[governance] Summary of IGP comments on the NTIA ICANN

[ken lohento]

Hi Fouad

> I don't know how far it would take the Africans to follow suite of the
> mentioned corporations....

As McTim indicated, the person from the African Union who sent the 
comment to NTIA said on a list that it is his personal opinion and not 
that of the African Union. It's a pity this was not really made clear on 
the website (I don't know whose responsibility it is).


> somehow, there is a growing need to help the
> developing world why and what they might want to achieve from Internet
> Governance. 

I'm trying to understand what you mean but we should not generalize 
here...People in charge of internet governance that I know in Africa for 
example know very well why and want they want from internet governance. 
But it's true most stakeholders, notably people from CS and but also 
sometimes from governments in least developed countries need capacity 
building in internet governance notably.

Best regards

KL

> The JPA issue might be a starting point for everyone from
> the developing world but again, they have to be sensible to do a
> self-assessment instead of following the developed blindly. They might
> then be in a better standing to position themselves in the right of
> their issues.
>
>
> On Tue, Jun 9, 2009 at 12:40 AM, Milton L Mueller<mueller at syr.edu> wrote:
>   
>> Carlton:
>> Statistics are meaningless here.
>>
>> Large trademark owners and other major U.S.-based business interests
>> (VeriSign, GoDaddy) want to continue the JPA because it allows them to lobby
>> the U.S.G. to get what they want if they don't get it in ICANN. these
>> people cultivate very strong relationships with U.S. Congress.
>>
>> ISOC-related people and organizations support independents for ICANN because
>> they are basically in control of it.
>>
>> Independent analysts of the situation, such as IGP, APC, the Swiss ccTLD
>> registry, want strong action to fix ICANN's problems, but see unilateral US
>> control as part of those problems rather than as part of the solution.
>>
>> I don't know what's up with the African Union guy, I found his comments to
>> be incoherent, perhaps you know where he's coming from? anyway he makes the
>> same mistake so many others make, which is "if there's anything wrong with
>> ICANN, then continuing the JPA will somehow make it better." which is way,
>> way non sequitur.
>>
>> Milton Mueller
>> Professor, Syracuse University School of Information Studies
>> XS4All Professor, Delft University of Technology
>> ------------------------------
>> Internet Governance Project:
>> http://internetgovernance.org
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: carlton.samuels at gmail.com [mailto:carlton.samuels at gmail.com] On Behalf
>> Of Carlton Samuels
>> Sent: Monday, June 08, 2009 10:52 AM
>> To: governance at lists.cpsr.org; Milton L Mueller
>> Subject: Re: [governance] Summary of IGP comments on the NTIA ICANN
>> proceeding
>>
>> I have been following the submissions and I would argue that purely on the
>> stats, it appears the comments are decidedly in favour of continuance of JPA
>> or instantiation of some form of USG oversight, no?
>>
>> As it happens, the African Union is for continuance.  So are Verizon,
>> VeriSign and some organization called the Coalition for Online Trademark
>> Protection along with assorted others.  Vint Cerf and ISOC are for
>> concluding JPA.
>>
>> Carlton Samuels
>> The University of the West Indies
>>
>> On Sun, Jun 7, 2009 at 10:20 PM, Milton L Mueller <mueller at syr.edu> wrote:
>>     
>>> Only the summary, please go to the NTIA site for the complete comments.
>>> http://www.ntia.doc.gov/comments/2009/dnstransition/index.html
>>> ------
>>>
>>> "The global challenges we face demand global institutions that work."
>>> - President Barack Obama, 2008
>>>
>>> ICANN lacks accountability and its processes are full of problems, but the
>>> JPA is not the right tool to use to fix them. The JPA contributes to ICANN's
>>> failings. Although it was intended to provide a vehicle for impartially
>>> assessing the adequacy of ICANN's legal and institutional framework for the
>>> global Internet, in reality it does nothing but invite the stakeholders in
>>> one privileged country to complain to their own government about policy
>>> outcomes they don't like. The U.S. government needs to let the JPA expire,
>>> and immediately initiate an international agreement that formalizes and
>>> completes the transition of ICANN to a stable form of multi-stakeholder
>>> global governance rooted in a nonprofit corporation. This international
>>> instrument should be used to provide a shared, global legal framework that
>>> can keep ICANN independent but accountable. It should be designed to keep
>>> ICANN focused on its narrow coordinating mission, to restore internal
>>> accountability of the Board to its membership, to check abuses by ICANN's
>>> Board, to delegate authority over ccTLDs to national governments, and to
>>> limit interference in or abuse of ICANN by governments. By taking the lead,
>>> the US can gain buy-in from other governments for its own model and ensure
>>> that the transition does not harm any of its own legitimate interests. But
>>> to succeed in completing the transition, the U.S. will have to win the
>>> acceptance of a critical mass of other countries and peoples.
>>>
>>> Dr. Milton Mueller, Syracuse University School of Information Studies and
>>> XS4All Professor, Technology University of Delft, Netherlands
>>> Brenden Kuerbis, Doctoral candidate, Syracuse University School of
>>> Information Studies
>>> Dr. Michel van Eeten, Technology University of Delft, Netherlands
>>> Dr. John Mathiason, Syracuse University, Maxwell School of Citizenship and
>>> Public Affairs
>>> Dr. Derrick Cogburn, School of International Service, American University
>>> Dr. Lee McKnight, Syracuse University School of Information Studies
>>>
>>> ____________________________________________________________
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>>     
>
>
>
>   


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