[WSIS CS-Plenary] WGIG Chronogical Account (text version)
Dr. Francis MUGUET
muguet at mdpi.org
Fri Jan 21 00:45:31 GMT 2005
Text version of
http://www.wsis-pct.org/wgig.html
* Chronogical Account of the Civil Society Process concerning the
Establishment of the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG)
<http://www.wgig.org>
*
During the first phase of the Summit, since no agreement could be
reached on Internet Governance, it was decided as stated in the Plan of
Action to : ask the Secretary General of the United Nations to set up a
working group on Internet governance, in 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, to investigate and make
proposals for action, as appropriate, on the governance of Internet by
2005. The group should, inter alia:
/
i) develop a working definition of Internet governance;
ii) identify the public policy issues that are relevant to Internet
governance;
iii) develop a common understanding of the respective roles and
responsibilities of governments, existing intergovernmental and
international organisations and other forums as well as the private
sector and civil society from both developing and developed countries;
iv) prepare a report on the results of this activity to be presented
for consideration and appropriate action for the second phase of
WSIS in Tunis in 2005. /
The WGIG is not a group which depends from the ITU, but directly from
the UN general-secretary The first WGIG meeting dealt with the selection
process and the possible composition of the WGIG bureau. the possible
composition of the WGIG bureau. Currently, there are several opinions
among the states. A major western entity advocates 1/2 governments 1/4
Private 1/4 CS while some other countries advocate 1/3 1/3 1/3 Therefore
one expect that the number of CS representatives would vary between 5
and 7. The duty would consist in about 3 to 4 meetings lasting each one
about 4 days or a week, between November and June 2005. Of course, being
at meetings is only part of the task. Each member is to study reports
and write them. Each member is expected to contribute in writing the
final report of the WGIG. So this would be a pretty heavy workload. We
tentavily suggested that the Civil Society, because of its own specific
constraints, should be able to designate a member with his/her
alternate/backup to ensure a reliable and inclusive representation of
the Civil Society. This suggestion has been well received, but
everything concerning WGIG will be decided at the Consultations on the
establishment of the Working Group on Internet Governance
<http://www.itu.int/wsis/preparatory2/wgig/index.html> (WGIG) which will
be held in Geneva on 20/21 September 2004. After this meeting, a
tentative list of WGIG proposed members will be sent in New York, to the
UN general-secretary that may choose CS representative in this list or
outside the list.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page of the Internet Governance Caucus <http://www.net-gov.org/>
concerning the WGIG Nomination <http://www.net-gov.org/wgig/>.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Civil Society Working Group on Internet Gouvernance
<http://www.net-gov.org> after lively debates decided to make a formal
call ( 07 September 2004 ) to all Thematic Working Groups in order to
compose a list of representatives with their inputs :
To Members of WSIS Civil Society, Caucuses and Working Groups
The WSIS Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus hopes to assemble a
list of candidates for membership in the Working Group on Internet
Governance (WGIG). The purpose of the list is to give Mr. Kummer and
Mr. Annan a set of candidates from which they can select members for
the WGIG. This list will not be the only input into the membership
decision process, and does not prevent any group or individual from
submitting her or his recommendations. We wish to provide the
collective recommendations of WSIS caucuses and working groups.
After much deliberation on the process by which the candidate list
would be compiled, we, as coordinators of the Internet Governance
caucus have made the decision to invite each of the WSIS civil
society caucuses and working groups to suggest between one (1) and
three (3) names for inclusion on the candidate list.
There is not agreement for this course of action among members of the
IG Caucus, but time is pressing and we feel WSIS Civil Society must
have an opportunity to participate in this process. This can work if
we all try to make it work. It means trying to think what is best
for civil society, and not any particular interest group. Please
read this note carefully. And refer to the draft statement on
structure of the WGIG you can find at this URL
http://www.too-much.tv/internet_governance
(Spanish, French,English and Portuguese.)
One of the goals for this candidate list is to make sure that all of
the topical areas that might be included in the governance debate are
covered. Indications are that the WGIG will take a broad view of
Internet governance, and issues will include ICANN, Spam, information
and network security, privacy and other ICT rights issues,
intellectual property rights, and interconnection agreements to name
just a few. Asking the other caucuses and working groups for
recommendations is considered the best way to make sure that all
topics of concern to WSIS civil society are present.
Note that our recommendations about the structure of the WGIG (here
http://www.too-much.tv/internet_governance )
say we think the group
should be small, between 19 and 31 total core members. By asking for
nominations from all of WSIS civil society we are inviting a
potentially large number of names to be submitted. Some means of
reducing the composite list we receive may be required. We look
forward to your advice on how we might handle this situation, it is
quite likely. We suggest discussions about this are started now on
the CS plenary list.
Please attempt to prioritize your nominations. If you are unable to
do so please state clearly that your list is not prioritized.
Coordination of nominations among caucuses/working group will be very
helpful.
Individual members of the CS plenary may also submit nominations.
Individuals should submit their nominations based on the criteria
explained below.
As background for making the caucus/working group decision on the
candidates, a draft of the WSIS Civil Society caucus's contribution
on the WGIG can be found online at
http://www.too-much.tv/internet_governance
These notes discuss some of the contents of the contribution.
We consider it critical that a balanced WGIG be drawn from a multi
dimensional consideration of diversity. That is, diversity in terms
of sector, region, gender, and language background, among others,
must be considered in assembling the WGIG. It is also important that
there be a balance between members from developing and developed
countries. It is also considered very important that candidates have
a degree of knowledge of the issues, including policy, legal and
technical, involved in the Internet governance debate. We also
suggest candidates should have experience working in an international
committee environment, be aware of ICT for development issues and
human rights. No candidate is expected to have all these qualities,
but we are suggesting they should be people with broad experience.
It is considered critical that though all participants come from
different perspectives, they should be people who are willing to
listen and consider carefully the views of others. It is expected
that the best outcome for the WGIG will come from an assembly of open
minded individuals who can share their knowledge and expertise in an
cooperative manner.
Finally it is considered important that any individual nominated as a
candidate understand the amount of work this assignment would involve
and indicate a readiness to participate. While the work plan of the
WGIG has yet to be determined, it is expected that the WGIG will
begin work in the final months of 2004 and finish by July 2005. The
schedule will most probably involve, email discussions,
teleconferences and up to four (4) face to face meetings. We
anticipate that the working language of the WGIG itself will be
English. It is expected, however, that there will be a great
sensitivity to language issues as the WGIG conducts its work and
consultations.
In making your caucuses/working groups recommendation, we request
that you submit the following information, which will be passed on to
Mr. Kummer, with the names of the candidates:
- Reliable contact information for the candidate; i.e. email,
telephone, fax and postal address.
- A statement indicating the qualities that the person would bring to
the WGIG. While no particular content is being required, it is
recommended that this section include a discussion of the concerns
mentioned above and a discussion of the experience and perspective
the candidate would bring to the WGIG discussions.
- A statement of the person's governance related affiliations. That
is information such as: which sector does the person belong to
(government, industry or civil society), what caucuses/working groups
do they participate in, employer, national background, and language
skills.
- An indication from the candidate that they understand the work load
they are volunteering for and that they are available during the
expected period of deliberations.
- A short statement about your caucus/working group. Include
information about the group's background and history, membership
(numbers), and achievements or other information you think relevant.
Please give a URL for a website if you have one.
It is recommended that these statements be no more then two pages in
length. Candidate information will be collated and published on the
Internet http://www.too-much.tv/internet_governance/
(with candidates personal contact information removed.)
Members of the Internet governance caucus will aggregate the names
received and send them along with the name of the caucus/working
groups that made the nomination to Markus Kummer. If any
reconsideration of names is required in light of issues arising from
the WGIG consultation on September 20-21 we will hold any relevant
discussions about this on the plenary mailing list.
Time is short on gathering the list of candidates and you are
requested to submit the candidate statements within the next two
weeks. *The deadline for submission of candidate statements is 20
Sept, 2004*. All statements should be sent to:
*igov at tla.crepundia.net*
In concluding, we thank you for helping us complete this important task.
Please try to coordinate your nominations with other caucuses and
working groups. And please consider the qualities your nominations
will bring to the WGIG carefully. If you have questions about the
process please contact the coordinators of the Caucus:
Jeanette Hofmann and Adam Peake
Coordinators, Internet Governance Caucus
*Additional information* :
Please follow the format described below and send to this address:
*igov at tla.crepundia.net*
We will collate all nominations.
Please also send to the civil society plenary list if you wish, but
suggest you strip any personal contact information before doing so.
The format below only asks for information about the caucus or
working group submitting the nomination(s), we should also have
something about any individual making a nomination: who you are, your
relationship with the nominee (typical conflict of interest issues.)
This will not be necessary for a self-nomination :-)
Format for submitting nomination(s)
In making your caucuses/working groups recommendation, we request
that you submit the following information, which will be passed on to
Mr. Kummer, with the names of the candidates. Individual members of
the CS plenary may also submit nominations. Individuals should also
submit their nominations based on the criteria explained below.
- Reliable contact information for the candidate; i.e. email,
telephone, fax and postal address.
- A statement indicating the qualities that the person would bring to
the WGIG. While no particular content is being required, it is
recommended that this section include a discussion of the concerns
mentioned above and a discussion of the experience and perspective
the candidate would bring to the WGIG discussions.
- A statement of the person's governance related affiliations. That
is information such as: which sector does the person belong to
(government, industry or civil society), what caucuses/working groups
do they participate in, employer, national background, and language
skills.
- An indication from the candidate that they understand the work load
they are volunteering for and that they are available during the
expected period of deliberations.
- A short statement about your caucus/working group. Include
information about the group's background and history, membership
(numbers), and achievements or other information you think relevant.
Please give a URL for a website if you have one.
It is recommended that these statements be no more then two pages in
length. Candidate information will be collated and published on the
Internet http://www.too-much.tv/internet_governance
(with candidates personal contact information removed.)
* Financial Assistance * :
According to reliable sources ( yet to be confirmed in writting ),
travel expenses will be supported for people from developing countries,
and on a case by case basis for people from other countries.
* Further clarification concerning deadlines * (12 September)
This was much welcome since there has been some confusion concerning
deadlines.
Dealine for comments on structure, methodology and scope of the consultation on the WGIG meeting
( September 20-21, Geneva ) : Monday 13^th
Names of CS candidates to the WGIG are not required before the meeting,
they will of course be accepted and considered, but not required before.
Markus Kummer expects that during the consultation meeting, discussions that will be held
to help the CS to recommend names. Therefore, the logical time to submit names is soon
after the consultation meeting /i.e/ on Sept 22.
The suggestion of the CS-IG group is for caucuses and WG to send names by Sept. 20.
The CS-IG will collate names and share them with Markus Kummer.
Then the CS may send a revised final list of names by *Sept. 27*.
If there are too many names, the CS-IG group we will need to come back to plenary
and discuss ways we can reduce the number
The CS-IG will, of course, inform plenary of their impressions of the consultation
and any special consideration that might be given in making nominations.
*List sent to Markus Kummer* (05 Oct 2004)
A list of candidates, 9 recommendations for the
working group and a second slate of 8
"connectors" were sent to Markus Kummer yesterday.
Slate of candidates for the WGIG itself:
* Carlos Afonso (Brazil)
* Karen Banks (Australia)
* Vittorio Bertola (Italy)
* Avri Doria (USA/Israel)
* William Drake (USA)
* Raul Echeberria, (Uruguay)
* Wolfgang Kleinwachter (Germany)
* Marlyn Tadros (Egypt)
* Ang Peng Hwa (Singapore)
Slate of "connectors":
* Jonathan Cave (UK), Scientific Information WG
* Georg Greve (Germany), Patents, Copyrights and
Trademarks WG
* Gus Hosein (Canada), Privacy and Security WG
* Joseph Sarr (Senegal), Cities and Local Authorities
Caucus
* Robert Sagun (Philippines), Youth Caucus
* Hiroshi Kawamura (Japan), Persons with Disabilities
Caucus
* Aidan White (Ireland), Media Caucus
* Jacqueline A. Morris (Trinidad and Tobago), Gender
Caucus
Note that the African Caucus sent a list of names
separately to Markus Kummer, we did not know who
was on their list until late yesterday so were
unable to include their recommendations and did
not try to duplicate.
The recommendations were sent to Markus Kummer
yesterday by Izumi Aizu. Izumi's emails to Mr.
Kummer copied below.
Thank you,
Adam
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 05 Oct 2004 18:35:37 +0900
To: Markus KUMMER
From: Izumi Aizu
Dear Markus,
Here attached is the Civil Society Plenary's slate of
people for the
Members of the Working Group on Internet Governance.
This selection is done through extensive online process
and also some off-line
discussions among all the caucus and family
members of the Civil Society Plenary
of the WSIS.
We have setup a website for all the candidates
recommended from different Caucuses and Working Group/Families:
http://www.net-gov.org/wgig/
The final selection was carried out by small number of
volunteers acted as
"NomCom", facilitated by the two co-coordinators of the
Internet Governance Caucus, Jeanette Hofmann and Adam Peake,
though Jeanette did not directly
participate the nomination/selection, but remained as
more of procedural and logistical coordinator.
All NomCom members were, by default, excluded from
the selection.
NomCom members include:
Bertrand de LA CHAPELLE
Adam Peake
Renata Bloem
Valeria
Izumi Aizu
*Some clarification of the Selection Process & Concepts* ( 07 October
2004 )
After the first round of consultations in Geneva on
September 20-21, the size, composition and mandate of the
WGIG remain in discussion. This makes the selection of
potential members from civil society a delicate issue that
the Internet Governance Caucus wanted to address in the most
transparent and inclusive manner.
In its contribution to the September Consultations, the
IG Caucus indicated its recommendations for the WGIG :
- a limited size (20-30 members)
- a facilitating role for a larger group of stakeholders
rather than a high level decision-making group
- a fully balanced composition (1/3 governments, 1/3 private
sector, 1/3 civil society)
The IG Caucus therefore decided to designate a slate of
about 10 people, aiming as much as possible for a
geographical, gender, age and profile balance.
The Internet Governance Caucus also considered that although
the origin of the WGIG creation was to address principally
the Domain Name System and ICANN, it will progressively
cover a broader definition of Internet Governance and
will need to expand its competence pool accordingly.
Finally, the main purpose of the WGIG should be to
facilitate an iterative consultation and drafting process
within the larger group of concerned stakeholders, via both
physical meetings and online consultations.
In that context, the IG Caucus not only determined a list of
nominees for itself but also invited other regional and
thematic civil society caucuses to identify potential
candidates to be taken into consideration. This dual and
bottom-up process process produced a list of 35 nominees
and the profiles of nominees wer publicly posted on
http://www.net-gov.org/wgig/
At the initiative of one of the Caucus co-coordinators, a
small NomCom was formed to review the list of nominees and
facilitate identification of an appropriately balanced slate
to be transmitted to the Secretary General.
This process was not easy and resulted in two complementary
sets of names.
First, a * limited slate of candidates for the WGIG itself* :
- Carlos Afonso (Brazil), Technical Development Director, RITS
- Karen Banks, (Australia), Association for Progressive
communications
- Vittorio Bertola (Italy), Chair, ICANN At Large Advisory
Committee
- Avri Doria, (USA), Lulea University, Sweden
- William Drake (USA), President, Computer Professionals for
Social Responsibility
- Raul Echeberria, (Uruguay), LACNIC CEO
- Wolfgang Kleinwachter (Germany), Professor for
International Communication Policy and Regulation,
University of Aarhus,
Denmark
- Marlyn Tadros, (Egypt), Executive Director, Virtual
Activism
- Ang Peng Hwa, (Singapore), Dean of School of Communication
& Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Second, based on the submissions from other Civil Society
thematic caucuses,* a list of "connectors"* has been
established to facilitate interaction with various thematic
constituencies *as the process expands* to a broader range of
issues :
- Jonathan Cave (UK), Professor, Warwick University (/corrected/, not the RAND Europe)
connector for the Scientific Information Working Group
- Georg Greve (Germany), President, Free Software
Foundation Europe, connector for the Patents, Copyrights and
Trademanrks WG;
- Gus Hosein (Canada), Fellow Information Systems, London
Schoold of Economics and Senior Fellow, Privacy
International; connector for Privacy and Security WG;
- Joseph Sarr (Senegal), President, NTIC Commission of the
Dakar Regional Council; connector to the Cities and Local
Authorities Caucus
- Robert Sagun (Philippines), Policy Coordinator of the WSIS
Youth Caucus
- Hiroshi Kawamura (Japan), Japanese Society for the
Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities (JSRPD), Daisy
Consortium Board member; connector to the Persons with
Disabilities caucus
- Aidan White (Ireland), General secretary of the
International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), connector for
the Media caucus;
- Jacqueline A. Morris (Trinidad and Tobago), connector for
the Gender Caucus.
(A full list of Civil Society caucuses and Working Groups is
available at : http://www.wsis-cs.org/caucuses.html
)
These connectors will follow closely the work of the WGIG
and participate in its process to help ensure a good
articulation between the different issues. Should the WGIG
decide to create sub-groups on thematic issues, these
connectors will also help mobilize the relevant actors.
This dual list intends to cover on the one hand the
immediate nomination needs in the WGIG creation phase and,
on the other hand, to anticipate its future activities.
No list or suggestion can be perfect and the members of the
NomCom tried their best to pay tribute to the broad range of
competences available. We hope the above-mentionned lists -
that will be sent to Markus Kummer for his meetings in New
York tomorrow - will facilitate the full participation of
civil society in the WGIG.
The NomCom was composed of Adam Peake, Renate Bloem, Izumi
Aizu, Valeria Betancourt and Bertrand de La Chapelle.
Establishment of the Working Group on Internet Governance
<http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/pi1620.doc.htm> (11 November 2004)
WGIS Mission : to investigate and make proposals for action, as
appropriate, on the governance of the Internet by 2005. The Group was
requested to:
-- Develop a working definition of Internet governance;
-- Identify the public policy issues that are relevant to Internet
governance; and
-- Develop a common understanding of the respective roles and
responsibilities of governments, international organizations and other
forums, as well as the private sector and civil society from both
developing and developed countries.
The WGIG includes 40 members from governments, private sector and civil
society
The Working Group is not a negotiating forum
The first meeting of the Working Group is scheduled to take place in
Geneva from 23 to 25 November. On 24 November, the meeting will be
held in an open format, allowing all governments and other stakeholders
to interact with the Working Group.
Contact
New York, Edoardo Bellando, tel:(212) 963-8275, e-mail: bellando at un.org
Geneva, Markus Kummer, tel. +41 0 22 917 54 88, e-mail: mkummer at unog.ch
Web sites: www.wgig.org <http://www.wgig.org> and www.un-wgig.org
<http://www.un-wgig.org>.
_List of Members_ ( see also Official List
<http://www.wgig.org/members.html> )
Governments,Civil Society ( presented by the Internet Governance Caucus
<http://www.net-gov.org/> ), other Civil Society, Private Sector.
Chairman:Nitin Desai.
Members:
-- Abdullah Al-Darrab, Deputy Governor of Technical Affairs, ICT
Commission of Saudi Arabia;
-- Carlos Alfonso, Technical Director, RIT, Rio de Janeiro;
-- Peng Hwa Ang, Dean, School of Communication, Nanyang Technological
University, Singapore;
-- Karen Banks, Director, GreenNet, Association for Progressive
Communications, London;
-- Faryel Beji, President and CEO, Tunisian Internet Agency;
-- Vittorio Bertola, ICANN at-large Advisory Committee, Turin;
-- Jose Alexandre Bicalho, Member, Brazilian Internet Steering
Committee; Advisor, Board of Directors, National Telecommunications
Agency (Anatel);
-- Kangsik Cheon, Chief Operating Officer, International Business
Development, Netpia, Seoul;
-- Trevor Clarke, Permanent Representative of Barbados to the United
Nations in Geneva;
-- Avri Doria, Technical Consultant, Providence, Rhode Island;
-- William Drake, Senior Associate, International Centre for Trade and
Sustainable Development, Geneva; Chairman, Computer Professionals for
Social Responsibility;
-- Raul Echeberria, Executive Director, LACNIC, Montevideo;
-- Dev Erriah, Chairman, ICT Authority of Mauritius;
-- Baher Esmat, Telecom Planning Manager, Ministry of Communications and
Information Technology, Egypt;
-- Mark Esseboom, Director, Strategy and International Affairs,
Directorate General for Telecom and Post, Ministry of Economic Affairs,
the Netherlands;
-- Juan Fernandez, Coordinator, Commission of Electronic Commerce, Cuba;
-- Ayesha Hassan, Senior Policy Manager for E-Business, IT and Telecoms,
International Chamber of Commerce, Paris;
-- Qiheng Hu, Adviser, Science and Technology Commission, Ministry of
Information Industry, China; former Vice-President, ChineseAcademy of
Sciences;
-- Willy Jensen, Director, Norwegian Post and Telecom Authority;
-- Wolfgang Kleinwachter, Professor, International Communication Policy
and Regulation, University of Aarhus;
-- Jovan Kurbalija, Director, DiploFoundation
<http://www.diplomacy.edu/>, Geneva;
-- Iosif Charles Legrand <http://cil.home.cern.ch/cil/>, Researcher,
California Institute of Technology and CERN, Geneva;
-- Donald MacLean, Director, MacLean Consulting, Ottawa;
-- Allen Miller, Executive Director, World Information Technology and
Services Alliance <http://www.witsa.org/>, Arlington, Virginia;
-- Juan Carlos Moreno Solines, Executive Director, Gobierno Digital
<http://www.gobiernodigital.com/>, Quito;
-- Jacqueline A. Morris, Consultant, Port of Spain;
-- Olivier Nana Nzepa, Coordinator, Africa Civil Society, Yaoundé
-- Alejandro Pisanty <http://www.icann.org/biog/pisanty.htm>, Director,
Computing Academic Services, Universidad Autonoma de Mexico; *ICANN board*
-- Khalilullah Qazi, Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations
in Geneva;
-- Rajashekar Ramaraj, Managing Director, Sify Limited, Chennai;
-- Masaaki Sakamaki, Director, Computer Communications Division,
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan;
-- Joseph Sarr, President, NTIC Commission, Dakar Regional Council;
-- Peimann Seadat, Permanent Mission of Iran to the United Nations in
Geneva;
-- Charles Shaban, IT Manager, Talal Abu- Ghazaleh International
<http://www.tagi.com/>, Amman;
-- Lyndall Shope-Mafole, Chairperson, Presidential National Commission
on Information Society and Development, South Africa;
-- Waudo Siganga, Chairman, Computer Society of Kenya;
-- Mikhail Vladimirovich Yakushev, Director, Legal Support Department,
Ministry of Information Technology and Communications, Russian Federation;
-- Peter Zangl, Deputy Director-General, Information Society Directorate
General, European Commission, Brussels; and
-- Jean-Paul Zens, Director, Media and Telecom Department, Ministry of
State, Luxembourg.
SUMMARY
- Carlos Afonso <http://www.net-gov.org/wgig/afonso.php> (Brazil), LAC Caucus, *selected*
- Karen Banks, (Australia),IG group, *selected*
- Vittorio Bertola (Italy), IG group *selected*
- Avri Doria, (USA),IG group *selected*
- William Drake (USA),IG group *selected*
- Raul Echeberria <http://www.net-gov.org/wgig/echeberria.php>, (Uruguay) ( separatist LAC caucus ? ), *selected*
- Wolfgang Kleinwachter (Germany) IG group , *selected*
- Marlyn Tadros, (Egypt) ( Arab caucus ), not accepted
- Ang Peng Hwa, (Singapore) *selected*
- Jonathan Cave (UK), connector for the Scientific Information Working Group, not accepted
- Georg Greve (Germany), connector for the Patents, Copyrights and Trademanrks WG, not accepted
- Gus Hosein (Canada), connector for Privacy and Security WG, not accepted
- Joseph Sarr (Senegal), connector to the Cities and Local Authorities Caucus, *selected*
- Robert Sagun (Philippines), WSIS Youth Caucus, not accepted
- Hiroshi Kawamura (Japan), connector to the Persons with Disabilities caucus, not accepted
- Aidan White (Ireland), connector for the Media caucus, not accepted
- Jacqueline A. Morris (Trinidad and Tobago), connector for the Gender Caucus, *selected*
All candidates from the IG group were accepted. Only one candidate
proposed by the IG group to become a WGIG member was rejected. Two
persons listed as "connectors" were unexpectedly selected.
Later on, people that have been selected as "connectors" began to wonder
if this position corresponds to any special status in regards to the
WGIG. The concept of "connector" has not been discussed beforehand
within the Civil Society,, and came as a complete surprise to everybody.
A disapointed "connector" asked Kummer for clarification. Kummer's
answer was : /As you may be aware, it is our intention to create a
process that is as open as possible. In order to achieve this objective,
we will have to respect some ground rules. One of them is that the
closed meeting are closed to non-members of the WGIG. Opening up these
meetings to some would be opening Pandora's box and would lead to
pressures from representatives from Governments (more than 170 of them
are not represented in the group) as well as other stakeholders. As you
know, civil society is very well represented in the group and your are
encouraged to work with and through the civil society members.
Of course at any time you can submit your own contributions - we will
post them on our website. In any case, all future meetings will be
accompanied by an open round of consultations. /The connector then
replied to Kummer who did not offer further comments : /Thanks for your
email and the clarification it contains. I believe it does answer my
questions, if I have understood correctly that connectors have the same
role as other members of the public. /
Therefore, the "connector" position is a non-existent notion concerning
official relationships with the WGIG. It seems at best a position that
may have a relative existence within the Civil Society. However, since
the list of "Connectors" has been announced , and until now (mid-January
2005) neither the Internet Gouvernance Caucus, neither the CS members of
the WGIG has made any formal call to the "connectors" and their
"connected" working groups for input. "as the process expands to a
broader range of issues.". Patents and Copyrights issues are now ( and
not surprisingly, because this is unavoidable ) clearly on the agenda,
since Vittorio Bertola posted "I am the "lead drafter" on intellectual
property (and on privacy too)".
No discussions on the questions that are being currently debated by the
WGIG, are being held in the Internet Gouvernance (IG) working group,
illustrating a lack of connection between the IG group and the members
of the WGIG that are coming from the very IG group. If WGIG
confidentiality rules are such that drafts cannot be circulated outside
of the WGIG in this first phase, they do not prevent to held debates
concerning the problems that are at stake. Neither the WGIG or the IG
group have contacted the "connectors" and the thematics groups to get
input on content issues.
ANALYSIS
*Positive aspects* : The UN selected all but one person in the list that
have been presented by the Internet Governance Caucus
<http://www.net-gov.org/> in the name of the whole WSIS-accredited Civil
Society, plus two persons from the connectors' list.
*Negative aspects* : The Internet Governance Caucus
<http://www.net-gov.org/> made a formal call to all working groups to
submit candidates that shall have been included in the list of
candidates that shall have been forwarded to Markus Kummer. It was
extremely clear : / In making your caucuses/working groups
recommendation, we request that you submit the following information,
which will be passed on to Mr. Kummer, with the names of the candidates /.
However, none of the candidates that have been selected by the various
thematic working groups and forwarded in time to Internet Governance
Caucus <http://www.net-gov.org/> have been included in the candidates'
list for WGIG membership, that has been presented to Markus Kummer, in
complete disregard with the rationale and promise of the call made by
the Internet Governance Caucus <http://www.net-gov.org/>. The list
included only members of the Internet Governance Caucus
<http://www.net-gov.org/> and three members of Regional Caucuses. The
candidates proposed by the various thematic working groups
<http://www.wsis-cs.org/caucuses.html> were instead listed as
"connectors". Among the persons proposed as "connectors", two were
unexpectedly selected as members of the WGIG. For the six remaining
unlucky "connectors", the "connector" position turned out to be a last
minute invention without formal or practical recognition by the WGIG,
and without practical use within the Civil Society.
There are at least two serious consequences : The WSIS Civil Society
missed an opportunity to present an inclusive team at a time when the UN
made a serious inclusive effort, possibly jeopardizing future UN efforts
in that direction. The WGIG lacks legitimacy in regards to the Thematic
Working Groups, and within the Civil Society in general, most notably
among the various Free Software communities.
--
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Francis F. MUGUET Ph.D
MDPI Foundation Open Access Journals
Associate Publisher
http://www.mdpi.org http://www.mdpi.net
muguet at mdpi.org muguet at mdpi.net
ENSTA Paris, France
KNIS lab. Director
"Knowledge Networks & Information Society" (KNIS)
muguet at ensta.fr http://www.ensta.fr/~muguet
World Summit On the Information Society (WSIS)
Civil Society Working Groups
Scientific Information : http://www.wsis-si.org chair
Patents & Copyrights : http://www.wsis-pct.org co-chair
Financing Mechanismns : http://www.wsis-finance.org web
UNMSP project : http://www.unmsp.org
WTIS initiative: http://www.wtis.org
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