[governance] Call for final comments - rights as a theme for cairo

Wed Sep 10 20:20:57 EDT 2008

IT should also be noted here that movements like Creative Commons,
which is in fact a nonprofit civil society organization,
www.creativecommons.org are providing various IPR opportunities
through the concept of "Share, Remix, Reuse — Legally" and there is a
need to extend Creative Commons localization efforts that are
happening for various Jurisdictions around the world.

For example a Minister of Australia recently
http://creativecommons.org.au/node/189 shared:
Following up the news that the National Innovation Review has
recommended that Australian Government should be releasing material
under Creative Commons licences - in a speech at the Committee for
Melbourne yesterday, Senator Carr gave what sounds like a fairly
strong endorsement of this recommendation, saying: "We are and will
remain a net importer of knowledge, so it is in our interest to
promote the freest possible flow of information domestically and
globally. The arguments for stepping out first on open access are the
same as the arguments for stepping out first on emissions trading –
the more willing we are to show leadership on this, we more chance we
have of persuading other countries to reciprocate. And if we want the
rest of the world to act, we have to do our bit at home."

You must read how far the Creative Commons is spreading out to at:
http://creativecommons.org/international

The is what I was stressing earlier, ignoring what exists to support
Human Rights will only make the process much longer and more complex,
recognizing that FOSS, Open Standards and Open ICT Ecosystems bring to
the table protection of one's creative expression, opportunity to
share their creations in such a way that they can share, remix and
reuse content freely and continue to share the freedoms with other
people and human beings, this is the true Spirit of the Openness of
the Internet!

Once this is recognized, the recognition of our Universal Commons
(collective commons or creative commons from various Jurisdictions) or
the Universal Human Rights acceptance will a major target to achieve
and deliberate at the IGF activities.

Best
Fouad Bajwa

On Thu, Sep 11, 2008 at 1:36 AM, Ian Peter <ian.peter at ianpeter.com> wrote:
> Attached a final draft for comments for this paper. Please make specific
> suggestions for change or deletion on list in reply to this topic within 24
> hours  – Google Docs is now closed.
>
> I must confess to not following the detail of this debate, so I may have
> missed some points – and Google Docs was getting messy towards the end. So
> any omissions are unintentional and I ask that you suggest appropriate
> changes.
>
>
>
> 'Rights and the Internet' as the over-arching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt
>
> The Internet Governance Caucus strongly recommends that 'Rights and the
> Internet' be made the overarching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt, and that the
> IGF-4's program be framed by the desire for developing a rights-based
> discourse in the area of Internet Governance. The Caucus has already
> expressed support for the letter on this subject which was sent to the MAG
> by the Dynamic Coalition on an Internet Bill of Rights.
>
>
>
>
>
> The IGC offers the IGF assistance in helping to shape such a discourse at
> the IGF meetings, and specifically to help make 'Rights and the Internet' an
> overarching theme for IGF-4 in Egypt.
>
>
>
>
>
> A complex new emerging ecology of rights and the internet
>
>
>
>  One important purpose of a discourse on rights should be to clarify and
> reach greater consensus on how rights with respect to the Internet are
> defined, how they relate to pre-existing definitions of human rights, and
> which ones need to be internationally recognized and strengthened. Within
> this context, we acknowledge that, even within the civil society caucus,
> differences of opinion exist as to the nature of various rights and
> conceptual rights and the degree to which they should be emphasized in
> internet governance discussions.
>
>
>
> The openness and diversity of the internet provide an avenue for widely
> recognized (but still imperfectly enforced) basic human rights: the
> individual right to freedom of expression and to privacy. It may also be
> useful to explore if and how concepts such as positive and collective rights
> may be meaningful in relation to the Internet – for instance, respectively,
> a 'right to the Internet', or a right of cultural expression - including the
> right to have an Internet in ones own language, which can inform the
> important IGF thematic area of cultural diversity.
>
>
>
> Many important internet policy areas, like network neutrality, are being
> framed in terms of rights, such as a right to access and share information,
> or as an extension of freedom of expression itself. The right of the public
> to access government-produced information presents itself in a wholly new
> manner in a digital environment, where information is often publicly
> sharable at little or no extra cost. Positive acts of withholding digital
> public information from citizens in fact can be looked upon as a form of
> censorship. All of these rights-based conceptions may be included in the IGF
> openness theme area. Other rights such as the right of association and the
> right to political participation may have important new implications in the
> internet age, including the right to participate in the shaping of globally
> applicable internet policies.
>
>
>
> While the internet opens unprecedented economic, social and political
> opportunities in many areas, many fear that it may at the same time be
> further widening economic, social and political divides. It is for this
> reason that development has been a central theme for the IGF meetings to
> date. In this new, more global and digital context it might be useful to
> explore what the term "right to development" means.
>
>
>
> With respect to privacy rights, corporations and governments are
> increasingly able to extend digital tentacles into people's homes and
> personal devices, in manners invisible to consumers and citizens. Consumers
> of digital products thus face new challenges including the right to know and
> completely 'own' the products and services they pay for. Technological
> measures to monitor and control user behavior on the internet are becoming
> increasingly sophisticated, and often outrun public policies and traditional
> concepts of what rights users have.
>
>
>
> While property rights are of considerable importance, their applicability
> and mutations in the digital environment have led to widespread political
> contention over the proper scope of copyrights, trademarks and patents. In
> fact, intellectual property is emerging as a primary area of socio-economic
> conflict in the information society.  The IGF can explore issues surrounding
> the public interest principles which underpin intellectual property claims
> alongside the concept of a right to access knowledge in the digital space.
> It can also explore how individuals' property right to own, build, test, and
> use consumer electronics, computers and other forms of equipment can be
> reconciled with the regulation of technical circumvention to protect
> copyrights.
>
> We recognize that while it is relatively easy to articulate and claim
> "rights" it is much more difficult to implement and enforce them. We also
> recognize that rights claims can sometimes conflict or compete with each
> other. There can also be uncertainty about the proper application of a
> rights claim to a factual situation. The change in the technical methods of
> communication often undermines pre-existing understandings of how to apply
> legal categories.
>
>
>
> These complexities, however, only strengthen the case for using the IGF to
> explicitly discuss and debate these problems. There is no other global forum
> where such issues can be raised and explored in a non-binding context.
>
> Internet governance has up to this time largely been founded in technical
> principles and, increasingly, on the internet's functionality as a giant
> global marketplace. With the internet becoming  increasingly central to many
> social and political institutions, an alternative foundation and conceptual
> framework for IG can be explored. It is the view of the IG Caucus that a
> rights-based framework will be appropriate for this purpose.
>
>
>
> A rights-based  IG shouldn't be seen as threatening to governments or
> companies, but rather rights provide a set of international standards and
> guiding principles that can help to inform complex policy decisions. It is
> pertinent to recollect that WSIS called for a people-centric information
> society, and a rights framework helps develop people-centric IG agenda and
> polices.
>
>
>
> It is the Caucus' view that the IGF is the forum best suited to take up this
> task. This process should start at the IGF Hyderabad, where workshops on
> rights issues are being planned.  These issues will also hopefully figure
> prominently in the main sessions. The IGC fully expects that these
> discussions will help the IGF work towards developing 'Rights and the
> Internet' as the over-arching theme of the IGF-4 in Egypt.
>
>
>
>
>
> Ian Peter
>
> Ian Peter and Associates Pty Ltd
>
> PO Box 10670 Adelaide St  Brisbane 4000
>
> Australia
>
> Tel (+614) 1966 7772 or (+612) 6687 0773
>
> www.ianpeter.com
>
>
>
>
>
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-- 

Regards.
--------------------------
Fouad Bajwa
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