[WSIS CS-Plenary] Re: Draft YC Input to WGIG Sept Consultation
Bertrand de LA CHAPELLE
lachapelle at openwsis.org
Sat Sep 11 22:21:20 BST 2004
Hi Robert,
Just wanted to congratulate you for this very good and
detailed contribution that is very much in phase with the
comments elaborated within the CS IG caucus.
No specific modifications worthy enough to bother you at
that late stage.
But I wanted to explicitely express support for two points :
- >19 Selection of the WGIG members must be made transparent
and based on core
>competencies, with criteria for selection widely consulted
and reasons for
>selection made public.
- >20 Aside from having closed-door meetings, the WGIG must
ensure it utilizes
>open consultations, both online and physical, to harness
the knowledge and
>expertise of a wider range of interested parties. Taking
into account cost
>considerations, the WGIG must work to organize regional,
sub-regional,
>thematic and sectoral meetings and consultations. The WGIG
Secretariat
>should enter into partnerships with relevant groups in
organizing these
>meetings.
I hope to see members of the Youth Caucus attending the Sept
20-21 meeting.
If some of them are already in Geneva on the evening of the
19th, they are welcome to join members of the CS Internet
Governance Caucus who will meet for drink / diner at the
café Les Brasseurs (place Cornavin) at 7:30 pm.
Best
Bertrand
---- Original message ----
>Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 10:11:24 -0400
>From: "rsagun at takingitglobal.org"
<rsagun at takingitglobal.org>
>Subject: [WSIS CS-Plenary] Call for Comments: Draft YC
Input to WGIG Sept Consultation
>To: plenary at wsis-cs.org, governance at lists.cpsr.org,
communication at wsisasia.org,
wsisyouth at groups.takingitglobal.org, psis-cs at fma.ph
>Cc: facilitators at wsisyouth.org, gerardodiaz at hotmail.com,
vb at bertola.eu.org, minciu_sodas_en at yahoogroups.org,
karenb at gn.apc.org, lachapelle at openwsis.org
>
>Dear All,
>
>Thank you very much to those who have taken time to review
and send in
>their initial comments to the WSIS Youth Caucus' draft
contribution to the
>upcoming WGIG open consultation. We likewise encourage
others to comment on
>our draft and forward them at facilitators at wsisyouth.org on
or before 12
>September 2004. Please feel free to circulate this post to
other lists as
>well.
>
>However, we have been receiving posts that some people are
unable to open
>the file we attached to our first call. We are very sorry
for this.
>Appended below is the draft.
>
>We likewise invite young people from your lists to
subscribe to the WSIS
>Youth Caucus' mailinglist by sending a blank message at
>wsisyouth-subscribe at groups.takingitglobal.org. The Youth
Caucus is heavily
>preparing towards WSIS Tunis 2005 and, on this regard, we
are sending out
>to call to all WSIS caucuses/working groups/stakeholders
for partnerships
>and project collaborations at the global, regional and
national levels.
>Please fell free to contact the Facilitation Team on this
matter at
>facilitators at wsisyouth.org.
>
>Initially, the WSIS Youth Caucus will be setting up
an "Issues Working
>Group" that will write articles and policy papers detailing
the stand of
>the Youth Caucus on relevant issues around WSIS Phase II
(ie. Internet
>governance, financial mechanisms, e-governance, "spam",
information and
>network security, freedom of expression in an Information
Society, etc).
>Thus, we are calling upon individuals/groups with
expertise/experience on
>these issues from your lists to serve as volunteer
>advisers/readers/contributors/ to the IWG of the WSIS Youth
Caucus.
>
>Thank you very much and keep sending us your comments and
inquiries! Watch
>out for the launching of the WSIS Youth Caucus website...
really soon!
>
>Best regards,
>
>Robert Sagun
>Policy Coordinator, WSIS Youth Caucus
>
>Noted by:
>
>Titilayo Akinsanmi
>Global Facilitator, WSIS Youth Caucus
>
>Luke Cholerton-Bozier
>Communications Facilitator, WSIS Youth Caucus
>
>
>
>======== Draft YC Input to the WGIG Sept Consultations
=========
>
>
>13 September 2004
>
>Markus Kummer
>Executive Coordinator
>Secretariat of the UN Working Group on the Internet
Governance
>Geneva, Switzerland
>
>Dear Mr. Kummer,
>
>On behalf of the entire membership of the WSIS Youth
Caucus, we are very
>pleased to transmit to your office our collective
contribution to the
>establishment of the Working Group on Internet Governance
for your review
>and consideration.
>
>This input is the result of an intensive e-consultation
participated by
>hundreds of Youth Caucus members from around the globe. It
has likewise
>been transmitted to the mailing lists of the WSIS Civil
Society Plenary and
>Internet Governance Caucus for additional comments
>
>We will highly appreciate receiving a brief feedback from
you on our
>recommendations as well as request for your support to have
young people
>included as members of the WGIG. Please send correspondence
at
>facilitators at wsisyouth.org.
>
>Thank you very much.
>
>In partnership,
>
>Robert Sagun
>WSIS Youth Caucus Policy Coordinator
>Email: rsagun at wsisyouth.org
>
>
>Noted by:
>
>Titilayo Akinsanmi
>WSIS Youth Caucus Global Facilitator
>Email: takinsanmi at wsisyouth.org
>
>Luke Cholerton-Bozier
>WSIS Youth Caucus Communications Coordinator
>Email: lcholerton at wsisyouth.org
>
>
>The Youth Caucus of the UN World Summit on the Information
Society
>Geneva 2003 - Tunis 2005
>www.wsisyouth.org
>
>
>Contribution to the Establishment of the
>Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG)
>First Open Consultation Meeting, 20-21 September 004,
Geneva, Switzerland
>
>Draft Version 1.1
>10 September 2004
>
>
> “We are committed to realizing our common
vision of the Information
>Society for ourselves and for future generations. We
recognize that young
>people are the future workforce and leading creators and
earliest adopters
>of ICTs. They must therefore be empowered as learners,
developers,
>contributors, entrepreneurs and decision-makers. We must
focus especially
>on young people who have not yet been able to benefit fully
from the
>opportunities provided by ICTs. We are also committed to
ensuring that the
>development of ICT applications and operation of services
respects the
>rights of children as well as their protection and well-
being.”
>
>Youth Paragraph (para. 11) of the
>WSIS Declaration of Principles
>
>I. Introduction
>
>1 At present, over 3 billion individuals or just over 50
per cent of the
>world’s population are children or youth. In terms of
youth alone, there
>are 1.3 billion young people aged between 15 and 24,
according to the 2003
>UN World Youth Report. If there was ever an area where
young people are the
>leaders not only of the future, but also of today, it is
the emerging
>Information Society. From web development to information
access, youth are
>growing up with the latest technologies - and extending
them, providing
>innovative solutions to global challenges. Youth are
creators and consumers
>of technologies ranging from mobile telephones to email, to
instant
>messaging, radio, print media and television. As both
business and social
>entrepreneurs, young people are creatively using technology
to address
>community needs.
>
>2 Young people are central to the evolution of a “people-
centered,
>inclusive and development-oriented” Information Society.
They are heavily
>represented in almost every category of Information Society
from the
>development of software products, establishment of
technology
>infrastructure and creation of Internet communities.
>
>3 With the introduction of the Internet, youth have
acquired a powerful new
>tool to connect and communicate. Today, young people
constitute the largest
>percentage of those online: they go online more than anyone
else, they stay
>online longer, and they have more diverse online
activities. Yet, youth are
>rarely given the opportunity to be engaged in Information
and
>Communications Technology (ICT) policy development. If the
WSIS is to
>effect real change, it must involve youth in
program/project implementation
>as well as in the broader context of youth participation and
>multi-stakeholder consultation in ICT decision-making such
as Internet
>Governance and national e-strategies.
>
>4 Like other stakeholder groups, youth are organized within
a Caucus. The
>WSIS Youth Caucus, formed on the occasion of the 1st WSIS
Preparatory
>Committee Meeting in July 2002, is acting as an umbrella
for all young
>people and youth non-government organizations (NGOs)
interested and/or
>involved in the WSIS process and ICT policy formulation.
The WSIS Youth
>Caucus aims to mainstream youth perspectives into civil
society, the
>private sector and government inputs throughout the WSIS
process.
>
>5 Youth were also one of the most organized and successful
stakeholder
>groupings in the first phase of the WSIS process -
participating and
>speaking at meetings, publishing a regular newsletter,
running an award
>program, conducting significant national-level outreach,
and much more.
>Clearly, if it is to achieve its ambitious goals, the WSIS
now must
>continue to actively engage young people, the pathbreakers
of the ICT
>revolution.
>
>
>II. Basic Principles of Structure
>
>6. As put forward by the WSIS Civil Society Declaration,
global governance
>frameworks “must reflect the diverse views and interests of
the
>international community as a whole”. It further states that
>“decision-making processes must be based on such values as
inclusive
>participation, transparency and democratic accountability.”
>
>7 The WGIG must have a multi-stakeholder, multi-
disciplinary membership and
>conduct an inclusive consultation process. As succinctly
stated in the WSIS
>Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action, it should
be “an open and
>inclusive process that ensures a mechanism for the full and
active
>participation of governments, the private sector and civil
society from
>both developing and developed countries, involving relevant
>intergovernmental and international organizations and
forums…” Its
>multi-actor character will broaden the ownership of its
outcomes and
>consultation process and provide a multi-dimensional
approach to the
>debates and discussions. Regional representation and gender
balance must be
>central to its establishment. Particular attention to its
membership is the
>effective participation of developing country experts,
sectoral
>representatives and stakeholders. Their participation must
be accorded with
>high importance and travel support.
>
>8 Its operations must be independent of the WSIS process.
Though the basis
>of creating the WGIG is based on negotiated WSIS documents,
it should be
>functioning with full independence from, yet contributing
to, the WSIS
>process. The WGIG and its consultation process should be
structured
>separate from the WSIS Tunis Phase’s intergovernmental
political debates.
>
>9 The WGIG must conduct its work with utmost objectivity,
clear direction
>and rationality. It must encourage academic, well-
researched stakeholder
>inputs aside from organizing and programming activities
that are factual
>and impartial. Among the relevant Internet Governance
issues that should
>be of high priority, and which are important to and for
young people, are
>the increasing number of unsolicited commercial/bulk email
or “spam”,
>information and network security vis-à-vis cybercrime and
consumer safety,
>protection of personal privacy and other rights, Internet
telephony or
>Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), and proliferation of
illicit websites.
>
>10 It must be accountable and transparent at all times. The
WGIG should
>conduct its activities and consultations in an accessible
and widely open
>and transparent process. Its reports, as well as background
documents and
>stakeholder contributions, must be uploaded to a devoted,
broadly
>broadcasted website. The WGIG website must be updated at
the most regular,
>yet economical manner with documents accessible to the
public, easily
>downloadable and archived.
>
>
>III. Scope of Work
>
>11 In programming the WGIG’s scope of work and operational
strategies, its
>reporting deadlines and membership expertise should be
taken into account.
>The WGIG, at the very least, should be made responsible of
the following
>tasks:
>
>Crafting a working definition of ‘Internet Governance’
agreeable to all.
>Identifying and prioritizing the relevant, most pressing
Internet
>Governance issues through an open, inclusive and multi-
stakeholder
>consultation process.
>Researching, collecting and critically analyzing pertinent
data and
>information based on the Internet governance issues
identified. Make use of
>available literature from recently held Internet Governance
fora
>(including, but not limited to, the UN ICT Task Force
Meeting and ITU
>Workshops on Countering Spam and Internet Governance) and,
if need be,
>commission independent papers.
>Learning both the successes and failures of past global
governance efforts,
>for example the World Trade Organization on global economic
governance.
>Based on the results of literature reviews and broad-based
consultations,
>recommend options, solutions, framework for action and, if
need be,
>institutional reforms as it relates to Internet Governance.
>The Secretariat and its members must be ready to brief
stakeholders and
>report to interested parties.
>Clearly defining appropriate roles for major stakeholder
blocks
>(Government, private sector, civil society and
international organizations).
>Consciously encouraging each stakeholder to actively
contribute inputs and
>gather support on the WGIG.
>Provide travel support for WGIG members originating from
developing and
>least developed countries and representing marginalized,
less heard
>groupings such as indigenous peoples, disabled peoples,
youth and women.
>
>
>IV. General Structure
>
>12 The WGIG should be multi-stakeholder with members
representative of
>Governments, private sector, civil society and
international organizations.
>Marginalized sectors such as youth and women should be
given opportunity to
>contribute to the debates as working group members.
Developing countries,
>as well as developed nations, should be equally
represented. Regional
>representation and gender balance must be highly equated in
the selection
>process. Consumers/users and providers/developers of
Internet services and
>applications, most of which are essentially young people,
must likewise be
>represented.
>
>13 The size of the membership of WGIG is critical. It must
be reasonably
>representative and supportive of the structural issues
enumerated above yet
>its total membership must neither be too small nor too
large that will
>negatively impact on its work given the limited time
available.
>
>14 Aside from having core members from the major
stakeholders already
>listed above, the WGIG should have an external support
group, assisting its
>core members in preparing the report(s) and organizing
stakeholder
>dialogues, composed of experts on the policy, legal,
economic, social and
>technical aspects of Internet Governance as well as on
related issues such
>as, among others, ICT for Development, multi-stakeholder
diplomacy and
>partnerships, human rights, consumer protection and global
policy processes.
>
>15 The WGIG must have a Government representative,
preferably from a
>developing country, as Over-All Chair, and Private Sector
and Civil Society
>representatives acting as Co-Chairs. The Co-Chairs could
later be appointed
>to coordinate the work of Sub-Thematic Committees based on
collectively
>agreed Internet Governance themes.
>
>16 All the members of WGIG must have credible expertise and
experience in
>the following fields:
>
>Policy and Governance
>Technical and Academic
>Internet and ICT development, including operations and
applications
>Social development work
>ICT for Development
>Multi-stakeholder diplomacy and partnerships
>Human rights, education and gender advocacy, especially in
an Information
>Society environment
>Consumer protection and safety
>UN global processes and/or international, multi-cultural
working
>environments
>Fluency in any major UN language
>Effective communication, both written and verbal
>
>17 Further, the members must ensure they are able to
contribute ample time
>needed bythe work as well as widely communicate, by means
of participating
>in e-consultations and panel presentations, to stakeholders
developments in
>the work of the WGIG.
>
>18 As most young people would not have wide expertise and
strong experience
>in some of the fields enumerated above compared to their
adult
>counterparts, the more that their participation as working
group members
>must be accorded with high consideration to build their
full capacity and
>knowledge and to empower them as stakeholders of and
contributors to
>Internet Governance. As youth, by definition is a
transitory demographic,
>providing them an opportunity to gain experience and
networks today will
>provide continuity and diversity to the Internet Governance
debate in the
>future: a key mechanism to enhance inter-generational
equity.
>
>19 Selection of the WGIG members must be made transparent
and based on core
>competencies, with criteria for selection widely consulted
and reasons for
>selection made public.
>
>
>V. Mode of Operations
>
>20 Aside from having closed-door meetings, the WGIG must
ensure it utilizes
>open consultations, both online and physical, to harness
the knowledge and
>expertise of a wider range of interested parties. Taking
into account cost
>considerations, the WGIG must work to organize regional,
sub-regional,
>thematic and sectoral meetings and consultations. The WGIG
Secretariat
>should enter into partnerships with relevant groups in
organizing these
>meetings.
>
>21 To support its information dissemination activities, the
WGIG could set
>up an email notification/alert system within its website to
inform
>subscribed stakeholders of latest news and developments.
The website must
>also be developed as a repository of knowledge and databank
on Internet
>Governance and its sub-themes.
>
>22 The WGIG must ensure real-time translation of meeting
plenaries and
>debates in major UN languages to ensure meaningful
participation of members
>and stakeholders. Official meeting documents such as
background papers and
>reports should be translated in the same manner.
Stakeholder contributions,
>regardless of language used, should be accepted, uploaded
and likewise be
>translated, whenever possible.
>
>
>VI. Conclusion
>
>23 With these recommendations and proposals, the entire
membership of the
>WSIS Youth Caucus stands ready to assist, provide input and
actively
>participate in the consultation process of the WGIG. The
WSIS Youth Caucus
>will be forwarding names of young people, taking into
account gender
>balance and development dichotomies, who are best suited
and well qualified
>to represent the youth of the world and have the relevant
expertise on the
>Internet Governance debate.
>
>
>
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>
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Bertrand de LA CHAPELLE
Director
wsis-online.net
lachapelle at openwsis.org
tel : 33 (0)6 11 88 33 32
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