ICANN meeting and security concerns

[Robin Gross]

ICANN would send a terrible message to the world if it cancelled this  
meeting in Nairobi.   Now is when the world is looking to ICANN to be  
more international and to open-up its processes away from only the  
small handful of privileged Western businessmen that have  
traditionally managed the org.

I hope ICANN will not perpetuate these overblown fears about Nairobi  
and insult much of the world by canceling the mtg. because certain ($ 
$) people have been frightened by the media into staying home.

If ICANN wants to be a truly international governance institution, it  
cannot be afraid of Africa.  Time for ICANN to grow-up and go into  
Africa with or without the entourage of elite Western businessmen.

My 2 cents,
Robin



On Jan 22, 2010, at 3:54 AM, Carlos A. Afonso wrote:

> Right now São Paulo is under a wave of protests in the poor  
> communities
> (which is more than 70% of that city of 11 million) against local  
> public
> policies. This is motivated by the poor record of the local and state
> government in handling sanitation, flood prevention and urban
> development. Some communities are under water and sewage for more than
> 40 days now. As expected, the local police reacts with the usual
> stupidity and violence breaks up. But the big media is aligned with  
> the
> state government, and nearly no news of these protests circulates,
> except in the many alternative blogs.
>
> Since what happened in Nairobi involves a "fashionable" religious
> conflict, big media blew it out of proportion, it seems.
>
> --c.a.
>
> McTim wrote:
>> Bill,
>>
>> I haven't cross posted to ALAC or any other list, but want to give  
>> NCUC
>> members a first hand perspective.
>>
>> Nairobi is no less safe now than when ICANN decided to hold its  
>> March 2010
>> meeting here.  Last weeks violence happened because police banned a
>> demonstration from happening after Friday prayers.  The Jamaican  
>> cleric was
>> deported last night.  It was a very, very small scale skirmish.  
>> I've been in
>> far worse riots in Washington D.C.
>>
>> It would be an over reaction IMHO to cancel or move the March  
>> meeting from
>> Nairobi at this point.   Kenyan and other African stakeholders who  
>> are
>> looking forward to the meeting would be very annoyed indeed, and  
>> with good
>> reason.
>>
>
> -- 
>
> Carlos A. Afonso
> CGI.br (www.cgi.br)
> Nupef (www.nupef.org.br)
> ====================================
> new/nuevo/novo e-mail: ca at cafonso.ca
> ====================================




IP JUSTICE
Robin Gross, Executive Director
1192 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA  94117  USA
p: +1-415-553-6261    f: +1-415-462-6451
w: http://www.ipjustice.org     e: robin at ipjustice.org



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