[governance] Do we need a MAG?

[Milton L Mueller]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jeremy Malcolm [mailto:Jeremy at Malcolm.id.au]
> No, that will centralise (even) more power in the unrepresentative
> Secretariat.  In my work on remote participation, I've seen how the
> Secretariat very shrewdly picks and chooses what volunteer help to
> embrace and what to silently shun and thereby sideline.

A major issue, of course. 

But can you provide me with an instance of when the MAG did anything to
check the power of the Secretariat? I am open to facts. 

> It is also easier for the Secretariat to palm off the recommendations
> of the open consultations to the Secretary-General (a fiction, of
> course) so that it can disclaim responsibility for the dismissal of
> those recommendations.

Yes, that obviously happens now. And the MAG as far as I know never
issues any recommendations. So I am unclear as to how this point bears
on the question. When has there been a clear resolution of the advisory
group? When has the Secretariat followed such a resolution when it
didn't really want to?

> Harder for it to ignore a clear resolution of
> the Advisory Group, whose numbers and constituencies are known and
> fixed.  (Still not impossible, though; case in point, the Chairman
> shutting down discussion within the Advisory Group of any variation to
> the 50% representation of governments.)

But note that this shutdown occurred in the context of a
representational quota for the MAG. If there were no MAG, there would be
no such debates. 

> For all its manifest faults, at least the Advisory Group, now that it
> has increased its transparency thorough reports of its meetings and
> mailing list summaries, is somewhat more accountable than the
> Secretariat alone.

I guess the conclusion I would draw from your comments is, if we want to
have a MAG it should not be such a loose advisory group but should have
formally defined powers in relation to the Secretariat. If the MAG does
not have those powers, it is definitely not worth all the political fuss
that surrounds it. 

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