[WSIS CS-Plenary] CS Speaker nominations - A personal short analysis and proposal

[Meryem Marzouki]

Hi all,

This is a long message I'm afraid. Since the announcement of the 
speaking slots for CS, I have been feeling very uncomfortable, more 
than I ever felt since the very begining of the WSIS process, having 
participated to all PrepComs, Paris intersession, and some other 
WSIS-related meetings. In the following text, I'm proposing a short 
personal analysis of the situation, as well as some concrete proposals 
which are mine, and by no mean those of the Human Rights Caucus, which 
is one of the recipients of this email.

I would be very much interested in reading your comments on this 
anlysis and proposal.

Best regards,
Meryem Marzouki
PS. I'm writing this in English, so that most people can read, but I 
would like very much to see translation of this analysis and proposal 
be provided, if possible.
===============
CS Speaker nominations - A personal short analysis and proposal

Since the announcement by the WSIS executive secretariat of speaking 
slots for observers during the Summit, civil society organizations have 
been the consentent victims of a very strange virus : the nomination 
fever.  Without any discussion on the opportunity to take part in the 
proposed process or any questioning of this process, nominations have 
started, and, even more amazingly, the Content and Themes group have 
decided to act as the nominations repository and coordinating body.

1/ The proposed process:
The WSIS executive secretariat has proposed the following speaking 
slots for CS:
- 1 slot in opening session (5mn)
- 12 slots for declarations during the general debate (3mn each)
- 18 slots in round-tables

All nominees for the general debate and the round-tables should 
represent, in my understanding of the secretariat proposal, an 
organization accredited to the WSIS, and "should be at the very top 
level of their organizations or entities", as put by the secretariat.

The Civil Society Bureau (CSB) has been asked to propose speakers to 
the executive secretariat, the ITU remaining sovereign in choosing or 
not these speakers, or even nominating other speakers than those 
proposed by the CSB.

2/ The process undertaken by CS:
Again, without any discussion or questioning, CS participants have 
accepted this process, starting nominations. Moreover, the Content and 
Themes group (and not the CSB), has decided to coordinate this 
nominating process.
This nomination fever has been so high that many CS organizations have 
started proposing speakers who, for some of them:
- have never even showed their faces at any WSIS-related event, and/or
- have never said a word regarding WSIS and its process, and/or
- are not representing an accredited organization or an organization 
having asked for accreditation, and/or
- are not "at the very top level of their organizations or entities", 
hence are not fulfilling the administrative prerequisite set by the 
secretariat

3/ The process undertaken by the C&T group:
Why the Content and Theme group, which has democratically acted till 
now, as fas as the circumstances have permitted, has stopped this way 
of behaving, and started to engage in the nominating process ?
Could a reasonable answer be : to show that the Content and Theme group 
is, contrarily to the CSB, the adequate body to represent CS 
self-organization ?
Till now, this has been indeed the case. The C&T group has, till now, 
done a great job in compiling CS documents taking into account inputs 
from legitimate, self-organized entities, i.e. the caucuses and working 
groups. It has also been a key element in coordinating CS speaking 
slots during PrepComs and intersessions, organizing the democratic 
decision about the repartition of speaking slots among caucuses, so 
that all issues can be covered.
However, I have to say the C&T group is now acting like the CSB. To go 
on with the democratic process, the C&T group should have started by 
first asking CS organizations if CS should go on with the proposed 
process, and how.

4/ Questions to be asked before any nomination, and proposal to CS 
organizations:
- Should the participating CS organizations nominate a personnality for 
the opening session ?
My own answer is yes.
The reason is that the importance of this opening session speaker is 
not negligible, since his/her message will be reported by mainstream 
medias which, as usual, will only be reporting on WSIS through the 
Summit itself and, probably, mainly through the opening session.
This person should be very high-profile, most desirably from the South, 
raising an overarching issue, and charismatic enough to deliver a very 
strong message not only to heads of States who will attend, but also to 
the medias, then.
I've personnaly proposed `madame Aminata Traoré, not because she is a 
former minister, but because she is the founder of the "Forum for 
another Mali", she fulfills the requirement set above, and she has a 
strong message to deliver to WSIS and the world, just like she did at 
the Bamako WSIS regional conference and at many other occasions, or 
even in stronger words. I would welcome other proposals of the same 
kind.

- Should the participating CS organizations nominate speakers for the 
general debate ?
My own answer is yes, but only if the following process is adopted.
Although CS nominations are subject to acceptance or refusal by the 
executive secretariat and the ITU, and although during the Summit there 
wouldn't be any chance to see the Declaration and Plan of action 
modified, this general debate could be seen by CS just like the 
PrepComs and Intersessions plenaries, and it could be the occasion to 
present our conclusions on the Summit official texts, process and 
follow-up. To this end, these CS speakers for declarations during the 
general debate should be nominated following exactly the same process 
as for the PrepComs and Intersessions: each caucus should have a chance 
to tell its conclusions. The Content and Themes groups should be in 
charge of coordinating these nominations, and propose relevant merging 
if there are more proposals than speaking slots.
The compilation of such declarations by caucuses could be a very good 
alternative declaration from CS.

IT IS STILL TIME TO DO THAT.

It is still time to take this aspirin, be releived from this fever, and 
fight this strange virus.
I'm particularly addressing this suggestion to CS organizations and 
people that, till now, have shown a true and sincere willing to 
participate to the WSIS process, without showing a "collaboration" 
behavior pursuing their own opportunistic agenda and private interests, 
and without loosing any credibility.
I'm particularly addressing this suggestion to the Content and Themes 
group, so that it doesn't become yet another "CS bureau", at the very 
end of the WSIS process, and so that it doesn't risk loosing its 
legitimacy.

- Should the participating CS organizations nominate speakers for the 
round-tables ?
My own answer is no, definitely no.
What is the purpose of these round-tables ? Are we in an amicable 
discussion process with friends or colleagues ? No, we are in a UN 
Summit process. Are we here for legitimation ? No, we are here to meet 
other CS organizations, establish networks, follow the Summit process 
and try to impact some (very little as we know, not surprisingly) 
output of the Summit.
I am not that naive. I know that many CS organizations have and will 
nominate speakers for round-tables. I know that the secretariat and ITU 
will choose their speakers. They will have a cup of tea with some heads 
of states. So what ? Let's let them do that, this wont change anything. 
But please, let's let them do that AS INDIVIDUAL ORGANIZATIONS, without 
any implicit or explicit approval of "the world civil society", since 
this is the way CS organizations participating to the WSIS will be 
called, specially by the media. Let's ensure that they are not proposed 
by caucuses, and specially not by "CS self-organizing bodies".

--
Meryem Marzouki - http://www.iris.sgdg.org
IRIS - Imaginons un réseau Internet solidaire
294 rue de Charenton - 75012 Paris
Tel/Fax. +33(0)144749239