[IGFmaglist] FW: Change of dates for IGF 2014

[Vladimir Radunovic]

Thank you Markus, reads well. 

 

It would also be good to establish a direct contact between MAG and the
Turkish organisers as it was the case last year (even though Moedjiono was a
MAG member, while there is no Turkish representative in MAG this year).
Being aware that UNDESA is in charge of the formal communications with the
IGF host country, this contact would be no more than improving
communications and avoiding misunderstanding - it would be beneficial both
for MAG and for the Host country to be able to hear the opinions of the
other side at all times. 

The Turkish representative may attend online MAG meetings when possible, and
be added to the public MAG e-list.

Since the IGF Secretariat is currently in contact with Turkish
representatives, and MAG is still not - can IGF Sec suggest the way to
achieve this contact?

 

Best!

 

                Vlada

 

 

 

 

 

 

From: Igfmaglist [mailto:igfmaglist-bounces at intgovforum.org] On Behalf Of
Markus Kummer
Sent: 28 January 2014 11:17
To: igfmaglist at intgovforum.org
Subject: [IGFmaglist] FW: Change of dates for IGF 2014

 

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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