process Re: [bestbits] [Meeting Report]: friday meeting with fadi et all

[Avri Doria]

On 31 Oct 2013, at 12:39, Kivuva wrote:

>> To my mind, the strategy of being transparent at all times is one of the main reasons why action is often inhibited and civil society is often less effective than it could be. This is not only because we put all our cards on the table all the time - something which puts other stakeholders at an advantage. It is also because fully open lists do not encourage sharing certain kinds of information and ideas that could actually help to massively improve effectiveness of civil society action (and as is the case so often, perhaps Global South civil society is perhaps more vulnerable here than Global North civil society). 
>> 
> 
> +1 
> In many regions of the Global South, FoE is suppressed, and CS activists endanger their liberty in expressing themselves openly.



I want to make a point that accepts that whatever i think about legitimacy of opaque organizations is beside the point - if you all want to have secret lists you are going to have secret lists.  I know that.  People do - they have an allure.  I have been on some friends-only-private, non political lists, and one or two of them were we knew each other and had to recommend new members individually according to rules actually worked out ok.  A few disintegrated because we started talking about political cruft.  A few disintegrated because the wrong person was invited it. And one or two still flourish after decades, but they are small and really just virtual spaces that function like a neighborhood bar to a bunch of friends who rarely see each other.

But, they are not places to share information that might get you into personal trouble if you live under a repressive regime. No private list that Jeremy offers is going to be a safe and private list, it will only be a secret from those who don't want to break the secret.  And this goes beyond the NSA et al risks that are all the rage these days and has everything to do with the dynamics of secrecy in a loose mesh group of people.

So please whatever planning etc you all decide to do in secret, never beleive for a second that you are talking safely.  Yes, you may keep the plans from the other SG groups for a bit.  But if you are from an endangered population and are looking for a safe way toward FoE/FoA, this is not it.

good luck and best wishes

avri



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