[IGFmaglist] Change of dates for IGF 2014

Tue Jan 28 14:04:48 EST 2014

Dear All,

Members of the Host Country organising committee have been added to the mailing list.

They are aware of the concerns expressed and will respond to the MAG once they have finished their internal discussions.

Best regards,

Chengetai 

On 28 Jan, 2014, at 17:40, Veronica Cretu <veronicacretu at gmail.com> wrote:

> Vlada, thanks for pointing out the importance and need to 'get connected' with colleagues in Turkey who are going to be responsible for this year's IGF!
> 
> In December 2013, during the Regional IGF in Baku, I met 2 representatives from the Government of Turkey (in charge of IGF 2014 from Turkey's side), who have expressed, during our informal discussions, their interest and openness to interact/engage, share and learn from MAG members in order to be able to organize a successful IGF 2014.  
> 
> I am sure the Secretariat is in close communication with them, and I fully support the idea of colleagues in Turkey to attend the online MAG meetings, as well as to be added to the MAG mailing list, etc. I believe that close communication with colleagues in Turkey is crucial for the overall success of this year's IGF! 
> 
> As ever,
> Veronica
>  
> 
> 
> On Tue, Jan 28, 2014 at 2:28 PM, Vladimir Radunovic <vladar at diplomacy.edu> wrote:
> 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?
> 
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> Best!
> 
>  
> 
>                 Vlada
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> 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.
> 
>  
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> 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.
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> 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.
> 
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> With many thanks in advance for your kind consideration of this request.
> 
>  
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> Best regards
> 
>  
> 
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> 
> Markus Kummer 
> Vice President, Public Policy
> Internet Society
> Geneva
> 
> http://www.internetsociety.org
> 
> 
> 
> 
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> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Veronica Cretu 
> 
> President, Open Government Institute
> Republic of Moldova - http://opengov.si.md/
> 
> Member of the Steering Committee, 
> Open Government Partnership (OGP);
> http://www.opengovpartnership.org/governance-staff-donors
> 
> Member of the Multistakeholder Advisory Group
> To the Internet Governance Forum (IGF)
> http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/
> 
> Member of the Nominating Committee of ICANN
> (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbering)
> www.icann.org
> 
> Email: veronicacretu at gmail.com and/or veronica at cretu.md
> Skype: veronicacretu 
> Phone: 373 067435000
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