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    <br>
    As the one and only person who has ever really exercised a legal
    power to inspect and copy ICANN's books and properties I find this
    discussion discomforting.<br>
    <br>
    There is no doubt that ICANN has lacked both transparency and
    accountability in the past.<br>
    <br>
    ICANN was so obstinate and wrongheaded that I had to go to court to
    obtain a writ of mandate in order to exercise a right that is
    unambiguously given to sitting board members (such as I was) to
    inspect and copy the corporate records and properties.  ICANN, of
    course, lost that legal action and a writ was issued that ordered
    them to open their general ledgers and other materials to me (to
    which they promptly complied.)<br>
    <br>
    And I don't think it is a reach to conclude that that situation has
    not changed much, that ICANN currently lacks adequate transparency
    and accountability.<br>
    <br>
    Some are suggesting that some sort of right of access be written
    into ICANN's bylaws.  I find that to be a very weak, and ultimately
    not very useful thing.  The reason I say this is that a right of
    limited access written into a corporate by-law is far weaker than a
    broad right of total access that is written into the laws of
    corporations of many (if not all) jurisdictions.  And unless one has
    the hammer of broad statutory access the corporation can be very
    evasive and dilatory.<br>
    <br>
    Broad access is necessary; one can not have a limited inspection -
    For example when I looked at ICANN's general ledgers I found items
    that needed to be backed up by supporting documentation.  Had I not
    had the power to require the production of that material I had no
    basis to give credence to the ledger entries or to understand
    whether they were being properly made.<br>
    <br>
    Similarly, when I finally was able to exercise my statutory rights I
    discovered that ICANN's relationship with its employees and
    contractors was flawed by the absence of materials and procedures
    that are routinely practiced elsewhere.  It would be very hard to
    write that kind of access into a narrowly constricted right of
    access by some "member"; that kind of transparency and
    accountability requires the kind of broad, unconstrained, access
    that is routinely granted to (and oft not well practiced by) members
    of boards of directors.<br>
    <br>
    Any attempt to make ICANN more accountable ought to build on the
    hundreds of years of experience in the operation and control of the
    kind of organizations we put under the general name of
    "corporations".<br>
    <br>
    That experience tells us that the primary vehicle of accountability
    and transparency is a good board of directors who take their
    responsibilities seriously and make truly independent and informed -
    especially informed - decisions to act or not to act.  ICANN does
    not have such a board and seems, via its nominative process, to be
    expressly and systemically designed to avoid having such a board.<br>
    <br>
    In addition, experience tells us that such a board must feel the
    pressure of those to whom the corporation is intended to benefit. 
    In commercial corporations that is the stockholders.  In public
    benefit corporations, such as ICANN, that is the public.  "Feeling
    the pressure" means much more than that the corporation and board
    merely listening to comments.  "Feeling the pressure" means
    something stronger - such things as are enumerated in the California
    laws that describe membership rights, as ICANN conveniently
    enumerated back in 1999:
    <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://archive.icann.org/en/meetings/santiago/membership-analysis.htm">https://archive.icann.org/en/meetings/santiago/membership-analysis.htm</a><br>
    <br>
    Much has been said about membership.  Under the laws of California
    that govern ICANN a public-benefit non-profit corporation a body of
    members is required if there is an election for board of directors. 
    (And there is no doubt that ICANN had such an election in year 2000
    even though they tried to avoid that fact by calling it a
    "selection".)<br>
    <br>
    A non-membership public-benefit corporation is usually used for
    things like theatre companies our other endeavors that are largely
    the extension of a single, often artistic, mind, such as an artistic
    director.<br>
    <br>
    But when the corporation is really an aggregation of minds,
    opinions, and beneficiaries - as ICANN is to a very high degree - a
    non-membership structure is simply not appropriate.<br>
    <br>
    But membership is a word that envisions more than one member.  My
    own sense is that an attempt to structure an ICANN membership with
    exactly one member would fail.  Judges are not stupid, they
    understand pretense and are both willing to, and empowered to,
    perceive actual substance over purported form.  Even worse, they
    might construe ICANN as a mere alter ego of that "member" and decide
    that ICANN's corporate form is not real.<br>
    <br>
    I wear multiple hats - on one hand I am a techie working with
    internet protocols.  On the other hand, I am a California lawyer; I
    sit on corporate boards; I create, own, and sell corporations.  The
    rules and structures of corporations, if honored in both form and
    spirit, can result in open, transparent, and accountable
    public-benefit corporations.<br>
    <br>
    Corporate forms - the rules and structures that the law dictates -
    are not ivory tower fantasies.  Rather they are the result of
    centuries of practical experience in which people with contesting
    and competing interests have come together to try to combine their
    efforts towards some goal.  The machinery of corporations was not
    created in some ivory tower, it was created in the very real world.<br>
    <br>
    But when those rules and structures are not honored or the
    corporation thinks that it can create a system that somehow is
    better than what has been honed into the law through centuries of
    practical experience, then the result is most likely to be an
    amateur construct, flawed, weak, and probably less accountable and
    transparent than hoped.<br>
       <br>
    My point here is that there is a lot of wishful thinking going on
    about ICANN and accountability and a lot of hand waiving about what
    the law is or is not.  And rather than trying to impose real
    transparency and accountability upon ICANN by wishful inventions we
    ought to use the well tried methods that are available through well
    established legal forms of corporate structure and operation.<br>
    <br>
    And in this case, that method would be a board that is wholly chosen
    by and seated by, a membership composed the broad community of
    internet users with all of the kinds of powers that are typically
    granted to members.<br>
    <br>
            --karl--<br>
    <br>
    <br>
    <br>
    <div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 10/30/15 7:48 AM, parminder wrote:<br>
    </div>
    <blockquote cite="mid:56338331.1050004@itforchange.net" type="cite">
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      <br>
      <div class="moz-forward-container">After opposing greater
        accountability of ICANN through a membership based model, ALAC
        leadership seems also eager to *not* support increased
        transparency.... (Now, please dont cite technical reasons,
        people normally employ 'technical reasons' and 'facts' in
        pursuance of what they want accomplished and not against it)<br>
        <br>
        And ALAC is supposed to be the representative of the
        'outsiders'.....A really strange world, i'd say!<br>
        <br>
        parminder <br>
        <br>
        -------- Forwarded Message --------
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              <th align="RIGHT" nowrap="nowrap" valign="BASELINE">Subject:

              </th>
              <td>Re: [CCWG-ACCT] Transparency recap (Was: Contribution
                on Transparency Reforms for CCWG)</td>
            </tr>
            <tr>
              <th align="RIGHT" nowrap="nowrap" valign="BASELINE">Date:
              </th>
              <td>Fri, 30 Oct 2015 14:17:44 +0000</td>
            </tr>
            <tr>
              <th align="RIGHT" nowrap="nowrap" valign="BASELINE">From:
              </th>
              <td>Alan Greenberg <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                  class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
                  href="mailto:alan.greenberg@mcgill.ca">&lt;alan.greenberg@mcgill.ca&gt;</a></td>
            </tr>
            <tr>
              <th align="RIGHT" nowrap="nowrap" valign="BASELINE">To: </th>
              <td>Chris Disspain <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                  class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
                  href="mailto:ceo@auda.org.au">&lt;ceo@auda.org.au&gt;</a>,
                Schaefer, Brett <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                  class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
                  href="mailto:Brett.Schaefer@heritage.org">&lt;Brett.Schaefer@heritage.org&gt;</a></td>
            </tr>
            <tr>
              <th align="RIGHT" nowrap="nowrap" valign="BASELINE">CC: </th>
              <td><a moz-do-not-send="true"
                  class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
                  href="mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org">accountability-cross-community@icann.org</a>
                <a moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
                  href="mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org">&lt;accountability-cross-community@icann.org&gt;</a></td>
            </tr>
          </tbody>
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  </style>Transparency is needed, but the CCWG identified this as a WS2
        issue. Yes, when we were talking about membership, some of this
        automatically would be provided, but it was not de facto a WS1
        issue. To add it now is mission creap. <br>
        -- <br>
        Sent from my mobile. Please excuse brevity and typos.<br>
        <br>
        <div class="gmail_quote">On October 30, 2015 11:34:29 AM
          GMT+00:00, Chris Disspain <a moz-do-not-send="true"
            class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:ceo@auda.org.au">&lt;ceo@auda.org.au&gt;</a>
          wrote:
          <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt
            0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);
            padding-left: 1ex;"> <span style="font-family: 'Verdana';
              font-size: 13px; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">I disagree. I
              do not believe there is yet consensus.
              <div class=""><br class="">
              </div>
              <div class="">I am not in favour of any â€˜rights’ other
                than the enforcement rights already agreed being given
                to the designator. I have no issue with the right of
                inspection being given to the SOs and ACs pursuant to an
                agreed level of consensus.
                <div class=""><br class="">
                </div>
                <div class=""><br class="">
                  <div class="">
                    <p class="p1"><br class="">
                    </p>
                    <p class="p2">Cheers,</p>
                    <p class="p3"><br class="">
                    </p>
                    <p class="p2">Chris Disspain<span class="s1"> </span><span
                        class="s2">|</span><span class="s1"> </span>Chief

                      Executive Officer</p>
                    <p class="p2">.au Domain Administration Ltd</p>
                    <p class="p2">T: <span class="s3">+61 3 8341 4111</span><span
                        class="s1"> </span><span class="s2">|</span><span
                        class="s1"> </span>F: <span class="s3">+61 3
                        8341 4112</span></p>
                    <p class="p4"><span class="s4">E:</span><span
                        class="s1"> <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:ceo@auda.org.au" class=""><span
                            class="s5">ceo@auda.org.au</span></a> </span><span
                        class="s6">|</span><span class="s1"> </span><span
                        class="s4">W:</span><span class="s7"> <a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="http://www.auda.org.au/" class=""><span
                            class="s8"><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.auda.org.au">www.auda.org.au</a></span></a></span><span
                        class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
                    <p class="p2">auDA â€“ Australia’s Domain Name
                      Administrator</p>
                    <p class="p5"><br class="">
                    </p>
                    <p class="p6"><span class="s6"><b class="">Important
                          Notice</b></span><span class="s1"><b class="">
                        </b></span><b class="">- </b>This email may
                      contain information which is confidential and/or
                      subject to legal privilege, and is intended for
                      the use of the named addressee only. If you are
                      not the intended recipient, you must not use,
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                      the sender and delete this message immediately.
                      Please consider the environment before printing
                      this email.</p>
                  </div>
                  <br class="">
                  <div>
                    <blockquote type="cite" class="">
                      <div class="">On 30 Oct 2015, at 22:25 , Schaefer,
                        Brett &lt;<a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:Brett.Schaefer@heritage.org"
                          class="">Brett.Schaefer@heritage.org</a>&gt;
                        wrote:</div>
                      <br class="Apple-interchange-newline">
                      <div class="">Matthieu,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        I may be wrong, but based on the comments on the
                        list and in Dublin that there is broad
                        agreement, I would even say consensus, that the
                        right to inspect needs to be granted to the
                        designator.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The discussion recently has focused on how much
                        of the other transparency provisions to bring
                        forward to WS1. I and others think a substantial
                        amount, others disagree. If a compromise or
                        centrist position is being sought, I suggest it
                        that it focus on these items of dispute.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Thanks,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Brett<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        ________________________________<br class="">
                        Brett Schaefer<br class="">
                        Jay Kingham Senior Research Fellow in
                        International Regulatory Affairs<br class="">
                        Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom Davis
                        Institute for National Security and Foreign
                        Policy<br class="">
                        The Heritage Foundation<br class="">
                        214 Massachusetts Avenue, NE<br class="">
                        Washington, DC 20002<br class="">
                        202-608-6097<br class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="http://heritage.org" class="">heritage.org</a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="http://heritage.org/" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://heritage.org/">http://heritage.org/</a></a>&gt;<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        On Oct 30, 2015, at 5:24 AM, Edward Morris &lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:egmorris1@toast.net" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:egmorris1@toast.net">egmorris1@toast.net</a></a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:egmorris1@toast.net" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:egmorris1@toast.net">mailto:egmorris1@toast.net</a></a>&gt;&gt;

                        wrote:<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Mathieu,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Thank you very much for this post. I  want to
                        succinctly thank the Chairs for their exemplary
                        leadership on this issue, express my support for
                        their rational, considered, centered and measur
                        ed approach to transparency and inspection
                        issues, and express my full support for the
                        approach indicated, with work beyond the
                        transposing of certain provisions from the old
                        reference model into into the new reference
                        model to be tackled in work stream 2. It is an
                        approach between the two extremes recently
                        debated on list and as a centrist in most things
                        in life find it a reasonable way forward that
                        should provide us with the best opportunity to
                        get this done right. Thanks again.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Best,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Ed Morris<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Sent from my iPhone<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        On Oct 30, 2015, at 8:15 AM, Mathieu Weill &lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:mathieu.weill@afnic.fr" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:mathieu.weill@afnic.fr">mathieu.weill@afnic.fr</a></a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:mathieu.weill@afnic.fr" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:mathieu.weill@afnic.fr">mailto:mathieu.weill@afnic.fr</a></a>&gt;&gt;

                        wrote:<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Dear Colleagues,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        First of all many thanks to all of you wh o have
                        been working hard on this issue. We are well
                        aware of your efforts to find an approach that
                        would be acceptable to all on this question.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Regarding transparency discussions, I would like
                        to remind everyone of the content and
                        conclusions of our discussions on Transparency
                        in the Sole Designator model while we were in
                        Dublin.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        -          Our lawyers have confirmed that the
                        same level of transparency could be achieved in
                        the Sole Designator model as with the Sole
                        Member, by adding a specific provision to the
                        Bylaws enabling the Sole Designator to inspect
                        Ican’s accounting books and records.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        -          In response to a concern raised by
                        Sam Eisner about public disclosure of such
                        documents, we discussed how we could use the
                        same type of provision that we had agreed on for
                        the AoC reviews as a safeguard (see below the
                        relevant extract from the AoC section, provided
                        by Steve del Bianco)<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        -          There was a debate about whether or
                        not extra provisions for transparency were
                        needed in Work stream 1, considering that we
                        have agreement that the topic is on the WS2
                        agenda. There was no formal conclusion.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Thomas did conclude by saying â€œSo that’s one
                        action item for our group to set up a subteam to
                        define the exact language and extent to which a
                        transparency is required.”<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        In terms of way forward, given the input we have
                        received, I believe the question is whether
                        transparency provisions, beyond the records
                        inspection rights, fit with our agreed
                        definition of Work stream 1, and whether the
                        level of consensus on the extra provisions at
                        this stage is sufficient.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        I would note that, with the group’s input, our
                        WS2 initiative would already be well advanced.
                        It might be possible to launch it very soon
                        after we have submitted our WS1 recommendations
                        if that is the path we take.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Best,<br class="">
                        Mathieu<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        For your reference :<br class="">
                        Full transcript --&gt; <a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://community.icann.org/download/attachments/56143884/Transcript%20CCWG%20ACCT%20Working%20Session%202_21%20October.pdf?version=1&amp;modificationDate=1445525810000&amp;api=v2"
                          class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://community.icann.org/download/attachments/56143884/Transcript%20CCWG%20ACCT%20Working%20Session%202_21%20October.pdf?version=1&amp;modificationDate=1445525810000&amp;api=v2">https://community.icann.org/download/attachments/56143884/Transcript%20CCWG%20ACCT%20Working%20Session%202_21%20October.pdf?version=1&amp;modificationDate=1445525810000&amp;api=v2</a></a><br
                          class="">
                        Slide-deck --&gt; <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://community.icann.org/download/attachments/56143884/CCWG-Accountability%20Working%20Session%20II%20%281%29-1.pdf?version=1&amp;modificationDate=1445444965000&amp;api=v2"
                          class="">https://community.icann.org/download/attachments/56143884/CCWG-Accountability%20Working%20Session%20II%20%281%29-1.pdf?version=1&amp;modificationDate=1445444965000&amp;api=v2</a><br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        page 75 of AoC reviews as part of WS1.<br
                          class="">
                        Confidential Disclosure to Review Teams:<br
                          class="">
                        To facilitate transparency and openness
                        regarding ICANN's deliberations and operations,
                        the Review Teams, or a subset thereof, shall
                        have access to ICANN internal information and
                        documents. If ICANN refuses to reveal documents
                        or information requested by the Review Team,
                        ICANN must provide a justification to the Review
                        Team. If the Review Team is not satisfied with
                        ICANN’s justification, it can appeal to the
                        Ombudsman and/or the ICANN Board for a ruling on
                        the disclosure request.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        For documents and information that ICANN does
                        disclose to the Review Team, ICANN may designate
                        certain documents and information as not for
                        disclosur e by the Review Team, either in its
                        report or otherwise. If the Review Team is not
                        satisfied with ICANN’s designation of
                        non-disclosable documents or information, it can
                        appeal to the Ombudsman and/or the ICANN Board
                        for a ruling on the non-disclosure designation.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        A confidential disclosure framework shall be
                        published by ICANN. The confidential disclosure
                        framework shall describe the process by which
                        documents and information are classified,
                        including a description of the levels of
                        classification that documents or information may
                        be subject to, and the classes of persons who
                        may access such documents and information.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The confidential disclosure framework shall
                        describe the process by which a Review Team may
                        request access to documents and information that
                        are designated as classified or restricted
                        access.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The confidential disclosure framework shall also
                        describe the provisions of any non-discl osure
                        agreement that members of a Review Team may be
                        asked to sign.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The confidential disclosure framework must
                        provide a mechanism to escalate and/or appeal
                        the refusal to release documents and information
                        to duly recognized Review Teams.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        De : <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org"
                          class="">accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org</a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org"
                          class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org">mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org</a></a>&gt;

                        [<a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org"
                          class="">mailto:accountability-cross-community-bounces@icann.org</a>]
                        De la part de Kieren McCarthy<br class="">
                        Envoyé : jeudi 29 octobre 2015 15:58<br
                          class="">
                        Ã€ : Padmini<br class="">
                        Cc : <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org"
                          class="">accountability-cross-community@icann.org</a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org"
                          class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org">mailto:accountability-cross-community@icann.org</a></a>&gt;<br
                          class="">
                        Objet : Re: [CCWG-ACCT] Contribution on
                        Transparency Reforms for CCWG<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        I have to agree with Padmini on this one re:
                        DIDP and being "able to refer the requestor to
                        documents already publicly available".<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The information provided is often tangential to
                        what has actually been asked for. In quite a few
                        cases it is so far removed from the query that
                        it is almost obnoxious.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        I don't know why Board members have such a blind
                        spot about how the staff behaves to those
                        outside the corporation.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        And I'm still waiting to hear a Board member -
                        any Board member - announce that they have
                        decided to look into the staff's bylaw-breaking
                        behavior in the .africa application.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        If I was on the Board and I heard that th e
                        entire process was being jeopardized by staff
                        wrongly interfering in the process (and then
                        lying about doing so), I'd make sure the
                        community knew I was doing my job and insist on
                        some kind of internal review of what happened
                        and what could be done to make sure it didn't
                        happen again.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        But instead we get silence and fantasy responses
                        like these ones from Bruce about how the DIDP
                        works and the effectiveness of ICANN's financial
                        reporting systems.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Kieren<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        On Thu, Oct 29, 2015 at 5:41 AM, Padmini &lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:pdmnbaruah@gmail.com" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:pdmnbaruah@gmail.com">pdmnbaruah@gmail.com</a></a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:pdmnbaruah@gmail.com" class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:pdmnbaruah@gmail.com">mailto:pdmnbaruah@gmail.com</a></a>&gt;&gt;

                        wrote:<br class="">
                        Dear Bruce,<br class="">
                        As someone who has spent some time combing
                        through the different responses that ICANN files
                        to the various DIDP requests, my findings are
                        slightly different, and have been posted
                        earlier.<br class="">
                        While ICANN does link one to an innumerable
                        array of documents that are publicly available,
                        many times, there is little or no connection
                        between the information one seeks and the
                        publicly available documents that are provided.
                        For instance, I have asked a few questions on
                        registrar/registry audits, specifically seeking
                        individual contracted party audit reports in
                        cases where there have been breaches or
                        discrepancies. However, the response contains a
                        large number of links explaining ICANN's
                        three-year-audit process in great detail, and at
                        the end has a rejection of my actual request on
                        the basis of certain of their extremely vast and
                        broad grounds for non-disclosure. I like to
                        refer to this as ICANN's tendency towards
                        documentary obfuscation where they aren't
                        actually giving you the information that you
                        need, but are drowning you in documents anyway.<br
                          class="">
                        That 66 is a figure that we might need to
                        scrutinise closer in terms of how effective
                        those disclosures actually have been.<br
                          class="">
                        Warm Regards<br class="">
                        Padmini<br class="">
                        Programme Associate, Internet Governance<br
                          class="">
                        Centre for Internet and Society, Bangalore,
                        India<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Padmini Baruah<br class="">
                        V Year, B.A.LL.B. (Hons.)<br class="">
                        NLSIU, Bangalore<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        On Thu, Oct 29, 2015 at 12:16 PM, Bruce Tonkin
                        &lt;<a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:Bruce.Tonkin@melbourneit.com.au"
                          class="">Bruce.Tonkin@melbourneit.com.au</a>&lt;<a
                          moz-do-not-send="true"
                          href="mailto:Bruce.Tonkin@melbourneit.com.au"
                          class=""><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:Bruce.Tonkin@melbourneit.com.au">mailto:Bruce.Tonkin@melbourneit.com.au</a></a>&gt;&gt;

                        wrote:<br class="">
                        Hello Greg,<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <blockquote type="cite" class="">
                          <blockquote type="cite" class=""> 6333.  The
                            accounting books and records and minutes of
                            proceedings<br class="">
                          </blockquote>
                        </blockquote>
                        of the members and the board and committees of
                        the board shall be<br class="">
                        open to inspection upon the written dem and on
                        the corporation of any<br class="">
                        member at any reasonable time, for a purpose
                        reasonably related to<br class="">
                        such person's interests as a member.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        The minutes are basically published today.
                           The only minutes apparently that are not
                        posted are compensation committee minutes â€“
                        but even then we could at least note the items
                        discussed without necessarily disclosing some
                        personal information.<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        With regard to financials– we are already
                        moving towards the same standards as publicly
                        listed companies in the USA.   We now provide
                        quarterly financial reporting, and a quarterly
                        call where the community can question the CEO
                        and the CFO on the income and expenditure.   It
                        would not be normal to provide people with
                        access to the raw accounting system (in this
                        case Great Plains) â€“ which would include
                        information on payments to all staff etc.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        We do use an ex ternal auditor to validate our
                        financials and processes once per year.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        If there is a community  concern about a
                        particular financial matter (e.g concern about
                        whether procurement policies were being
                        followed) â€“ then I think it would be more
                        appropriate if the single legal entity that
                        represents the community powers has the right to
                        appoint an external auditor to validate any
                        particular process or numbers and report back to
                        the community.      Audit firms have the
                        appropriate skills to analyse financial
                        accounting records and also have appropriate
                        procedures in place for confidentiality.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        I think we should be focussing on improving the
                        processes we already have.   I advocated moving
                        to quarterly financial reporting, and I have
                        certainly been a strong advocate of making
                        things as public as possible, and welcome
                        suggestions for improving our processes.<br
                          class="">
                        <br class="">
                        Regards ,<br class="">
                        Bruce Tonkin<br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        <br class="">
                        _______________________________________________<br
                          class="">
                        Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list<br
                          class="">
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                        <br class="">
                        _______________________________________________<br
                          class="">
                        Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list<br
                          class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
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                        <br class="">
                        _______________________________________________<br
                          class="">
                        Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list<br
                          class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
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                          class="">
                        _______________________________________________<br
                          class="">
                        Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list<br
                          class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
                          href="mailto:Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org">Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org</a><a
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href="https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community">https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community</a><br
                          class="">
                        _______________________________________________<br
                          class="">
                        Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list<br
                          class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
                          href="mailto:Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org">Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org</a><br
                          class="">
                        <a moz-do-not-send="true"
                          class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community">https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community</a><br
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            <pre class="k9mail"><hr>
Accountability-Cross-Community mailing list
<a moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org">Accountability-Cross-Community@icann.org</a>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community">https://mm.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/accountability-cross-community</a>
</pre>
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<pre wrap="">_______________________________________________
At-Large mailing list
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org">At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large">https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large</a>

At-Large Official Site: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://atlarge.icann.org">http://atlarge.icann.org</a></pre>

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