Thanks Ed for a the efforts.
Remmy Nweke
On Jun 24, 2016 2:19 PM, "tara taub" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Wow!
> Sexual
> Harassment is really everywhere.
> Bravo Edward to stand against.
> Tara Taubman
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On 24 Jun 2016, at 13:24, Edward Morris <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
> My fellow NCSG member,
>
> As many of you are aware, the issue of sexual harassment at ICANN meetings
> has become a topic both of conversation and of action by the corporation.
> Changes in ICANN’s Expected Standards of Behaviour have been proposed and
> are currently open for public comment.
>
> There has been a wide variety of opinion within the NCSG regarding the
> extent of the problem and proposed solutions. I worked closely on the GNSO
> Council with Jennifer Gore Standiford of the Registrars Stakeholder Group
> to create a sample conference anti-harassment policy that we proposed as
> one of several prototypes to send to the Board for their consideration.
> This prototype resulted from a small Council sub-team that included four of
> your six Councilors. It was rejected by the wider Council, with opposition
> first pronounced by one of your Councilors who stated “it is my view that
> we need a privacy policy more than a harassment policy “. I could not
> disagree more strongly with that statement. Obviously there is a wide
> variety of opinion on this matter.
>
> One of the problems faced by victims of sexual harassment at ICANN
> Meetings is that such harassment is often experienced at a location where
> the victims do not know the language, the local laws or how to access
> support and help from both law enforcement and victims support groups. That
> is why I believe it is imperative for ICANN to create a specific conference
> harassment policy complete with clear and simple reporting and enforcement
> procedures and mechanisms so that victims know where to turn for
> assistance. Working with staff, the Board and other community members I do
> believe we will eventually get such a policy enacted. It will not, however,
> be ready in time for the upcoming meeting in Helsinki.
>
> As a graduate of the Faculty of Law of the University of Lapland in
> Rovaniemi, Finland I do have knowledge of the laws, customs and procedures
> of the Finnish state. Finland has a zero tolerance policy for harassment of
> any kind. Police officers in Helsinki are empowered to issue on the spot
> fines for what are considered minor forms of harassment. Victims also have
> full recourse to the Finnish legal system to pursue action, both civil and
> criminal, for any form of harassment they may experience.
>
> I am ready to offer my personal assistance to any member of the ICANN
> community who feel they have been harassed during ICANN56 and would like to
> report such violations of their person to the appropriate authorities. I am
> not creating new laws and procedures; rather I am ensuring that lack of
> cultural or linguistic knowledge is not an impediment for victims of
> harassment who wish to pursue clams against their assailant. Towards that
> end:
>
> 1. I have made contact with the appropriate officers in the Helsinki
> Police Department whose focus is harassment type offences. I have directed
> them to documents, available online, that describe recent well publicized
> incidents of alleged harassment at ICANN meetings. I have been assured that
> all cases of alleged harassment that are reported to them will be taken
> seriously and will be fully investigated. The nationality of the parties
> involved is not a consideration. Assistance with these complaints in the
> English language is available 24/7. I have also been given a personal
> mobile telephone numbers of one of the specialist officers and have been
> directed to call her if the initial response to a complaint is not
> satisfactory.
>
> 2. I have spoken to NYTKIS – the Coalition of Finnish Women’s Associations
> – and have been referred to two Helsinki based groups that are available to
> counsel and provide assistance to female victims of harassment on a 24/7
> basis. I have made contact with SETA, the largest LGBT organization in
> Finland, and have similar contact information for any LGBT member of our
> community who feel they have been harassed and desires support.
>
> 3. I have arranged with two Helsinki based colleagues with whom I attended
> law school to provide pro bono representation for any victim of sexual
> harassment at ICANN 56 should legal representation be needed or desired.
>
> Colleagues, I have been made aware of allegations of sexual harassment at
> three of the last four ICANN meetings I have attended. On two occasions I
> have counseled and attempted to help female victims who were so wounded
> that they broke down in tears describing what had happened to them. In
> another instance a community member accompanied me to an event she really
> was not interested in attending to escape a male who was harassing her but
> whom she did not feel to be in a secure enough position of employment to
> confront. This type of occurrence must stop. If I do nothing else through
> my involvement in ICANN I am determined to do whatever is necessary to
> change the rules and eventually the culture at ICANN so that ALL people
> feel that they are able to safely participate in ICANN activities in a
> professional and respectful manner.
>
> Any NCSG member who feels a need to contact me in Helsinki with reference
> to this subject may do so by email at [log in to unmask], Skype at
> ejmorris or Wire at [log in to unmask] I will not in any way judge the
> validity of any complaint but rather will serve as a bridge to Finnish
> authorities and groups who are able both to do so and to offer the impacted
> party appropriate and caring support and counseling.
>
> Respectfully,
>
> Ed Morris
>
>
>