Policy Officer</span></b><br>
<span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:black">Consumers
International</span><br>
<span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:gray">Kuala Lumpur Office for
Asia-Pacific and the Middle East<br>
Lot 5-1 Wisma WIM, 7 Jalan Abang Haji Openg, TTDI, 60000 Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia<br>
Tel: +60 3 7726 1599</span></p>
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