[governance] Announcement on the Interim Chair

[Jeremy Malcolm]

On 26/02/2013, at 7:40 PM, Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro <salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro at gmail.com> wrote:

> This is really excellent news :)
> 
> Congratulations Markus!

My perspective is rather different.  One of the main merits of having UN staff as the Executive Coordinator and as the MAG Chair was their independence on questions of Internet governance.  This is a point that Markus and Nitin had previously expressly made (I don't have the quote to hand, but I can dig it up if anyone is interested).

ISOC is far from independent in that regard.  It has a direct interest in maintaining its control over Internet governance, as the organisational home of some of the key existing bodies and processes such as the IAB and IETF, and apparently considers itself to have an interest in opposing the rise of parallel bodies and processes (even if intended as complementary) that would deal with non-technical policy issues in a similar way.

ISOC's track record over the last seven years speaks for itself in this regard, and so - even before he joined ISOC - does Markus Kummer's.  I have previously documented (eg. at http://igfwatch.org/discussion-board/my-take-away-from-vilnius---if-the-igf-wont-change-itself-others-will, and also in my book) many instances in which Markus has exercised a strong reactionary influence on the IGF and its MAG, this dating back to the earliest days of its formation and the way in which that was steered.

I fear very greatly that just as the IGF has the opportunity to make progress on issues such as the compilation of principles and the adoption of more outcome-oriented formats, Markus will not provide the kind of positive and active facilitation that is needed, and will instead continue to urge caution and restraint as he has always done, holding the IGF back from the fulfilment of its agreed mandate - while being paid by ISOC which shares this aim.

I have been accused of personalising the issues around Internet governance reform by naming people like Markus over their roles in this process, but I don't resile from the fact that if someone takes a public office, their behaviour in that office renders them liable to public criticism, and if I'm the one who has to do that even if it makes me unpopular, I'll do it.  Without detracting from the many positive contributions that Markus has also made (particularly at the WGIG), I honestly do feel that we could use some new blood at the head of the MAG if we want it and the IGF to improve their effectiveness at this very critical time.

-- 
Dr Jeremy Malcolm
Senior Policy Officer
Consumers International | the global campaigning voice for consumers
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