[governance] Government oversight (was Vixie ...)

Laina Raveendran Greene laina at getit.org
Tue Oct 11 09:51:29 EDT 2005


Dear Norbert,

Apologies if you felt that the word "rumour mongering" was judgemental. I
agree. So let's avoid using words like that. What I meant to say, is let's
get the facts right rather than merely suggesting possibilities. 

If there are issues people susupect to be the case, like the one below, then
let's find out if this was an issue of abuse of oversight or .....? I agree
with Avri that it may not be the case here, and also exactly why we need to
be talking about an international body (which I have stated before- on that
front- we create the right type of structure, rules etc to fix the right
problems, understanding the limits of public versus private international
law,versus national law, etc).

So bottom line, let's collect these stories which are alarming people
especially governments and CS players, and find out what was truly broke,
and then get our facts right. Hope that helps Norbert, in understanding what
I meant. 

Good seeing you again anyway in Geneva after all these years.

Regards,
Laina

-----Original Message-----
From: governance-bounces at lists.cpsr.org
[mailto:governance-bounces at lists.cpsr.org] On Behalf Of Avri Doria
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2005 3:25 PM
To: Norbert Klein
Cc: Governance Caucus
Subject: Re: [governance] Government oversight (was Vixie ...)

Hi,

Thanks for this.  However, I am not sure how this demonstrates that the US
abused it oversight role.  I see how it prevailed on corporations doing
business, and that is another issue - countries considers it a sovereign
right to stop its nationals from doing business with those it considers
enemies. This is a good argument for internationalization of a body
repsonsible for international resources.

But how does this show that it abused its steward role over the root?

thanks
a.

On 11 okt 2005, at 08.17, Norbert Klein wrote:

> Avri Doria wrote:
>
>
>> On 10 okt 2005, at 20.45, Laina Raveendran Greene wrote:
>>
>>
> [snip]
>
>
>>> I was very concerned about this kind of baseless rumour
>>> mongering to raise people;s emotions that was being done both on   
>>> the gov side as well as on CS side.
>>>
>>>
>>
>> I don't think that mentioning a possibility is baseless rumor   
>> mongering.  Now you may argue it is impossible, while others may   
>> believe it is inevitable, but that is a matter of opinion and a   
>> matter for discussion.  Putting down another persons argument as   
>> baseless rumor mongering doesn't seem particularly helpful.
>>
>>
> Well, it is not baseless rumor mongering anyway. And it is not only 
> mentioning a possibility - something like this actually did happen.
>
> (sorry, the URL given here does not seem to work any longer - I copied 
> it down a long time ago)
>
> "Thu, Nov 22"  must have been 2001
> = =
> AP Via Excite - Updated: Thu, Nov 22 5:27 PM EST
>
> http://news.excite.com/news/ap/011122/17/int-attacks-somalia
> Somali Web Co. on US Suspects List
> By OSMAN HASSAN, Associated Press Writer
>
> MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - Somalia's only Internet company was forced 
> to close it offices Thursday, two weeks after appearing on a U.S. list 
> of organizations with suspected links to terrorism.
> Somali Internet Co. shut down after the United Arab Emirates' state- 
> owned Internet service, Etisalat, canceled its international access, 
> said Abdulkadir Hassan Ahmed Kadleh, administrator for the Somali 
> firm. "I first thought it was a technical problem, but then when I 
> called the Etisalat company in Dubai, the engineers informed us that 
> it was an intentional freeze down," Kadleh told The Associated Press.
>
> Somali Internet Co. is among 62 organizations and people the United 
> States believes are funneling funds for international terror suspect 
> Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida network. The list was issued Nov. 7. 
> The Mogadishu-based firm, created in 1998, is jointly owned by three 
> Somali companies - Telecom Somalia, NationLink and Al-Barakaat. It has 
> offices throughout southern Somalia. Al-Barakaat, Somalia's largest 
> company, also is on the list and was forced to close its financial 
> businesses, including a money transfer service vital to hundreds of 
> thousands of impoverished Somalis, after its assets were frozen. On 
> Nov. 14, it also closed its international telephone service after 
> U.S.-based Concert Communications, a joint venture between AT&T and 
> British Telecom, cut off its international gateway. Al-Barakaat and 
> Somali Internet Co. officials denied having links to terrorism. "This 
> Internet company has nothing to do with terrorism," said Abdulaziz 
> Haji, managing director of Telecom Somali. "It was losing money and 
> it's only this year it just covered itself, so how can it provide 
> somebody else with money?" Etisalat officials could not be contacted 
> for comment Thursday. The Horn of Africa nation's banking and 
> telecommunications systems collapsed during the decade of clan- based 
> fighting that followed the ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 
> 1991.
>
> A transitional government elected in August 2000 but has yet to re- 
> establish state institutions. In the meantime, private companies have 
> offered some of Africa's cheapest phone services. "Many people are now 
> losing their jobs, others will suffer because the services are now in 
> a total stagnation," Somali Internet customer Mohamed Ali Farah said. 
> "We will have to go back to the old days of using fax and expensive 
> telephones so as to transmit our messages."
> = =
>
> Norbert
>
>

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