[kictanet] Is the UN (Read Governments) the Next Big Threat to Internet Freedom?

[McTim]

Hi,

This is not just about ICANN, the ITRs that will are being negotiated
in this process cover a whole gamut of Internet related things (such
as peering and interconnection), not just names and numbers (a la
ICANN).

We should have something to say in the formulation of the Kenyan
position, certainly.

Regards,

McTim

On Mon, Jun 4, 2012 at 12:31 AM, Ali Hussein <ali at hussein.me.ke> wrote:
> Listers
>
> Interesting article. A few weeks ago I raised the issue on Internet Freedom
> and Governance and asked whether our government has a position on this?
>
> http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-06-01/is-the-un-the-next-big-threat-to-internet-freedom
>
> This article brings to the fore the different voices that are advocating for
> two key positions:-
>
> 1. Should the status quo remain? Where the key player ICANN (the Internet
> Corporation for Assigned Names & Numbers), which is a private, U.S.-based
> nonprofit organization) exerts control over the fundamental levers and gears
> that underlie the Internet—including the domain-name system.  Although ICANN
> says it operates on a multistakeholder model that involves such groups as
> the Internet Engineering Task Force and the World Wide Web Consortium, there
> has been a lot of criticism of the organization over the years, from
> allegations of conflicts of interest to moves such as the recent expansion
> of the top-level domain system.
>
> 2. Should the UN, through the ITU (international Telecommunications Union
> take over from ICANN? Critics including one of the “fathers of the
> Internet,” TCP/IP developer Vinton Cerf say putting control of the Net under
> the UN body would subject the Internet to the whims of many nations whose
> commitment to democracy and free speech is questionable at best, including
> China and Russia. Cerf, who is currently the chief Internet evangelist at
> Google, said the move would threaten the free and open nature of the
> Internet:
>
> As the Internet Community in Kenya do we have a position on this? The Kenya
> Government? CCK?
>
> Regards
>
> --
>
> Ali Hussein|Managing Partner
>
>
> Telemedia Africa
> Azania Technology Group
>
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> Twitter: @AliHKassim
>
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>
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