You guys all really ROCK!! Thanks very much for weighing-in on this important issue! [log in to unmask] Best, Robin On Jul 23, 2009, at 1:53 PM, Ginger Paque wrote: > Ok, mine too :o) > > Kathy Kleiman wrote: >> >> Mine are in too! >> Kathy >> >>> I've just sent mine as well, but Norbert's is far better! :) >>> >>> []s fraternos >>> >>> --c.a. >>> >>> Norbert Klein wrote: >>> >>>> >>>> FYI >>>> >>>> Norbert Klein >>>> >>>> = >>>> >>>> ---------- Forwarded Message ---------- >>>> Subject: Charter drafts - and the related process so far >>>> Date: Friday, 24 July 2009 (Cambodia time - USA: 23 July) >>>> From: Norbert Klein <[log in to unmask]> >>>> To: [log in to unmask] >>>> >>>> Though I have seen that many voices from different parts of the >>>> world have sent in their support for the original proposal, >>>> prepared within the Non-Commercial Users Constituency in an >>>> intensive process of online and international Internet >>>> communication, in which we received an overwhelming – an almost >>>> unanimous consensus – I thought it might not be important to >>>> state this again. >>>> But I write because I am utterly surprised that – in spite of >>>> this process of wide and open consultation – the result of this >>>> process was sidelined so far. The litany of “bottom-up consensus >>>> building,” which is in so many official ICANN statements, >>>> became more and more hollow over the years. >>>> >>>> I say so as a person who was involved in the pre-ICANN efforts – >>>> the 1998 Singapore meeting - and since 1999 – Santiago de Chile >>>> – I fairly regularly did participate in ICANN affairs, the >>>> “ICANN fellowship” as I felt it was, in the early years – >>>> learning a lot for my efforts to start the first Internet >>>> connection in Cambodia, creating the country code .kh in 1996 >>>> and administering it until 1998, and continuing to be involved >>>> in the UNICODE codification of the Khmer script and then the >>>> localization of software etc. >>>> >>>> Over the years, our situation seemed to get more and more into >>>> the background of the ICANN dynamics – but WSIS 1 and 2 were an >>>> encouragement, when the Declaration of Principles of WSIS 1 said: >>>> >>>> “We, the representatives of the peoples of the world, assembled >>>> in Geneva from 10-12 December 2003 for the first phase of the >>>> World Summit on the Information Society, declare our common >>>> desire and commitment to build a people-centered, inclusive and >>>> development-oriented Information Society, where everyone can >>>> create, access, utilize and share information and knowledge, >>>> enabling individuals, communities and peoples to achieve their >>>> full potential in promoting their sustainable development and >>>> improving their quality of life, premised on the purposes and >>>> principles of the Charter of the United Nations and respecting >>>> fully and upholding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” >>>> >>>> Instead of a “people-centered, inclusive and development- >>>> oriented Information Society, where everyone can create, access, >>>> utilize and share information and knowledge, enabling >>>> individuals, communities and peoples to achieve their full >>>> potential in promoting their sustainable development and >>>> improving their quality of life,” I do not see much of this >>>> vision in ICANN's efforts to secure the stability and security >>>> of the network. >>>> >>>> This vision has been held up especially in the Non-Commercial >>>> Users Constituency and in the At-Large structures, where the >>>> people-centered, inclusive activities have their representation, >>>> and where they hope to be supported, so that the purposes and >>>> principles of the UN Declaration of Human Rights will be kept >>>> central in our operations. >>>> >>>> The details for this are well stated in what the Non-Commercial >>>> Users Constituency has elaborated and presented before – as the >>>> result of a wide participatory process. I do not need to repeat >>>> it – I only hope that the members of the ICANN Board will really >>>> take note of this and not pass quickly to some “pragmatic” >>>> suggestions which are not based on the principles on which we >>>> started to cooperate. >>>> >>>> I want, however, highlight one aspect where I see a grave >>>> failure in the process, where the Non-Commercial Users >>>> Constituency – on the basis of what the organizations and >>>> persons here cooperating – thought to be important. We raised it >>>> repeatedly, but we remained without an answer. When the >>>> discussions about new gTLD touched on the restrictions to be >>>> considered, the NCUC raised the question that such restrictions >>>> must be included against efforts to erode the fundamental rights >>>> (as stated above) - the protection of rights for this new >>>> developments. Many of us live in environments where this is >>>> crucial. Instead the problem of “generally accepted legal norms >>>> of morality and public order” became more prominent, and the >>>> repeated official requests by the NCUC Chair to the staff, how >>>> the staff identifies these principles, supposedly “recognized >>>> under international principles of law,” did never get an >>>> official response. >>>> >>>> Many of those who are not part of the larger technical or >>>> economic bodies cooperating in ICANN, but who live somewhere “on >>>> the periphery,” need that ICANN finds again ways to live up to >>>> the “bottom-up principle” for our social development and – in >>>> some cases – for our survival. >>>> The Non-Commercial Users Constituency, built up from the bottom, >>>> is an important instrument for this. The new move I read a while >>>> ago, that a WIPO initiative is accepted as the basis for a >>>> revision of the UDRP – without considering immediately what this >>>> means in terms of a bottom-up process – is a sign that the >>>> fundamental orientation of ICANN – from the point of view of its >>>> world wide membership – not from those who control it – remains >>>> a most important task. The non-commercial and the at-large users >>>> are the most important basis for giving bottom-up orientation. >>>> >>>> Norbert Klein >>>> >>>> >>>> Open Institute Phnom Penh/Cambodia >>>> Member of the NCUC >>>> >>>> >>>> >> IP JUSTICE Robin Gross, Executive Director 1192 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA 94117 USA p: +1-415-553-6261 f: +1-415-462-6451 w: http://www.ipjustice.org e: [log in to unmask]