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<p>Thanks Rafik</p>
<p>I think it is good for NCSG to encourage open and critical
discussion of this and starting with a request for information is
the best place to start.</p>
<p>Anriette</p>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">Anriette Esterhuysen - <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:anriette@apc.org//anriette@gmail.com">anriette@apc.org//anriette@gmail.com</a></pre>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 2025/11/13 12:45, Rafik Dammak
wrote:<br>
</div>
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cite="mid:CAH5sThmwAXvroD6n6LKHt8e1gPKCsqU6Xd_Az-zLi-FsWA-NSA@mail.gmail.com">
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<div>hi all,</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>As suggested, here is a draft letter that we can send to
the ICANN board and CEO to ask for more clarification. We
are not assuming any intent or malice but we should get more
clarification about any ICANN role in the matter or
participation. An official letter will require the board to
respond compared to any informal communication.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Please review the letter and share your comments <a
href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CPgRLILaCtsda8YRA4mUtElLXYS6udjF8cHvTo2AXHI/edit?usp=sharing"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CPgRLILaCtsda8YRA4mUtElLXYS6udjF8cHvTo2AXHI/edit?usp=sharing</a></div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Best,</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Rafik</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_quote gmail_quote_container">
<div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">Le mer. 12 nov. 2025
à 03:10, Mueller, Milton L <<a
href="mailto:00001d75540da649-dmarc-request@listserv.syr.edu"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">00001d75540da649-dmarc-request@listserv.syr.edu</a>>
a écrit :<br>
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style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">
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Emmanuel, thanks for your response. </div>
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I have done some fact checking and also can find no
evidence that ICANN funded CAIGA. I have asked ICANN's
VPs to confirm this but as noted in my earlier message
they have not replied. As far as I can tell that is
the only inaccuracy in Alice's post.</div>
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Even if there is no funding, there is of course the
November 2024 MoU, which seems to authorize special
efforts to empower governments in Section 3.3
<a
href="https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/mou-smart-africa-icann-12nov24-en.pdf"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">
https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/mou-smart-africa-icann-12nov24-en.pdf</a> </div>
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It is a bit disingenuous to say that Smart Africa is
not an intergovernmental entity when its board
entirely consists of heads of state. <a
href="https://smartafrica.org/the-board-2/"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">https://smartafrica.org/the-board-2/</a> Anyone
who has been around internet governance circles as
long as I have sees many instances of governments
professing (perhaps sincerely) to be
"multistakeholder" when in fact they are just states
seeking consultation from other stakeholders but not
really sharing power. </div>
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<p style="margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em">Dr. Milton
L Mueller</p>
<p style="margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em">Georgia
Institute of Technology</p>
<p style="margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em">School of
Public Policy</p>
<p style="margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><img
style="width: 320px; height: 79px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"
height="79" width="320"
src="cid:part1.h5r1HlYv.k2Js47eC@apc.org" class=""></p>
<p style="margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"> </p>
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<div
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<b>From:</b> Emmanuel Vitus <<a
href="mailto:emmanuelvitus@gmail.com"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">emmanuelvitus@gmail.com</a>><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Monday, November 10, 2025 10:08 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> Mueller, Milton L <<a
href="mailto:milton@gatech.edu" target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">milton@gatech.edu</a>><br>
<b>Cc:</b> <a
href="mailto:NCSG-DISCUSS@listserv.syr.edu"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">NCSG-DISCUSS@listserv.syr.edu</a>
<<a href="mailto:NCSG-DISCUSS@listserv.syr.edu"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">NCSG-DISCUSS@listserv.syr.edu</a>><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: Is ICANN helping to subvert its
own governance model?</div>
<div style="direction:ltr"> </div>
</div>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Dear
Prof.</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Thank
you for sharing Alice’s article and for keeping this
important discussion alive. I would, however,
suggest some caution, as several of the claims being
circulated are not supported by the factual record.</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">I
reviewed the meeting proceedings from Prague, the
AIS in Accra, and most recently Dublin, where the
CAIGA blueprint was presented. ICANN was never
mentioned as a sponsor or financier. The document,
attached here, has been shared with the community
since Prague for review and contribution.
Consultations are still ongoing across Africa to
establish an advisory body that will help coordinate
African voices in global Internet governance.</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Smart
Africa is an alliance of 40 African governments
working with the private sector, Regional Economic
Communities, universities, and other institutions.
It is not a government agency or political
instrument. it's not the African Union. It has an
NGO status. </span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">For
transparency, I recently published
<a style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"
id="m_-4122309181379680189OWA0bc5cdf7-461b-4dad-d8f7-8f846c3411ea"
href="https://medium.com/@emmanuelvitus/smart-africa-icann-caiga-afrinic-how-the-brouhaha-exposes-the-politics-of-african-digital-cf3ddc42beca"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">
an opinion piece</a> linking all transcripts and
documents from ICANN public meetings to help anyone
verify the facts. It may lack a touch of diplomacy
:), but it was written in good faith. Having
followed and written about the AfriNIC crisis for
years, I find it ironic that some of those who once
praised Smart Africa’s intervention now question the
same process that helped save the continent’s only
Internet registry.</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span
style="font-family:"trebuchet ms",sans-serif;font-size:9.75pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Warm
regards<br>
<b>Emmanuel Vitus</b></span></p>
<div><br>
</div>
<div style="direction:ltr">Le lun. 10 nov. 2025 à 19:59,
Mueller, Milton L <<a
id="m_-4122309181379680189OWAf736b50a-f362-f3b7-5f7d-52a4e1369358"
href="mailto:milton@gatech.edu" target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">milton@gatech.edu</a>>
a écrit :</div>
<blockquote
style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;padding-left:1ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204)">
<div
style="direction:ltr;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
I want to make sure that everyone in NCSG has read
this substack article by Alice Munyua of Kenya.
Although it deals with IP address policy not DNS
policy, the issues it raises apply to the entire
ICANN ecosystem. </div>
<div
style="direction:ltr;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
The TL;DR is that ICANN has supported an African
organization that is rooted in national governments
and is proposing to set up an overlay governance
structure for AFRINIC that disempowers the community
members and gives governments veto power over policy
decisions. As Alice writes in her post, </div>
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<br>
</div>
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em;margin-left:40px;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
The RIR system; AFRINIC, APNIC, ARIN, LACNIC, RIPE
NCC manages the internet’s addressing infrastructure
globally. These organisations work because they
are built on community trust and technical
independence from governmental control. The system
works because the same principles apply everywhere;
bottom up policy development, community self
governance, insulation from political direction. If
those principles do not apply in Africa, if
intergovernmental organisations can draft bylaws
externally, coordinate electoral outcomes, and
substitute political endorsement for member
ratification then the precedent affects the global
system.</div>
<div
style="direction:ltr;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
Here is a link to the post: <a
id="m_-4122309181379680189OWAd648a821-c3fa-e26b-5bf0-72fd44680d44"
href="https://substack.com/home/post/p-177968365"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">
https://substack.com/home/post/p-177968365</a></div>
<div
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<br>
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<div
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Alice poses some useful questions that ICANN's
management needs to answer: </div>
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<br>
</div>
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
We need</div>
<ul style="direction:ltr">
<li
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"
role="presentation">
Transparency about ICANN’s full involvement in
developing CAIGA [including] the scope of
participation and financial support.</div>
</li>
<li
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"
role="presentation">
Explicit assessment of CAIGA’s compatibility
with ICP-2 and the RIR governance principles
that apply to RIPE NCC, ARIN, APNIC, and LACNIC.</div>
</li>
<li
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"
role="presentation">
Answer to the direct question: Would ICANN
support similar governmental restructuring of
RIRs in other regions? If not, justification for
why different standards apply to African
internet governance.</div>
</li>
<li
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<div
style="direction:ltr;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"
role="presentation">
Commitment that any AFRINIC governance reforms
will be developed through AFRINIC’s own
community processes, not external drafting with
political endorsement mechanisms.</div>
</li>
</ul>
<div
style="direction:ltr;font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt;color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<br>
</div>
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id="m_-4122309181379680189x_m_-8205922594746671664Signature">
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<br>
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<p
style="direction:ltr;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">
<span
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif">Dr.</span>
<span
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif">
Milton L Mueller</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">
<span
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif">Georgia
Institute of Technology</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">
<span
style="font-family:Aptos,Aptos_EmbeddedFont,Aptos_MSFontService,Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif">School
of Public Policy</span></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">
<a
style="text-decoration:none;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"
title="https://internetgovernance.org"
id="m_-4122309181379680189OWA3f869b9a-a0ab-d34b-12cd-5a6b9d144c81"
href="https://internetgovernance.org"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><img
size="6976"
style="width: 320px; height: 79px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"
height="79" width="320"
id="m_-4122309181379680189x_m_-8205922594746671664image_0"
src="cid:part2.gCzkDx4Y.QX020YRn@apc.org"
class=""></a></p>
<p
style="direction:ltr;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">
</p>
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