[kictanet] ANTI-SHUTDOWN-01 Policy

[Andrew Alston]

Hi All,

I've been looking through the archives from earlier this month and reading the discussions around the policy proposal that went into AfriNIC, and figured I'd add some more information and some clarifications.  My apologies that this is coming a few days after the discussions initially occurred on this list - there was a problem with my list subscription.

So firstly - let's talk a bit about the motivations behind this policy proposal.

As many of you will be aware, there was a report out that showed $2.4 billion dollars in economic losses due to internet shutdowns in 2016 - this number is ever increasing and its hurting both the industry and those associated with the industry.  Since 1995 when the first shutdown was recorded, the number of shutdowns being seen per year is ever increasing, each with its own cost.  Interestingly, one of the most expensive shutdowns is judged to have been the shutdown in Morocco, which is estimated to have cost a whopping $355 million.

In addition to this, there is the ongoing shutdown in Cameroon, now in its 91st day I believe and the statements issued by various organisations seem to have little effect.  This got us thinking, if the statements from the various internet bodies are not having an effect, perhaps it's time for more drastic action.

Now, to fully understand the approach taken, its necessary to go into how the policy development process works within AfriNIC.

Firstly - anyone is free to propose policy within AfriNIC - this is then submitted and debated on the AfriNIC mailing lists and finally on the floor at a policy meeting (The next meeting is end of May in Nairobi at the Boma hotel).  If the policy reaches consensus it will then go into a last call phase, and if it gets through that it then gets ratified and implemented.

Now, this matters - because it means that any policy proposed is subject to modification based on the communities feelings and thoughts - and this played heavily into the authors thoughts when we wrote this - we knew full well that what we were proposing wasn't potentially perfect - it's the start of an idea - and yes - it takes strong action, but the key here is that what triggers that action and the actions we take are now up for debate so that we can come to an ideal solution.

Secondly, as I have stated on the policy lists - we are already considering some modifications as suggested - including but not limited to: exempting academia in the cases where academia is directly controlled by state and tightening the targeting of the proposal to aim at the executive branches if possible.  Obviously we have absolutely no desire to impact the general population, and the purpose of this policy is to apply pressure to stop the shutdowns -no create further problems for the general population of the countries affected.

We also realize that this policy pushes the boundaries of what an organisation like AfriNIC normally is involved in, and asks the question about if an RIR should be involved in what is essentially a political matter.  To answer this, we have to look at the AfriNIC mandate as stated in section 3.4 of the bylaws.  We believe that section 3.4.(v) when combined with section 3.4.(ix) of those bylaws does actually allow AfriNIC to implement a policy like this within its mandate.

The critical point here however is that we get more discussion, both to fine tune the policy to reach consensus within the wider African community and also to continue to shine a spotlight on the issue.  The mere existence of this policy and the heavy debate around it may in and of itself encourage governments to think twice about what they are looking at when they attempt to turn off the Internet.

So, I'd welcome further questions as I'm sure the other co-authors would, but I'd also encourage everyone to get on the AfriNIC policy mailing lists and get involved in the discussions - as well as to attend the policy meeting at the end of May in Nairobi so that we can have a robust and productive debate on the issue on the floor.

I hope this clarifies some things and I welcome further discussions.

Thanks

Andrew


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