[bestbits] Re: [IRPCoalition] Blogpost: Civil Society and the Emerging Internet Cold War: Non-Alignment and the Public Interest

[Carlos A. Afonso]

McT,

On 02/11/2013 09:37 PM, McTim wrote:
> On Mon, Feb 11, 2013 at 6:08 PM, Carlos A. Afonso <ca at cafonso.ca> wrote:
>> McTim, at a minimum Russia and China are not dumb -- the Internet has become
>> significant part of their economic development as well, and universalization
>> is central to this process.
>
>
> They are both also keen to take control over naming and addressing in
> the "national segments" as well as to censor what their citizenry can
> and can't see or produce content wise.

Fine, although there are significant differences between Russia and 
China on this, and between both and Iran, but both Russia and China are 
universalizing the Internet in their countries on very objective grounds.

>
> Why would we want to support these Member States agendas?
>
>> The "etc" in your phrase is dubious...
>
> Are there no other like minded Member States?  Many of not most of the
> African States were pulled into the vortex of the agenda set by the 3
> I named.  How is that dubious?

Wrong. Many of the 89 voted yes not because they are "like-minded". As I 
said elsewhere, the reasons of the ones who voted no are not the same, 
so the 55 cannot be seen as "USA-like-minded" -- Or should we consider 
Europe as just a US-driven like-minded State? Actually, 104 did not vote 
yes (summing up the 55 nos and the 49 abstentions or no-shows) -- how do 
you classify this diverse bunch?

Regarding the ones who did vote: Brazil voted for the treaty because the 
gov sectors which have leverage on these policies are heavily influenced 
by transnational telcos who dominate the market here -- none of them 
from Russia or China (three of the big four are European). Its 
justification is that some of its proposals (which are not bad at all) 
made their way into the treaty, and in their defense delegation members 
claim the ITRs are not really binding...

This move incidentally meant a tremendous blow against the Marco Civil 
process now running in Congress. Both telcos and media (trying to insert 
arbitrary takedown measures without due process in the Marco) are 
bombarding it with intense lobbying in Congress and the help of the 
Ministry of Communications.

Let us not be simplistic on this.

--c.a.