[ncdnhc-discuss] ICANN controlled by governments

[James Love]

If ICANN is controlled by the US government, everyone benefits from the US
1st amendment, which is a strong protection for free speech.  If ICANN is
controlled by governments in general, things will change.  Here is a recent
French court decision regarding Yahoo.  jamie

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By Reuters
February 26, 2002, 1:30 PM PT

PARIS--A French criminal court said Tuesday it would try Internet giant
Yahoo and its former chief executive for allegedly condoning war crimes by
allowing the sale of Nazi memorabilia on Yahoo sites.
Former Yahoo CEO Timothy Koogle faces a maximum sentence of five years and a
$39,800 fine if found guilty--a verdict that could have broad implications
for international free-speech rights in the Internet age.

France ordered the California-based company in November 2000 to stop people
in France from accessing the sites, but a U.S. federal judge ruled last
November that Yahoo was not bound to comply with French laws governing
Internet content on U.S.-based sites.

The court ruled Tuesday that French law still applied to English-language
sites and said it would hear allegations Yahoo was inciting racial hatred by
allowing French surfers to buy Nazi books, daggers, concentration-camp
uniforms and SS badges on its Yahoo.com service.

Three French Jewish and anti-Semitism groups pressed for the criminal
charges in October. The court ruled Tuesday that interested parties would
meet May 7 to set a trial date.

It is illegal under French law to exhibit or sell objects with racist
overtones, and Yahoo's French portal carries no Nazi auctions. But French
surfers, like all others, can switch to Yahoo.com services with a click of
the mouse.



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James Love, mailto:love at cptech.org, http://www.cptech.org
voice +1.202.387.8030, mobile +1.202.361.3040, fax +1.202.234.5176