[WSIS CS-Plenary] Shirin Ebadi speech (if accepted)

[Gurstein, Michael]

Although there has been relatively little involvement by the grassroots/community ICT user/practitioner community in these discussions (for reasons of availabity of time and financial resources), this group recognizes the significance of the outcomes and particularly the "follow-ups" to the WSIS discussions for communities and particularly those in most need, world wide.

A sign-on letter representing the position concerning the "Follow-up to WSIS", of at least two of the largest of these networks of networks--the Telecentres of the Americas Partnership (representing 10,000 telecentres + throughout the Americas) and the European Union of Telecentre Associations (representing 1000 telecentres/telecottages throughout Central and Eastern Europe) and others is currently being circulated and is attached to this note.

Without disagreeing in any sense with the significance and value of having Shirin Ebadi present /represent Civil Society as a WSIS keynote, this is just to indicate that as an event discussing the Information Society, any of those who are intending to represent the non-governmental and non-commercial interests within the Information Society would need to reflect a considerable degree of commitment and understanding of the significance and value of bottom-up and community based approaches towards the broad achievement of a global Information Society.

Best to all,

Michael Gurstein, Ph.D.
Board Member: Telecentres of the Americas Partnership
Chair: Community Informatics Research Network 

-----Original Message-----
From: plenary-admin at wsis-cs.org [mailto:plenary-admin at wsis-cs.org] On Behalf Of Izumi AIZU
Sent: October 17, 2005 2:41 PM
To: plenary at wsis-cs.org; plenary at wsis-cs.org
Cc: hr-wsis at iris.sgdg.org
Subject: Re: [WSIS CS-Plenary] Shirin Ebadi speech (if accepted)


[Please note that by using 'REPLY', your response goes to the entire list. Kindly use individual addresses for responses intended for specific people]

Click http://wsis.funredes.org/plenary/ to access automatic translation of this message! _______________________________________

What is the real chance of getting Shirin for our opening speaker?

Highly likely?  Hard to predict?

AND, perhaps, the issue as now develops may not only be applied to Shirin, but to some or all other CS speakers as well.

Personally, I like to have a reasonable amount of coordination, but not too strict. The speakers also should have some kind of autonomy. What I wanted in my earlier note is that s/he will do their best to "listen" but not take all the elements, or even "balanced" output per se. She may drop certain issue at her own judgement, no problem.

In any case I think "conditional support" is not healthy, and the two caucus/WG supports didn't seem, at least to me, to be conditional, but just conveyed their standpoints which is reasonable.

Many thanks Meryem for your continued effort. After all
we could not have this kind of positive support without
your effort in bringing her to the podium.

izumi

At 13:16 05/10/17 +0200, Meryem Marzouki wrote:
>[Please note that by using 'REPLY', your response goes to the entire 
>list.
>Kindly use individual addresses for responses intended for specific people]
>
>Click http://wsis.funredes.org/plenary/ to access automatic translation
>of this message!
>_______________________________________
>
>Dear all,
>
>To avoid any misunderstanding, let me clarify this point:
>
>It is obvious that Shirin Ebadi would be briefed with the main issues 
>and
>concerns addressed by civil society at WSIS since 2002. Since the HR 
>caucus proposed her name, and got many supports, it is obviously the first 
>duty of the HR caucus to brief her on that. But it is not reasonable to 
>ask for a meeting between her and thousands of persons...
>
>I think that the caucus has gained enough confidence from CS @ WSIS 
>since
>2002, on its capacity to understand and participate to the promotion of 
>all issues, even if this is not, obviously, at the level of details each 
>dedicated caucus may reach.
>
>But on the other hand, it is equally obvious that we cannot commit on
>every single issue be specifically addressed by Ms. Ebadi, since she, in 
>the end, will write her own address. This is what I meant when speaking on 
>"conditional support", and I wrote this message for the sake of 
>transparency and honesty.
>
>Again, I would like to remind everyone that this is the opening speech,
>and further speaking slots (round tables, plenaries, high level panels) 
>would be used by other CS speakers to elaborate more on specific issues.
>
>Best,
>Meryem
>
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>Plenary at wsis-cs.org 
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