On Dec 10, 2015 9:37 AM, "Mueller, Milton L" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Ed, I love your ability to dig up these kinds of interesting issues.

 

Insofar as ICANN is involved, ccTLD delegation issues are dealt with by the ccNSO; it is most definitely not a GNSO issue. If you look at RFC 1591, which many ccTLDs consider the guiding policy, ICANN should delegate .EH as long as it is a recognized ISO-3166-1 code, here are some relevant wordings:

 

“The designated manager must be equitable to all groups in the domain that request domain names.

Significantly interested parties in the domain should agree that the designated manager is the appropriate party.

The IANA is not in the business of deciding what is and what is not a country. The selection of the ISO 3166 list as a basis for country code top-level domain names was made with the knowledge that ISO has a procedure for determining which entities should be and should not be on that list.”

 

However, GAC has created its own “Principles” for the delegation of ccTLDs. ICANN is currently engaged in ratifying a “framework of interpretation” that mediates between the GAC Principles, RFC 1591, and current practice.

 

From: NCSG-Discuss [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Schaefer, Brett
Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2015 8:50 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Marrakesh & 7 human rights defenders

 

Hey Ed,

 

Without taking one side or the other, this seems to me to be precisely the type of inter-governmental dispute that ICANN should shy away from until governments can arrive at a consensus position. No matter what position the organization takes, it will be seen as siding with one government faction or another.

 

Moreover, it will set a precedent for future such situations. Do we really want ICANN to be making ccTLD decisions in situations of disputed sovereignty? How about Eastern Ukraine or Crimea? What about Biafra or Somaliland if stability in Nigeria or Somalia deteriorate further? What about the Islamic State if it comes to ICANN?  

 

If ICANN goes down this road, I think it would create more incentives for governments to stick their noses in ICANN or, heaven forbid, take it to the ITU.

 

Best,

 

Brett

 

From: NCSG-Discuss [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Edward Morris
Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2015 8:27 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Marrakesh & 7 human rights defenders

 

Hi everyone,

 

Without taking a position on Niels proposal, there is an ongoing issue directly within ICANN's scope related to human rights that I hope we might be able to explore within one of our meetings in Morocco. This concerns delegation of EH.

 

EH is the ISO 3166-1 alpha 2 code for Western Sahara. I should emphasise it is a code under ISO 3166-1, generally national designations,  and not 3166-2, which designates subregions. Western Sahara is a territory that is disputed between Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Although not a UN member, the SADR inc recognised by 80 plus countries, with 40 plus states currently maintaining diplomatic relations with the group.

 

Delegation of the EH ccTLD has been frozen pending negotiations that have been ongoing for decades. There is a territory controlled under various agreements by the SADR, an internationally recognised government, yet they are currently forced to use the Moroccan ccTLD.

 

I'd like to learn more about how ICANN deals with situations like these, generally, and the Western Sahara in particular. Is ICANN's policy dictated by the United Stares government? Might / should this change post transition? The CCWG in work stream 2 is going to have a subgroup on jurisdiction, namely that applicable to ICANN. Should we add this topic to it's remit?

 

As we  discuss human rights and ICANN in the context of the Morocco meeting I wanted to bring this up. It certainly is within ICANN's scope and mission, involves recognition by ICANN of the sovereignty of the clearly defined internationally recognised group...might be an interesting issue to explore.

 

Thanks for considering,

 

Ed Morris

 

 

 

 

 

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From: "Tapani Tarvainen" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2015 12:04 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Marrakesh & 7 human rights defenders

 

Thank you Rafik.

We do indeed need to be careful here, good intentions do not guarantee
good results. Hasty action could easily do more harm than good to both
the people in question as well as our future ability to influence
ICANN's human rights and other policies.

But as I expected, you are clearly aware of all this and well able to
evaluate various alternatives and their possible repercussions, so
I'm happy you're willing to take the lead on this.

Best,

Tapani

On Dec 10 11:39, Rafik Dammak ([log in to unmask]) wrote:

> Hi Tapani,
>
> happy to do that, I will first investigate what are the options and what
> can be done, discussing with the moroccan friends and locals. I am aware
> about the political context and sensitivity in the country, and will get
> more info and feedback anyway.
>
> I saw the latest responses and I think they jumped too quickly to some
> conclusion. I didn't see any proposal for protest or something similar such
> occupying the space. I don't think those activists would ask for any bold
> action or ICANN as organization to take position in the matter. they are
> cautious and pragmatic, aware of the limits. we will discuss with them
> anyway about the best options, having their safety in mind.
>
> btw regarding a parallel event, I may respond to that quickly. ADN, the
> association, was prevented several times from having public meetings so I
> would assume that option doesn't sound realistic.
>
> Best,
>
> Rafik
>
> 2015-12-09 23:11 GMT+09:00 Tapani Tarvainen <[log in to unmask]>:
>
> > Hi Niels,
> >
> > I think this is an excellent idea.
> >
> > But exactly what and how, that is a difficult question.
> >
> > Fortunately we have people with local knowledge who can
> > help us plan this in more detail. I should think Rafik
> > would be in an ideal position to coordinate this effort,
> > if his undoubtedly busy schedule allows.
> >
> > Rafik, what do you think?
> >
> > Tapani
> >
> > On Wed, Dec 09, 2015 at 10:56:11AM +0100, Niels ten Oever (
> > [log in to unmask]) wrote:
> >
> > > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> > > Hash: SHA256
> > >
> > > Dear all,
> > >
> > > I hope this email finds you well. As you all know, the next ICANN
> > > meeting will be in Marrakesh. Morrocco hasn't got a great track record
> > > when it comes to human rights, and right now, seven human rights
> > > defenders are on trial.
> > >
> > > I think it would be good if we the NCSG we could give proper attention
> > > to this case and invite the human rights defenders to our session(s)
> > > so give them support, shed light on their case and call for the
> > > protection of freedom of expression in Morrocco.
> > >
> > > More information on the seven can be found here:
> > > https://www.freepressunlimited.org/en/news/these-seven-moroccan-human-ri
> > > ghts-defenders-are-on-trial
> > >
> > > and here:
> > >
> > > https://www.freepressunlimited.org/en/news/international-appeal-to-the-m
> > > oroccan-authorities-to-drop-charges-against-human-rights-defenders
> > >
> > > Am eager to hear from you how you think we could support these
> > > colleagues in distress, how we could visibility for their cases and
> > > how we could integrate these discussions in our work at ICANN.
> > >
> > > Best,
> > >
> > > Niels
> > >
> > > - --
> > > Niels ten Oever
> > > Head of Digital
> > >
> > > Article 19
> > > www.article19.org
> > >
> > > PGP fingerprint 8D9F C567 BEE4 A431 56C4
> > > 678B 08B5 A0F2 636D 68E9
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> >
 

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Brett Schaefer
Jay Kingham Senior Research Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs
Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy
The Heritage Foundation
214 Massachusetts Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-608-6097
heritage.org