[CCWG-ACCT] The big test of effective accountability

[Eric Brunner-Williams]

Steve,

Nothing?

There remains the role of the USG, and its contractor, Verisign, as two 
of the three parties to the Root Zone Partners.

There remains the NRO with its increasing distinct stewardship 
responsibility.

There remains the IETF/IAB with its increasing distinct stewardship 
responsibility.

As hypos this, and your flight-to-avoid-jurisdiction, may be fun and 
games speculatively, though not rising to the level of "gunmen menace 
the periodic review team" of the ALAC scenarios, but it assumes either 
wild wrecklessness on the part of some fairly sane people -- ICANN blows 
off the IP and DNS components of what is a semi-stable troika, or sudden 
onset blindness on the part of some fairly sane people -- the IP and DNS 
components blithly following an erratic executive shredding 
accountability agreements.

There are less unlikely scenarios that deserve more attention.

As for Peter, in the course of his many years as Board Chair he's said 
many things, some right and some wrong.

The Board has a liaison and his expression in the present would be 
pertinent, that of a past member of the Board only possibly informative.

Eric Brunner-Williams
Eugene, Oregon

On 1/29/15 2:47 PM, Steve DelBianco wrote:
> Eric — Your first question helps make my point: After the USG lets of 
> of IANA contract leverage, there is nothing they could do to hold 
> ICANN to the Affirmation of Commitments.
>
> As to your second question:
>
>     Within a year of signing the AoC, Peter Dengate Thrush told a
>     group of EU Representatives that he saw the Affirmation as a
>     temporary arrangement ICANN would like to eventually terminate.
>      (22-Jun-2010, at a dinner hosted by the European Internet
>     Foundation in Brussels).
>
>     At a breakfast with the entire Board the next day, I asked ICANN
>     board members if the commitments in the Affirmation should be
>     permanently adopted as part of ICANN's official charter.  One
>     board member immediately disagreed, saying the AoC made no
>     commitments that weren't already in ICANN's bylaws.  I responded
>     that the Affirmation includes important new commitments in
>     paragraphs 3, 4, 7, and 8 – even before we get to the periodic
>     reviews required in paragraph 9.
>
>
>
>
> From: Eric Brunner-Williams <ebw at abenaki.wabanaki.net 
> <mailto:ebw at abenaki.wabanaki.net>>
> Date: Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 5:30 PM
> To: Jordan Carter <jordan at internetnz.net.nz 
> <mailto:jordan at internetnz.net.nz>>
> Cc: Accountability Cross Community 
> <accountability-cross-community at icann.org 
> <mailto:accountability-cross-community at icann.org>>
> Subject: Re: [CCWG-ACCT] The big test of effective accountability
>
> Steve, Jordan, and anyone else so inclined,
>
> Would you care to offer your best guess(es) as to the response of the 
> Government of the United States were the Corporation to engage in the 
> course of conduct proposed?
>
> I suspect it would look suspiciously similar to something we've seen 
> before, 
> http://www.ntia.doc.gov/files/ntia/publications/fr_ianafunctionsnoi_02252011.pdf
>
> Have either of you (or others sharing the concern expressed by Steve 
> and Jordan) any indication that the Board is or ever has considered 
> unilateral termination of the AoC?
>
> Eric Brunner-Williams
> Eugene, Oregon
>
> On 1/29/15 2:14 PM, Jordan Carter wrote:
>>
>> On 30 January 2015 at 11:07, Eric Brunner-Williams 
>> <ebw at abenaki.wabanaki.net <mailto:ebw at abenaki.wabanaki.net>> wrote:
>>
>>     On 1/29/15 1:58 PM, Steve DelBianco wrote:
>>
>>         Okay, so Jonathan exaggerated a bit by saying we have zero
>>         accountability today.  But Avri admits we have no mechanisms
>>         that are binding on the board. And Avri cites the AoC, which
>>         can be canceled by ICANN at any time.
>>
>>
>>     Would you be so kind as to offer support for this ... peculiar claim?
>>
>>
>> From section 11 of the AOC:
>>
>> "Any party may terminate this Affirmation of Commitments by providing 
>> 120 days written notice to the other party."
>>
>> https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/affirmation-of-commitments-2009-09-30-en
>>
>> duckduckgo.com <http://duckduckgo.com> is often your friend.
>>
>> Jordan
>>
>>
>> -- 
>> Jordan Carter
>>
>> Chief Executive
>> *InternetNZ*
>>
>> 04 495 2118 (office) | +64 21 442 649 (mob)
>> jordan at internetnz.net.nz <mailto:jordan at internetnz.net.nz>
>> Skype: jordancarter
>>
>> /To promote the Internet's benefits and uses, and protect its potential./
>>
>

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