[bestbits] [Internet Policy] IGF 2014 Consultation - ISOC Submission

[Jeremy Malcolm]

On 11 Feb 2014, at 8:07 pm, parminder <parminder at itforchange.net> wrote:

> On Tuesday 11 February 2014 03:29 PM, Jeremy Malcolm wrote:
>> This is a BIG step for ISOC.  Finally they are suggesting the IGF
>> produce policy outcome documents open for voluntary adoption, based on
>> the IETF process... something they had been fiercely resisting for years!
> 
> Public policies are not technical standards to be voluntarily adopted... (even technical standards have often to be mandatory - as you know Microsoft for instance will never  - and did not - voluntarily adopt inter operability standards for document software) ... This is an entirely new kind of political-ese to talk of voluntary adoption of public policies, which is post-democratic in essence. These are frameworks for working outside democratic politics. Voluntary adoption of public policies is similar to 'coalition of the willing' for political action and I am sure you know what it means and implies.. Th powerful shall inherit the world....
> 
> Everyone can see what slope we are slipping on..

Baby steps, this is still a paradigm shift for ISOC.  What begins with voluntarily-adopted soft law can harden into national and international law where necessary... at least now, finally, we are on a path that could lead somewhere.  I'm not going to criticise them for taking this step.

-- 
Dr Jeremy Malcolm
Senior Policy Officer
Consumers International | the global campaigning voice for consumers
Office for Asia-Pacific and the Middle East
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