[IGFmaglist] FW: Change of dates for IGF 2014

[Angelic del Castilho]

Dear Markus,

Thank you for conveying our concerns to Assistant Secretary-General Gass. I
would also like to take this opportunity for expressing my sincere
appreciation for all you did for the MAG.

Sincerely,
Angelic Alihusain-del Castilho

*Angelic Caroline Alihusain-del Castilho*

*POB 3036**Wanica*
 *Suriname*


On Tue, Jan 28, 2014 at 7:17 AM, Markus Kummer <kummer at isoc.org> wrote:

>  Dear all,
>
>  Base on the feed-back received after my last email, I sent the email
> below to Assistant-Secretary-General Thomas Gass.
>
>  Best regards
> Markus
>
>   From: Markus Kummer <kummer at isoc.org>
> Date: Tuesday28, January, 2014 11:13 AM
> To: Thomas Gass <gass at un.org>
> Cc: Elia Armstrong <armstronge at un.org>, "cherkasov at un.org" <
> cherkasov at un.org>, Chengetai Masango <cmasango at unog.ch>
>
> Subject: Re: [IGFmaglist] Change of dates for IGF 2014
>
>   Dear Mr Gass,
>
>  Last Friday, the IGF Secretariat sent out a message announcing a change
> of dates for the IGF 2014 meeting. This message has caused some dismay
> among MAG members and I am writing to you to convey their concern that this
> might have a negative impact on the success of the Istanbul meeting.
>
>  In the discussion on the MAG list that followed the message, it was
> pointed out that there are various factors that need to be considered,
> first and foremost the fact that the August dates would fall into the
> middle of the European holiday season. Participants from Europe are
> traditionally well represented in any IGF meeting and of course they are
> expected to be even more so if the meeting takes place in the European
> region. In August, it would be practically impossible to get any high-level
> participants from Europe, as most Ministers and Parliamentarians will be on
> their summer break. Also, non-governmental participants would find it
> difficult to attend, as prices for tickets and hotels are expected to be
> high during the peak holiday season, with Turkey being a popular
> destination.
>
>  In addition, having the meeting earlier would reduce the time necessary
> for a careful preparation of the meeting. The preparatory period for
> finalizing workshops, presentations and speeches would be negatively
> impacted due to many stakeholders taking holidays in mid-July/August.
>  Lastly, the change of dates would also interfere with the calendar of some
> of the national/regional IGF initiatives.
>
>  All in all, the view was held that it would be best for the IGF to stick
> to the originally proposed dates, in a year with many important meetings in
> a rapidly evolving Internet governance landscape. 2014 will be crucial for
> the IGF's future, as we have to prepare the renewal of its mandate by the
> General Assembly. A successful Istanbul meeting is the 'sine qua non' for
> maintaining the IGF as an indispensable part of the Internet governance
> ecosystem. A badly attended meeting with limited high-level participation
> would be perceived as a failure -- and failure is not an option, if we are
> committed to the future of a strong IGF.
>
>  On behalf of the MAG members who expressed these concerns,  I kindly ask
> you to take up this issue with the Host Country and urge them to hold the
> meeting on the dates originally proposed, that is on 2-5 September 2014.
>
>  With many thanks in advance for your kind consideration of this request.
>
>  Best regards
>
>
>  Markus Kummer
> Vice President, Public Policy
> Internet Society
> Geneva
>
> http://www.internetsociety.org
>
>
>
>
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>
>
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