Andrew, yes, Google is a founding member of the Global Network Initiative and is working with GNI to develop a human rights assessment process for Internet companies and hopefully the ICT sector more broadly. Perhaps ICANN staff might be more willing to listen to GNI members Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft than to non-commercial users. 

Milton, glad you like the idea. If our GNSO councilors are interested in bringing this up through the GNSO, or if anybody participating in the various working groups wants to use the GNI principles on privacy and free expression as a benchmark for whether basic standards are being met on that front please let me know what other contacts/info you need. 

Meanwhile I will plan to submit something with this suggestion in the DAG public comments as well.

Cheers,
Rebecca

On Sun, Nov 1, 2009 at 9:13 PM, Andrew A. Adams <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
milton Mueller wrote:
> This is a fantastic idea, Rebecca.
> As you may know, some of us have been trying to get free expression concerns
> as an officially recognized part of ICANN's agenda for some time (back to
> the beginning, in fact).
> We learned during the new gTLD policy making process (e.g., the "morality
> and public order" section) how difficult that will be and we have learned
> that the U.S. government is completely indifferent, at least the Commerce
> Department that controls relations with ICANN.

I recently attended a talk by David Drummond, Chief Legal Officer and Senior
VP at Google, on Technology and Freedom of Speech. He (and by extension,
Google, since he was speaking officially for the company) have a policy of
promoting freedom of speech quite broadly. They might be a useful ally in
such an effort.



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Rebecca MacKinnon
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Assistant Professor, Journalism & Media Studies Centre, University of Hong Kong

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