[PC-NCSG] Fwd: Potential Comments on RAA Negotiations

[Robin Gross]

Thank you, Wendy!  I will happily sign on to the statement.  Thanks  
again for getting this in under deadline!

Best,
Robin

On Mar 28, 2013, at 3:50 PM, Wendy Seltzer wrote:

> Anyone want to sign on with me? or offer amendments in the next hour?
>
> --Wendy
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Potential  Comments on RAA Negotiations
> Date: Thu, 28 Mar 2013 18:49:48 -0400
> From: Wendy Seltzer <wendy at seltzer.com>
> To: comments-proposed-raa-07mar13 at icann.org
>
> In negotiating the contracts that form the basis of its governance
> regime, ICANN owes it to the public, registrants included, to keep our
> interests in mind. [[As a lawyer, technologist, and member of the
> Non-Commercial Users Constituency, I| We ]] do not believe the latest
> proposed Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) does so.
>
> The heart of ICANN's multi-stakeholder regime is that difficult issues
> are resolved through consensus driven by participation and
> representation of the stakeholders, not by ICANN's Board acting  
> without
> (or against) such guidance. The consensus process carefully insulates
> the Board from many decisions -- its governance is in making sure the
> right procedural steps are followed, not by overturning that  
> process to
> intervene on the substance of contested questions.
>
> The provision for unilateral amendment of the RAA pulls the Board into
> disputes, subjecting them to lobbying from partisan interests.
> Curtailing their power is actually protecting their ability to oversee
> the interests of all of the stakeholders.
>
> Unilateral amendments, even less than bilateral contractual  
> negotiations
> are not the place to set policy for a multi-stakeholder  
> environment. The
> unilateral decision-making in this foundational agreement  
> undermines our
> ability to advocate for multi-stakeholder governance in the ICANN  
> model
> in other fora.
>
> Additional problems with the most recent changes:
> * Abrogates the picket fence
>
> * Not evidence-based and therefore irrational and without legal basis:
> no evidence has been provided of a problem necessitating this  
> solution;
> no persuasive rationale has been presented and in any event, any such
> evidence/rationale must be subject to community input.
>
> * The "Registrants rights and responsibilities" document gives feeble
> rights in exchange for onerous (and unenforceable)  
> responsibilities. It
> should not have been tabled without input from community and  
> especially
> across community constituencies
>
> * The proposed accreditation of privacy services and proxy  
> registration
> providers has come under much criticism -- should a lawyer registering
> domains on behalf of a client, subject to attorney-client  
> privilege, be
> forced to register? must a whistleblower or critic depend on mere
> promises not to disclose identity? Even a placeholder for this  
> policy is
> inappropriate at this stage.
>
> ICANN is making policy for the Internet and most of its domain
> registrants -- those seeking a stable location for their online speech
> depend on domain registrations (some, however, use ccTLDs not  
> subject to
> this regime). Registrants depend on registrars to get these names,
> registrars who won't be deterred by the nuisance of an uncomfortable
> exercise of free expression rights.
>
> We support the Registrars in their opposition to these proposed RAA
> amendments.
>
>
>
> -- 
> Wendy Seltzer -- wendy at seltzer.org +1 617.863.0613
> Policy Counsel, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
> Fellow, Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University
> Visiting Fellow, Yale Law School Information Society Project
> http://wendy.seltzer.org/
> https://www.chillingeffects.org/
> https://www.torproject.org/
> http://www.freedom-to-tinker.com/
>
>
>
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>




IP JUSTICE
Robin Gross, Executive Director
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