[governance] Proposed statement on .ORG sale

[Wisdom Donkor (via governance Mailing List)]

+1 to this letter.

*WISDOM DONKOR*
President & CEO
Africa Open Data and Internet Research Foundation
P.O. Box CT 2439, Cantonments, Accra | www.aodirf.org  / www.afrigeocon.org
Tel: +233 20 812 8851
Skype: wisdom_dk | Facebook: kwasi wisdom |  Twitter: @wisdom_dk
__________________________________________________
Specialization:
E-government Network Infrastructure and E-application, Internet
Governance,  Open Data policies platforms & Community Development, Cyber
Security,  Domain Name Systems, Software Engineering, Event Planning &
Management,


On Wed, Dec 18, 2019 at 11:48 AM Sheetal Kumar <sheetal at gp-digital.org>
wrote:

> Dear all,
>
> This is the final version of the letter, which we will be sending today. I
> will cc in the list. Thanks to everyone for their active contributions.
>
> Best
> Sheetal.
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> *Subject: Letter from the Internet Governance Caucus re: the sale of .org*
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> To: Gonzalo Camarillo, Chair of the Board of Trustees, Internet Society
>
> As members of a network which encompasses many non-commercial
> organizations and individuals, we are concerned by the announcement that
> Ethos Capital intends to acquire the assets of the Public Interest Registry
> (PIR) from the Internet Society (ISOC), including the .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG
> Registry Agreements. We ask that this sale be called off.
>
> Principally, we are concerned that the sale of PIR to a private entity
> investment firm would significantly alter the Domain Name System and weaken
> ISOC. PIR played an important role, as the only remaining non-commercial
> top-level domain registry operator, in serving as a counterbalance against
> commercial exploitation. PIR ran .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG for the benefit of
> its users, whereas other top-level domains are run by private companies
> with purely financial objectives. While the interests of companies and
> users do at times overlap, they can also conflict, and when this occurs
> there are significant human rights implications. PIR, as a subsidiary of
> ISOC, could be relied upon to do what was best for domain name registrants,
> and has a proud history of doing just that. However, PIR also gave ISOC
> greater legitimacy and wider influence. It allowed ISOC to take an even
> more active role in shaping Internet infrastructure. In relinquishing its
> control over PIR, ISOC would lose some of its ability to directly impact
> how millions of people around the world positively experience the Internet
> every day, and we think that is a great pity.
>
> We understand that Ethos Capital approached ISOC with an offer in
> September 2019 and that an agreement had been reached to sell PIR by
> November 2019. This secret process caught us, and everyone, unaware, not
> just of the transaction but of the urgency to divest of PIR.
>
> We join ICANN in its 9 December 2019 letter calling for ISOC to be more
> transparent about the proposed sale of PIR and we call for more
> inclusiveness in addition. We ask that ISOC commit to publishing on its
> website all correspondence and documents exchanged with ICANN in relation
> to the proposed change in control of PIR. In addition, we ask that ISOC
> commit to publishing on its website any filings (including motions and
> petitions) in the Pennsylvania Orphans' Court relating to the change in
> status of the PIR.
>
> We expect an organization that operates in the public interest, and who
> promotes the values of openness, trust, and transparency, to be coherent
> with those values when making major decisions.
>
> This is a major decision that would result in a significant change, for
> ISOC and for the Internet community, and it has been proposed a) without a
> human rights impact assessment being conducted, b) without consultation
> with impacted stakeholders, and c) without appropriate safeguards in place
> to protect the interests of .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG registrants and the people
> who visit their websites every day.
>
> ISOC has successfully stewarded .ORG via PIR for 17 years, gaining a
> reputation as a careful manager of a resource that truly is the global home
> for nonprofits and the noncommercial community. Given this background, and
> ISOC’s stated commitments to transparency and openness, we are unable to
> reconcile the path that ISOC has taken with the values we thought ISOC
> espoused. Accordingly, we call upon ISOC to withdraw from its negotiations
> with Ethos Capital, and to withdraw from selling PIR, so to honor its
> charter.
>
> Sincerely yours,
>
> Members of the Internet Governance Caucus (IGC)*
>
> **The Internet Governance Caucus is composed of 500 individual members.
> Please see more information on the IGC here:
> https://igcaucus.org/igc-charter/ <https://igcaucus.org/igc-charter/>*
>
> On Fri, 13 Dec 2019 at 20:16, Sylvain Baya <abscoco at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> Thanks dear Ayden.
>> Just one thing :-)
>>
>> ...add *inclusiveness* alongside with the recommendation for more
>> *transparency*.
>>
>> Please see below (inline)...
>>
>> Le ven. 13 déc. 2019 4:54 PM, Ayden Férdeline <ayden at ferdeline.com> a
>> écrit :
>>
>>> Thanks for this edit, Ian, and thanks to everyone who had shared their
>>> input on this statement. I've pasted below what we have at present. I
>>> apologise if I have missed any edits or failed to address any concerns - if
>>> so, please can you advise. Thanks again and enjoy your weekend!
>>>
>>> Best wishes, Ayden Férdeline
>>> ====
>>>
>>> *To:    Gonzalo Camarillo, Chair of the Board of Trustees, Internet
>>> Society*
>>>
>>> *As members of a network which encompasses many non-commercial
>>> organizations and individuals, we are concerned by the announcement that
>>> Ethos Capital intends to acquire the assets of the Public Interest Registry
>>> (PIR) from the Internet Society (ISOC), including the .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG
>>> Registry Agreements. We ask that this sale be called off. *
>>>
>>> *Principally, we are concerned that the sale of PIR to a private entity
>>> investment firm would significantly alter the Domain Name System and weaken
>>> ISOC. PIR played an important role, as the only remaining non-commercial
>>> top-level domain registry operator, in serving as a counterbalance against
>>> commercial exploitation. PIR ran .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG for the benefit of
>>> its users, whereas other top-level domains are run by private companies
>>> with purely financial objectives. While the interests of companies and
>>> users do at times overlap, they can also conflict, and when this occurs
>>> there are significant human rights implications. PIR, as a subsidiary of
>>> ISOC, could be relied upon to do what was best for domain name registrants,
>>> and has a proud history of doing just that. However, PIR also gave ISOC
>>> greater legitimacy and wider influence. It allowed ISOC to take an even
>>> more active role in shaping Internet infrastructure. In relinquishing its
>>> control over PIR, ISOC would lose some of its ability to directly impact
>>> how millions of people around the world positively experience the Internet
>>> every day, and we think that is a great pity.*
>>>
>>> *We understand that Ethos Capital approached ISOC with an offer in
>>> September 2019 and that an agreement had been reached to sell PIR by
>>> November 2019. This secret process caught us, and everyone, unaware, not
>>> just of the transaction but of the urgency to divest of PIR. *
>>>
>>> *We join ICANN in its 9 December 2019 letter calling for ISOC to be more
>>> transparent about the proposed sale of PIR. *
>>>
>>
>> “*...the proposed sale of PIR, and we call for more inclusiveness in
>> addition.*”
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> Shalom,
>> --sb.
>>
>> *We ask that ISOC commit to publishing on its website all correspondence
>>> and documents exchanged with ICANN in relation to the proposed change in
>>> control of PIR. In addition, we ask that ISOC commit to publishing on its
>>> website any filings (including motions and petitions) in the Pennsylvania
>>> Orphans' Court relating to the change in status of the PIR.*
>>>
>>> *We expect an organization that operates in the public interest, and who
>>> promotes the values of openness, trust, and transparency, to be coherent
>>> with those values when making major decisions. *
>>>
>>> *This is a major decision that would result in a significant change, for
>>> ISOC and for the Internet community, and it has been proposed a) without a
>>> human rights impact assessment being conducted, b) without consultation
>>> with impacted stakeholders, and c) without appropriate safeguards in place
>>> to protect the interests of .ORG, .NGO, and .ONG registrants and the people
>>> who visit their websites every day. *
>>>
>>> *ISOC has successfully stewarded .ORG via PIR for 17 years, gaining a
>>> reputation as a careful manager of a resource that truly is the global home
>>> for nonprofits and the noncommercial community. Given this background, and
>>> ISOC’s stated commitments to transparency and openness, we are unable to
>>> reconcile the path that ISOC has taken with the values we thought ISOC
>>> espoused. Accordingly, we call upon ISOC to withdraw from its negotiations
>>> with Ethos Capital, and to withdraw from selling PIR, so to honor its
>>> charter.*
>>>
>>> *About the Internet Governance Caucus*
>>>
>>> *The members of the Internet Governance Caucus (IGC) are individuals,
>>> acting in their personal capacity, who subscribe to IGC's charter. The IGC
>>> is guided by its vision and mission, included below.*
>>>
>>> *Vision*
>>>
>>> *The policies that shape the Internet impact not only the development of
>>> the technologies themselves, but also the realization of internationally
>>> agreed human rights, social equity and interdependence, cultural concerns,
>>> and both social and economic development. Our vision is that Internet
>>> governance should be inclusive, people centered and development oriented.
>>> Our contributions to the various forums relevant to Internet governance,
>>> will strive to ensure an information society which better enables equal
>>> opportunity and freedom for all.*
>>>
>>> *Mission*
>>>
>>> *The mission of the Internet Governance Caucus (IGC) is to provide a
>>> forum for discussion, advocacy, action, and for representation of civil
>>> society contributions in Internet governance processes. The caucus intends
>>> to provide an open and effective forum for civil society to share opinion,
>>> policy options and expertise on Internet governance issues, and to provide
>>> a mechanism for coordination of advocacy to enhance the utilization and
>>> influence of Civil Society (CS) and the IGC in relevant policy processes.*
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ‐‐‐‐‐‐‐ Original Message ‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
>>> [...]
>>>
>>
>
> --
>
>
> *Sheetal Kumar*
> Senior Programme Lead | GLOBAL PARTNERS DIGITAL
> Second Home, 68-80 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5JL
> T: +44 (0)20 3 818 3258| M: +44 (0)7739569514  |
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>
>
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