[At-Large] European Commission calls for an open, independent and accountable governance of the internet

[Yassin Mshana]

It seems that Demarcating the Internet phenomenon despite its continuum nature seems to be a difficult task  that the community is trying to do - or is it not?. Why go that far? I wonder. 
"Internet" = "Open+Transparency + Inclusiveness + Accountability + Global Diplomacy"
It is expected that Competition should be within those variables. Why Regionalise priorities at this 11th hour when the JPA is at stake?   

> Date: Fri, 26 Jun 2009 09:22:30 +1000
> From: rudi.vansnick at isoc.be
> To: at-large at atlarge-lists.icann.org
> Subject: [At-Large] European Commission calls for an open, independent and accountable governance of the internet
> 
> 
> *
> * 	
> *European Commission calls for an open, independent and accountable 
> governance of the internet*
> 
> The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, 
> today called, in a strategic document, for more transparency and 
> multilateral accountability in the governance of the internet. There are 
> today 1.5 billion internet users worldwide, 300 million of which are in 
> the European Union's 27 Member States. At present, a private US-based 
> body, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers 
> <http://www.icann.org/> ( ICANN <http://www.icann.org/>), is responsible 
> for coordinating key elements of the internet. The Commission agrees 
> that private companies should continue to take the lead in the 
> day-to-day management of the operation of the internet, as long as they 
> are accountable and independent. The Commission also believes that 
> decisions about the internet, especially those about openness and 
> security, should be taken in a transparent and accountable manner 
> because they affect everyone around the globe. ICANN currently operates 
> under a Joint Project Agreement with the US Department of Commerce which 
> expires on 30 September 2009. In the view of the European Commission, 
> future internet governance arrangements should reflect the key role that 
> the global network has come to play for all countries.
> 
> Viviane Reding, the EU's Commissioner for Information Society and Media 
> said: "The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is 
> approaching a historic point in its development. Will it become a fully 
> independent organisation, accountable to the global internet community? 
> Europeans would expect so, and this is what we will push for. I call on 
> the United States to work together with the European Union to achieve this."
> 
> With the expiry of the bilateral Joint Project Agreement between ICANN 
> and the US government due in September 2009, the Commission said today 
> that this private sector initiative should continue its leadership, but 
> should operate within clear guidelines defined through an international 
> dialogue. For example, if ICANN is to oversee the introduction of 
> customised domain names (which will allow a website to replace ".com" 
> with ".anything"), it should set clear guidelines and operate openly. 
> The EU also believes that future internet governance arrangements should 
> comply with key principles, in particular, the respect for human rights 
> and freedom of expression as well as the need to preserve stability and 
> security of the internet.
> 
> The Commission today, in a Communication called 'Internet governance: 
> the next steps', made proposals for the governance of the internet to be 
> more open, transparent and inclusive. A key objective is that of 
> accountability – including both internal (the decision-making bodies and 
> general organisation of ICANN) and external accountability (multilateral 
> accountability involving all countries of the world). This also means 
> that those affected by decisions of governance bodies should have the 
> possibility to lodge an appeal with an independent tribunal. The 
> Commission also proposed that the network should be managed by private 
> bodies within principles agreed upon by public authorities but without 
> government interference in day-to-day operations.
> 
> The US government is the only body to have had formal oversight of 
> ICANN's policies and activities since its inception in 1998. As the 
> Joint Project Agreement is ending now, the Commission believes that 
> ICANN should become universally accountable, not just to one government 
> but to the global internet community. This is particularly relevant 
> given that the next billion of internet users will mainly come from the 
> developing world. The Commission today said that the EU should initiate 
> discussions with international partners on these issues, in particular 
> on how to enhance the internet's resilience against accidental failure 
> or deliberate attack.
> 
> The Commission's policy proposals want to reaffirm private initiative 
> and ensure that the internet remains an engine of innovation, free 
> speech and economic development.
> 
> Background
> 
> The EU has always been in the forefront of international discussions on 
> internet governance. In particular, the EU has been involved in the 
> setting up of ICANN in 1998. A number of important principles on how the 
> internet needs to be managed and coordinated in the public interest were 
> agreed by governments, the private sector and civil society in the 
> context of the World Summit on the Information Society 
> <http://www.itu.int/wsis/>between 2003 and 2005. The need to ensure the 
> continued security and stability of the internet was a key priority 
> pushed for by the EU, as was the need for private sector leadership and 
> to have fully inclusive multi-stakeholder involvement in key policy making.
> 
> The Commission Communication "Internet governance: the next steps" is 
> available at:
> 
> http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/policy/internet_gov/index_en.htm
> 
> EU Commissioner Viviane Reding has recently outlined her vision for the 
> future of internet governance in a video message (see IP/09/696 
> <http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/09/696&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en>):
> 
> http://ec.europa.eu/commission_barroso/reding/video/text/message_20090504.pdf 
> 
> 
> Today the European Commission also presented its Action Plan on another 
> important evolution of the internet – the 'internet of things
> 
> 
> Rudi Vansnick
> President Internet Society Belgium vzw
> Voorzitter TIK vzw
> Board member EURALO (ALAC - ICANN)
> 
> Tel: +32 (0)70 77 39 39
> GSM: +32 (0)475 28 16 32
> www.isoc.be <http://www.isoc.be> - www.vansnick.eu <http://www.vansnick.eu>
> 
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