WSIS C2C / CàC SMSI reports

On Wsis 2 -- "Unilateral globalization" model of 'Net governance is new - by Hans Klein, Internet & Public Policy Project

Thu, 24 Nov 2005 05:23:52 -0500

November 23, 2005
An Assessment of the WSIS-2/Tunis ‘05 Outcomes
Hans Klein, INternet and Public Policy Project
http://www.ip3.gatech.edu/
The outcomes of the Tunis World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) are significant -- and rather surprising. ICANN emerges from the summit both unchanged and significantly different. After WSIS it has a stronger claim to legitimacy.

ICANN emerged unchanged, in that its institutional structures – most notably its mechanisms for political oversight – were not amended. ICANN continues to operate under the formal authority of a single government, the US. Such a unilateral globalization model is a novel arrangement, quite unlike what is used in other global sectors (e.g. telephony or communication satellites.) The US continues to exercise a kind of unipolar authority it does not have in physical space.

USA press notw on Wsis 2 Nov. 18

Wed, 23 Nov 2005 15:09:45 -0500

U.S. DELEGATION TO WSIS - PRESS NOTE
Tunis, Tunisia November 18, 2005
Press Note: Nov. 18, 2005 As the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society draws to a close, the U.S. delegation wishes to express its thanks to the Tunisian organizers and the Tunisian people for having succeeded in the considerable logistical challenges of hosting the event. The World Summit on the Information Society provided the world with an opportunity to discuss two vitally important issues – how to bring the benefits of information technology to the developing world and how to ensure a free flow of information that is critical to the success of the Internet.

Wsis 2 Civil Society Statement Draft - Introduction and call for comments

Tue, 22 Nov 2005 12:33:51 -0500

Message from the CS Plenary list [ Karen Banks]:
Attached is the final version of the draft CS WSIS statement.
I realise that many of you have been following the process remotely, and don't have the benefit of explanations that were given during the plenary meetings in Tunis - hopefully the following will clarify the process for all.
Firstly, there were misunderstandings about the existence of a drafting group that was working online. There was no such group. The drafting group consisted of those who went to CS room 7 during wed/thurs or friday and contributed face to face to writing. We did not have time to do any drafting online.

Canada speaks momentarily Nov 17 at Wsis 2 - Details here

Thu, 17 Nov 2005 13:13:17 -0500

The live netcast from Wsis 2 go here
http://www.itu.int/wsis/tunis/webcast/english/index.html#
(New Zealand is speaking now)
Canada is urged to speak up on human rights violations in Tunisia.

Background
http://www.wsis-smsi.gc.ca/act/en/phase2.htm

UN Human rights rapporteurs urgently call for Tunis to respect fundamental freedoms 16 November

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 13:18:25 -0500

New York, Nov 16 2005 10:00AM
On the same day that the United Nations world information summit opened in Tunisia, three UN human rights experts today urgently called on the North African county's Government to take immediate steps to respect the fundamental freedom of expression in the face of reports of serious abuses.

They urged that the holding of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Tunis serve as "an opportunity to reinforce freedom of opinion and expression in Tunisia so that human rights defenders, judges, lawyers and journalists can successfully carry out their activities in a secure, free and constructive climate."

Wsis 2 Round table topics: Action, Implementation and follow up?

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 06:16:58 -0500

Theme of round tables
The round tables are organized around the overarching theme: "From
Commitment to Action: Implementation after Tunis".
The cluster of issues associated with the overarching theme is meant to
provide guidance for participants, thereby ensuring focus and coherence in
each session.
The following is an indicative list of topics, which the moderators will use to
help guide discussions:

Human Rights Watch: Dispatch from Tunis: A Tale of Two Press Conferences

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 05:59:12 -0500

Dispatch from Tunis: A Tale of Two Press Conferences
16 Nov 2005 00:55:21 GMT
Source: Human Rights Watch < http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/HRW/7123fd6893fc520c944826dfb5110f62.htm >
(WSIS). The international and local reaction continued today, as diplomats fumed, some civil society organizations cancelled their events at the U.N. conference, and Human Rights Watch held two press conferences, one for journalists with WSIS badges, the other for Tunisian and international journalists and advocates who did not attend WSIS. Overnight the international press publicized the crude efforts of the Tunisian government to thwart Tunisian and international civil society organizations' plans to hold an alternate meeting to discuss Internet issues in Tunisia alongside the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The international and local reaction continued today, as diplomats fumed, some civil society organizations cancelled their events at the U.N. conference, and Human Rights Watch held two press conferences, one for journalists with WSIS badges, the other for Tunisian and international journalists and advocates who did not attend WSIS. Early in the day, international NGOs that had scheduled official WSIS events but also supported the alternative Citizens Summit began to announce the cancellation of their official events at WSIS. Rather than present their prepared panels on freedom of expression or gender equity, some accredited NGOs chose instead to focus attention on the thuggish treatment by Tunisian police to advocates, journalists and diplomats who tried to meet to plan the Citizens Summit at various locations in Tunis. At a press conference in the WSIS center to announce this protest, Mouldi Mbarek, the editor of La Presse, a pro-government French language daily in Tunisia, broke into a prolonged harangue on why these groups didn't focus their energy on immigration discrimination in France, taking up the last minutes until the next event.

Internet Governance: CS Call for oversight Nov. 14

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 02:39:53 -0500

Internet Oversight: Keep the Internet Free, Innovative and Affordable
Statement by Wolfgang Kleinwächter, University of Aarhus,
on behalf of the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus
at the 4th meeting of the Sub-Committte A of the resumed PrepCom3,
Tunis, November, 14, 2005
Thank you Mr. Chairman for giving me the floor. My name is Wolfgang Kleinwächter. I am a professor for international communication policy at the University of Aarhus. I am also a co-founder of the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus and I was a member of UN Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG). Let me say some words on the Internet oversight function.

Welcoming Grounds

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 22:51:33 -0500

A recent on-line exchange included some serious questions of welcome at Tunis.

Complaints of difficult process were apparently made by 'many' journalists from Africa.

Proof of 'journalistic activity' is said to have been enough to receive media accreditation at the Geneva phase. Different documentation now required by United Nations media people is said to be one hurdle, as well as lack of direct flights.

The United Nations can be contacted at inquiries@un.org, Press and Media may fax to 212-963-7055.

The World Summit on the Information Society email address for Press contact is wsismedia@itu.int.

New Internet Governance Forum (and US Press conference in Tunis) : James Love 15 Nov. in Tunis

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 20:23:18 -0500

James Love: Notes from Tunis - the new Internet Goverance Forum
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-love/notes-from-tunis-the-n_b_10698.html

I’m in Tunis at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), where the biggest debate is over the future of "Internet Governance." The final text for this was agreed upon about 30 minutes ago.

The two quick sounds bites are that
(1) the US and the US based Internet Corporation for Domain Names and Numbers (ICANN) retain, for now, control over the most important aspects of the global Internet Domain Name System (DNS), and
(2) the conversation over this issue and a surprisingly broader governance agenda is continuing, under the United Nations.The Tunis resolution will create a new "multi-stakeholder" Internet Governance Forum (IGF). This new entity will include governments, various UN agencies, businesses and civil society. It’s first meeting will be held in Athens sometime next year. Kofi Anan has been asked to make it happen, under a fairly complex but open-ended terms of reference.

Consensus on Internet Governance Forum and - almost - ICANN oversight - Heinrich Boell Foundation

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 19:48:04 -0500

Negotiations closer to agreement
Consensus on Internet Governance Forum and - almost - ICANN oversight
This is a document of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation
15 November 2005. The PrepCom negotiations today have led to important steps forward an agreement. While governments are still struggling about the question of who gets political oversight over the technical core of the Internet, there is consensus now on the establishment of an “Internet Governance Forum”.
http://www.worldsummit2005.de/en/web/825.htm
Internet Governance Forum
The Internet Governance negotiations got into rough seas yesterday, when the United States government tried to open another battleground, obviously in an attempt to distract from the core issues. As had already become clear during PrepCom3 [ the first round of PrepCom 3] in September, most governments agreed on the establishment of an “Internet Governance Forum”. This forum had been suggested by the UN Working Group on Internet Governance in June, and the idea had originated in civil society over a year ago. The main function would be to ensure an open and inclusive discussion on existing and emerging Internet governance issues that ensures participation of all stakeholders. The United States now suggested having it hosted by the Internet Society (ISOC), which formally is an NGO including large parts of the technical community, but in the last few years has been mostly taken over by the private sector. This was unacceptable to many governments, of course, as to civil society. It still took almost a day to convince the US that this forum, especially if decided by a UN world summit, has to be somehow located in the United Nations context. The agreement taken today is asking the UN secretary general to come up with a proposal for the structure and working procedures of the Forum next year. The subcommittee also agreed that the Forum has to be set up “"in an open and inclusive process", and they changed the world "multilateral" into "multistakeholder", which both ensures that civil society and all interested parties can participate.

Internet Governance: Proposal for the IG Forum

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 12:54:09 -0500

Subcomite subgroup A chaired by Singapore / subgrupo Forum (76 a 79)
Coordina Singapur:
On the Forum:

76. We agree to decide the creation, in an open and inclusive process, of a forum for multi-stakeholder dialogue. This forum will be called Internet Governance Forum (IGF). In this regard, we ask the Secretary General of the United Nations to establish such a forum by the second quarter of 2006 and to convene the first meeting of this forum by the fourth quarter of 2006. The forum should:

a) Discuss public policy issues to key elements of Internet Governance in order to foster the sustainability, robustness, security, stability and development of the Internet;

Internet Governance: PrepCom 3: Nov 14 16-19 h Subcommittee A: Dispatches

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 11:02:14 -0500

Internet governance subcommittee.
SubCommittee A, 14 November 16:00-19:00
In this session of SubCommittee A conducted a first reading of the chair’s
paper on section 5 concerning oversight and a possible forum on Internet
Governance. In the beginning of the meetings there was two interventions
from CS and ICANN and GAC spoke after requests from the chair.

Gender Caucus:
Gender equality as stated in Geneva documents is not reflected in chapter
three.
Supports interngovernmental mechanism with participation of CS and private
sector.

Wolfgang Kleinwächter on behalf of IG Caucus:

Journalists, others at World Summit on the Information Society attacked by authorities - Media Caucus @ Wsis 2

Mon, 14 Nov 2005 20:40:08 -0500

http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70466/

Journalists, others at World Summit on the Information Society attacked by authorities

Country/Topic: Tunisia
Date: 14 November 2005
Source: ARTICLE 19
Person(s):
Target(s): Internet/website(s) , journalist(s) , photographer(s)
Type(s) of violation(s): assaulted , other , seized
Urgency: Threat

(ARTICLE 19/IFEX) - The following press release has been distributed by ARTICLE 19 on behalf of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Civil Society's Media Caucus:

Civil Society's Media Caucus at WSIS expresses its indignation over a series of incidents in which Tunisian authorities have hampered the freedom of expression of journalists and their freedom of association as well as that of others attending the Tunis phase of the World Summit on the Information Society.

Internet Governance Wsis 2: Canadian proposal Nov 14

Mon, 14 Nov 2005 10:28:49 -0500

[Civil Society eye witnesses report: Mechanism/framework for Internet Governance:]
"proposal presented this morning in subcom A:

The Forum should be focussed on capacity building and development. This
Forum:
1. should be constituted as a neutral, non-duplicative and non-binding
process to facilitate capacity building through the exchange of
information and best practices, to identify issues and make known its