GISELLA GRUBER: Okay, so welcome to this call on 9 January, 2013. On the English channel we have Pastor Peters and the ICANN staff – Silvia Vivanco. And on the French channel we have Fatimata Seye Sylla, Aziz Hilali, Tijani Ben Jemaa, Etienne Tshishimbi, Yaovi Atohoun, Hadja Ouattara. We have the apologies of Olivier Crépin-Leblond, Baudouin Schombe, and Didier Kasole.
I want to remind you to clearly tell your name when you take the floor so the interpreters can know who is speaking. The interpreters tonight are Camila and Claire.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Gisella. You have received the agenda I sent. Happy New Year on the Adobe Connect for everybody. And I want to thank those who sent me their best wishes for the New Year. So we are going to begin so we can finish on time.
The second item of the agenda is public consultations. As we decided, we are not going to read all those public consultations. They are on the agenda. There are nine public consultations, so from December 11th and for the last one, the end of the reply period is on the 21st of March. So we are not going to lose time reading all those public consultations. If you have any questions you can ask them and they’ll try to answer you online.
So is there anybody who wants to take the floor on that issue? No? Okay, so now we are going to move to the third item of the agenda – Reports - Recent and Upcoming Activities of ALAC. And Yaovi and Tijani are participating today in the teleconference and they are going to take the floor and speak about that. Who is going to take the floor? Yaovi?
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Okay, Yaovi speaking. Thank you very much. So for the ALAC activities, there is the Draft Statement of the Open Consultation, for example ALAC is drafting a statement on the third item, IDN Variant TLD Program. So it is an activity of ALAC. Then there is a discussion on trademark clearinghouse and on that item, too, there is a work in progress made by ALAC on these two consultations. So and there is also a new committee that was created by ALAC which is working on the Review Group on the ATRT, Accountability and Transparency Review Team, and taking into account the agreement signed between ICANN and the Trade Department – the Affirmation of Commitments signed in 2009. There must be a regular review made on the main goals of ICANN.
So there is a call which has been made to have candidates, and according to this call those candidates are going to say that they are candidates in name of the group. So I wanted to send my name for that call on the Adobe and this call for candidates is going to take place in January. So ALAC created a separate committee which is going to receive the list of the persons who want to be candidates in name of ALAC, and this subcommittee is going to study the candidates and send a final list of the candidates chosen to ALAC. And ALAC is going to approve that list and send it to the Board, and the Board is going to select the members on that list that will be sent by ALAC.
So it is important because there is the creation of a subcommittee to work on candidates, to work on the candidates who will work in the name of ALAC. Then there is a Working Group which has been created on Capacity Building in ALAC, into ALAC, and this Working Group meets in December with Tijani and myself. We are working in that Working Group on Capacity Building, and this Working Group is different from the group that we call ICANN Academy, because this Working Group has a global mandate on the activities of capacity building in ICANN.
So the Working Group works for ALAC, and it is into the big group of the Academy, the ICANN Academy of ALAC. So this group already meets and the members are still working and preparing a next meeting of this group. There is also a Working Group on the New gTLDs, and I want to remind you that there are two working groups. The first one… Can you hear me? Can you hear me okay? Yes?
Okay, so I was telling you that there is a working group on the new gTLDs which is working and which has met recently, and this group is thinking about the actions to implement taking into account the few candidates coming from the developing countries, namely Africa. So this group is going to have a survey to be able to compress a number of reasons to summarize, the reasons which may lead to their participation or not in this new program of domain names.
So this working group, as I was saying, depends on the Review Working Group. So there are two working groups as regards new gTLDs. May I also remind you that Dev, the leader of this group, has sent a message on the objections list and he suggests all the ALSes could in fact object, too. So the Working Group on the Rules of Procedure is on the agenda, so we will address that subject when we get there.
So that’s briefly what I wanted to say for now, and I think Tijani could complete our activities because there are some things I didn’t mention. Thank you very much.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Yaovi, this is Fatimata speaking. That was very clear and I can see that Tijani is raising his hand, so you have the floor, Tijani.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Thank you, Fatimata, and thank you Yaovi for this brief report. I’d like to clarify that the group who will assess the applications will do it in the way Yaovi said, and we will have a webinar on WCIT and we will mention how it went on in Dubai. The webinar was advertised at ALAC’s last meeting and I think Yaovi said everything. I would simply like to add that ALAC and the At-Large Working Group on Capacity Building have very different points of view because as Yaovi said, the ICANN Academy is an academy for ICANN, for training within ICANN.
And so the framework of all trainings done at ICANN will be included in the Academy whereas ALAC’s work on capacity building and At-Large’s work on capacity building will prepare the work on the Academy as regards At-Large; that is we will identify the needs of the people attending, we will see what are the means used, what the people do for this training to succeed, and the implementation, the general spirit of these sessions, of the training – it would all correspond to ICANN Academy. So that’s [all], Fatimata, thank you.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you very much, Tijani – this is Fatimata. I hope everyone could hear properly but Hadja was saying that she could not hear Tijani properly. So I would like to know whether she can hear me properly.
Okay, so do you have any questions for Tijani and Yaovi? I think it was very clear.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello? I have a question.
INTERPRETER: Okay, hold on – I’ll tell Fatimata.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: We see the difference here between the ICANN Academy and capacity building sessions, and ALAC’s work and At-Large’s work. And Tijani clarified that Yaovi was the leader of this working group.
PASTOR PETERS: Can I ask my question now? Hello?
INTERPRETER: Hold on please. Okay, go on. You have the floor.
PASTOR PETERS: This is Pastor Peters. I just wanted to ask when exactly will this Academy kick off? And two, if I guessed correctly the explanation, the capacity building is [doing the table work] on the Academy if I’m right. So if that is so then when will the Academy kick off? That is my question.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Tijani, you have the floor.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Well, the ICANN Academy is a project-
PASTOR PETERS: When will it kick off?
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: We have made the questions. Some questions we have asked to the participants so they can give us their point of view, the things they need, etc. And we are working on that and trying to implement this ICANN Academy. It is not ready yet and it is not functioning yet.
PASTOR PETERS: Who are the participants if I may ask? As Tijani has said they have sent out the requests to the participants. Who are the participants?
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: So each one can tell his point of view about these capacity buildings, etc.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Tijani, can you hear?
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Tijani, Fatimata speaking. I’m sorry but there is a problem with the interpretation.
[background conversation]
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, I’m going to repeat what Tijani said. The ICANN Academy is the project… So the question is the program of At-Large Capacity Building is going to be in cooperation. It depends on the decisions made by the working group. So we can’t know what is going to happen on that issue. We can’t know when it is going to work and how it is going to work, the ICANN Academy. This is the answer.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Fatimata, this is Michel speaking. Happy New Year!
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Michel. Well, I have problems being connected. Do you want to take the floor on this issue, Michel?
MICHEL TCHONANG: Yes, yes. I wanted to ask a question about the incorporation of capacity building in the ICANN Academy. You say that we don’t know which will be the period and we don’t know when it will be, when it is going to work and how it is going to work. So what can we do in the meanwhile?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yaovi, you want to answer it? Okay, let’s go to Yaovi very quickly.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Yes, Michel you asked what we are doing now and Tijani told us that the ICANN Academy program is a global program on the ICANN level. And at the At-Large level we have another working group which is the At-Large Capacity Building. So this group is going to take into account the concerns, the problems of capacity building in At-Large. And the ICANN Academy sent questions to the different groups, to the different ICANN groups and the groups sent back their answers to the questions that have been made by the ICANN Academy.
And afterwards the ICANN Academy is going to finalize its programs. So on the At-Large issue, At-Large can discuss or can consult this Capacity Building Group. This is something that can happen and they can answer to the concern of ICANN’s Academy. And I’ve been working with this ICANN Academy Working Group, and I want to tell you that it is not like the [physical] academy that was created. We are trying to reflect into this group of ICANN Academy, we are trying to reflect and then we’ll have an answer to know how will that project be named ICANN Academy. So I think that we are still working on that project.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Yaovi – Fatimata speaking. Michel, on the AFRALO level we have this capacity building, too, and we are going to speak about it later on.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Okay.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: And the ICANN Academy sent some questions to the different groups and we have answered those questions, so thank you very much.
Okay, we are going to move on to the next item, Recent and Upcoming Activities of AFRALO Members. We created a Wiki to ask each ALS if they had new activities to write to draft these activities onto this Wiki page. So are there new activities? If there are we are going to check it on the new Wiki. Tijani?
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes, Fatimata. Yes, we have only three minutes for this issue because as you said, we are going to make these reports on the Wiki. And we wanted that item to be on the agenda to remind the AFRALO members to make your reports on the activities of your ALS, and to put it on the Wiki so we will check the Wiki and we will see all those activities. If that is not made we have to remind them to do it, because as Fatimata said we really think that the ALSes can work very well with ICANN and that their work is very important for ICANN. So we have to associate the ALS with the work of the Board in every region of the world. So the ALSes have an important role to play and it is a task that they have to realize.
So when the CEO comes to Tunisia, for example, I can’t tell him “Listen, Mr. CEO – we have done nothing.” It’s not normal. They think that we are ICANN ambassadors in our regions so we have to do that work. Thank you.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you. Yaovi, you have the floor.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Thank you, Fatimata, this is Yaovi speaking. I just wanted to say that (inaudible) up on the Wiki and we will incorporate these changes.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Yaovi, this is Fatimata-
PASTOR PETERS: Hello, hello – it’s Pastor Peters.
INTEPRETER: Okay, wait… Hold on, she cannot hear me.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: …the importance of ALSes for the image of ICANN to be present worldwide. I see Pastor Peters wanted to take the floor – go on.
PASTOR PETERS: Yes, definitely the ALSes are very ready to work and we are trying to do our best within the limits of our main resources. Over time I have asked and I have proposed that ALSes need to be supported by ICANN. We need to have a process where-
INTERPRETER: I’m sorry Pastor Peters, can you hear me? Can you step back from the mic because you’re saturating and it is quite impossible to understand what you’re trying to say.
PASTOR PETERS: Can you hear me now?
INTERPRETER: Can you please step back from the mic a bit because I cannot understand.
PASTOR PETERS: Okay, can you hear me now? Hello? Can you hear me?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Fatimata says that she has to move on so that she’s sorry, but that she also has Michel on the line.
PASTOR PETERS: But (inaudible) I should be allowed to make my point.
INTERPRETER: I’m sorry. Maybe you should try to get to have the floor and ask for it on Adobe Connect. Honestly I cannot go back and forth. Whenever you speak I miss what they’re saying in French so I cannot-
PASTOR PETERS: No, you asked me to speak slowly, I speak slowly. I have the floor so if you don’t want me to participate on (inaudible) the ability. I’m talking on the floor because I have that ability. So I mean I have the floor, I should be allowed to speak.
INTERPRETER: Okay, give me a second. Hold on, I’ll try to talk to Gisella on the chat but I need to move on with the call because you’re missing the rest of it.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Fatimata speaking. There is a link that we have sent for the Wiki where you have to upload the activities of your ALSes. So in fact we won’t be discussing activities on the-
PASTOR PETERS: I want to post some activities. There is an issue that has to do with ALSes not [being funded within ICANN]. I want to [have these abilities].
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: If there is a report people must know the concerns of this report – Fatimata speaking. Yes, it’s a good idea, it’s a good idea.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello? I’m really not allowed to speak?
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Yaovi is speaking.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello? Hello?
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Fatimata just saw this. It is not a monthly report; it’s just when the ALS has an activity. So I think it’s a good idea.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello? Can I have the floor please?
YAOVI ATOHOUN: It’s a good proposal. I think it’s a good proposal.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello? Hello? Hello? Hello?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Pastor Peters you have the floor. Please speak slowly because I can’t hear you very well. I am going to try to translate you. Please speak slowly.
PASTOR PETERS: Alright. Can I go on now?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, you can.
PASTOR PETERS: Alright. I said that the ALSes in every country are ready to work within the limit of their resources, and that we need ICANN to fashion up a way whereby ALSes can get funding for activities in their countries. So that is my position. So if Tijani is saying that ALSes should work with (inaudible) because the CEO can come to any country any time, well we can but we need the support from ICANN to be able to carry out our activities. That is my point. Thank you.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Peter. It is your opinion, we can say that, and you are right to tell your opinion. So now we are in the next item, the Item #4 of the agenda – Items for Information. First it is the third time we’ve spoken about that problem. We had a meeting in Toronto about that and after this meeting and after the training made in Dakar we thought that it was not the impact we were waiting for. And we thought that we need something stronger, and as it is difficult to meet with everybody we thought about virtual capacity building for the African ALSes.
So we wanted to address the issues that we were interested in so we can present the tools we can use in our work. So the staff sent some emails and organized the work, and we asked the staff to create a Wiki page and we communicated on that Wiki so that everybody can send us its priorities through the Wiki page. We also have the training program on this Wiki, the training program of Dakar that was presented there on the Wiki; and we are waiting for the ALSes to give us their opinions. And we are really waiting for it because we’ve had no answer.
We’ve already asked for the ALSes’ contributions and the ALSes don’t cooperate. We need to know what they need so we can satisfy those needs, but until now we’ve had no answer. So we are going to put a deadline because we want to give you the information you need during this month, during January. So this will be the deadline. Yaovi just answered and gave his opinion. I don’t know if Tijani has sent his answer, too?
Please, those ALSes who understand what is at stake here, please just send your answer. Please, you have to commit yourself. It is very important. You can do some proposals before the end of January. And so we are waiting for your participation. If you have any questions, if you have any comments, please, this is the moment. Thank you.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Fatimata?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, Tijani, you have the floor.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Okay, thank you, Tijani speaking.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, Tijani, it’s okay.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: I just wanted to tell you that you forgot the Item #4 on the agenda, but it’s okay we can finish on that issue and then we’ll come back.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, no problem – we’ll come back to Item #4 of the agenda later on, okay. I think that we already waited too much-
PASTOR PETERS: Hello, can I make a comment?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: …on the opinion of everybody, so we are going to organize the training. And I think we will have a Summit, a meeting in 2014 and those people who are not participating won’t be satisfied with the results. So I think people have to understand that they have to participate because if people don’t participate, it people don’t send their answers they won’t be satisfied. This is very important. We didn’t want to make a program ourselves because we wanted people to have the floor, the members of AFRALO to have the floor so they can tell us what they need, what they want for this training, for this capacity building.
But if they don’t answer, if they don’t give us their opinion it doesn’t work. So if they give us their opinion it will be in the program of the capacity building; if not it won’t be there. And I hope that the AFRALO members have participated or will participate because all the ALSes will be represented during that meeting. And I think the minimum we can ask or we can imagine is for people to participate and tell us what they need, what they want, eh? So we are waiting for your opinion, please.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello, it’s Pastor Peters. Can I come in, please?
MICHEL TCHONANG: Michel speaking. I want to give my opinion on that issue – is it possible? Can I speak? Can I have the floor?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, Michel, you’ve got it.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Okay. I’d like to highlight this question, this issue of capacity building because Tijani is right. We are in a big group, the big group of ICANN and I think it is a very important experience. We know what this experience can give us so I think if we don’t fix it, if we don’t establish a deadline we won’t go on, we won’t move on. I think the end of January is a good deadline so we can begin the year with some order.
PASTOR PETERS: Pastor Peters. Pastor Peters, can I speak.
INTERPRETER: Yes, hold on please.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you. As regards Yaovi’s ALS, he has reacted well and he has allowed everyone else to participate as well. Okay, thank you.
PASTOR PETERS: Hello?
INTERPRETER: Yes, please hold.
PASTOR PETERS: Alright.
GISELLA GRUBER: Please remember to state your name when you speak because otherwise it’s impossible to understand. Thank you very much.
PASTOR PETERS: Okay, Pastor Peters – can I speak now?
INTEPRETER: No, please hold – she hasn’t assigned you yet.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: I have given the floor to Aziz in the first place.
AZIZ HILALI: This is Aziz speaking. No, I didn’t ask for the floor. I simply wanted to say that Gisella asked for the floor.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Oh okay, thank you. So now you have the floor, please go on. You have the floor now.
PASTOR PETERS: Okay, thank you Fatimata. This is Pastor Peters. I concur with the decision for us to make our contributions by the end of January, and I also propose that if we are having the next ICANN conference in Africa this year that it is in South Africa – can we also use whatever proposals are made by an [African] ALS, can we use that for the same work and activities that we can carry out in (inaudible) at the next ICANN conference? That is now a suggestion because I believe we should also begin to plan by now to [decide] what the ALSes will be doing in (inaudible) at the next ICANN conference in South Africa. Thank you.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Pastor, for this contribution. This is Fatimata. Thank you very much and I hope we will all seize the occasion of the ICANN conference to do so. So we look forward to the next meeting.
I am going to now go back to the fourth item then, the Items for Information. Aziz, do you want to take the floor?
AZIZ HILALI: Yes, this is Aziz. I just wanted to make a comment, and that’s whether if asking people to write on the Wiki we can send some kind of form to enable their participation, to make it easier for the ALSes that took part in Dakar, for them to give us this virtual information. It’s a proposal. I think it would work better than just leaving it up for people to log onto the Wiki.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes, I agree as long as we all understand the handwriting.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, exactly.
[background conversation]
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: I think everyone understood. Whether people are still thinking (inaudible). I think Victor wants to take the floor?
[VICTOR NDONNANG]: Aziz, I’ve already sent the objection and they ask that different ALSes reply following the list of subjects, and they have to add what interests them. We haven’t got many replies yet, I don’t know why, so I would also like to remind everyone to reply if possible. So would you prefer (inaudible)…
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: If you all wanted to establish a new deadline to do so I agree, but please, let me know.
MICHEL TCHONANG: So this is Michel, Fatimata.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, Michel, you agree?
MICHEL TCHONANG: Yes, I agree.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, thank you. Tijani also agrees. Yaovi agrees, yes. So everyone agrees, Aziz. Thank you. Okay, so we go back now, this is Items for Information. The first sub-item will be addressed by Yaovi who will try to do so in two minutes because we won’t finish in time otherwise; and he will briefly discuss with us the work that’s been done as regards the Drafting Group on ALAC’s Rules of Procedure.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: This is Yaovi speaking. Thank you, Fatimata, I’ll be very brief. This group has four subgroups and two of these subgroups have their own monthly teleconferences, and they’re working. The purpose of this group is to guarantee that by the next ICANN meeting we have a new version of the draft and of ALAC’s Rules of Procedure. So it could be said that our work goes on at the level of this group. It is continuous work and it keeps moving forward.
I sent the link on Adobe Connect. You can all log in and see the draft but I think in a few (inaudible) a final version and you will all be [invited] to be able to (inaudible).
[background conversation]
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Yaovi. Does anyone have any questions for Yaovi? Thank you.
So we move on to the next sub-item, which is At-Large New gTLD Review Group on ALAC’s Application Objections. The working group since our last meeting has received objections and comments from ALSes. There have been applications that have been observed for the New gTLD Process. The date has been established so that for next week.
We have some requests which have been addressed in a way in which AFRALO cannot comment on certain applicants and so on. So there are many other news as regards the work of this Review Group, not since the last time in any event. Tijani, would you like to take the floor?
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes, thank you Fatimata, this is Tijani speaking. The deadline is I think the 16th of January. That’s in no time practically. We would like to know whether AFRALO agrees in commenting and in supporting .africa, whether it’s something they want to do. We have to move on because we don’t have much time, that’s all I want to say. So we need to agree on these points.
MICHEL TCHONANG: This is Michel speaking, Fatimata. Can I take the floor?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, go on.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Okay. I agree with this initiative to support .africa and I would like to make a new suggestion to allow the community to support this .africa initiative from the forum. We are users and as users, because we want to be heard I think it is important that we include the rest of the community. That’s it.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, thank you Michel. This is Fatimata speaking. Yaovi, you have the floor.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: This is Yaovi speaking. I also think that AFRALO could perhaps make a statement…
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, he’s disconnected. Aziz, you can take the floor because I think Yaovi’s dropped. In the meantime this is Fatimata speaking. I would like to hand the floor, to pass the floor to Aziz.
AZIZ HILALI: Thank you, Fatimata, this is Aziz speaking. I would simply like to comment on what was said as regards .africa. My personal advice is that AFRALO is an organization that represents the whole of Africa, so we shouldn’t take part with one company or another. If it were a civil society issue or a community issue I would completely agree that we take part with one side or the other, but this is simply a commercial decision between two companies.
So if I had to vote for one of them I’d vote uniform, but I don’t think we should side with either of them. We should remain neutral at the African level. We should not create a greater issue between two groups and the exchange between both parts, both gangs – those who are with .africa and those who are not. So I think we should not intervene here.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Aziz. This is Fatimata. Can I hear someone else?
MICHEL TCHONANG: This is Michel. [speaking French] I think we should be neutral. We haven’t participated in this process so I think everyone should participate in the forum of course. It is a private matter of course but it needs to be clear. So we cannot be an entity and be comprehensive if we respond to the African Commission.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Michel, this is Fatimata speaking. I think it is the private sector of course but this issue has been among us for a while already. Certainly I think that the ALSes can do some comments and then the ALAC is going to analyze that. But I think Aziz is right when he says that this is on the ALS level. For example, the ALS of Michel or of Tijani are the ALSes that are agreeing; my ALS can also support and then AFRALO can say, “Okay, we are presenting that comment on that issue.” I think we have the right to do that as members, no?
We can say “AFRALO…” I think we have the right to do it, yes.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Yaovi speaking. I think that there is also the fact that AFRALO is going to give its opinion. I agree with you, Fatimata. The ALSes can speak on themselves but they have to leave AFRALO outside that problem. I don’t want AFRALO to take a position on that issue. And secondly, AFRALO is also present on the [framing committee] through Tijani and Michel. So if we are mixing everything AFRALO will have less credibility I think, and African people will leave AFRALO because AFRALO took that or this position.
So I repeat if it is a political decision or a decision which has something to do with the African users I will be agreeing for the internet African user to be able to promote the internet and speak about that. But here it’s a commercial question, purely a commercial question so we don’t have to take a position here. Each ALS has the right to support a candidacy or not but we have to let AFRALO maintain its neutral position.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Fatimata speaking. Okay, thank you Yaovi. I’m reading on the Adobe Connect, I’m reading some proposals about what we are saying. It’s a pity because we can’t hear Victor but I think the reason, I think the ALS can do their comments and there is no problem. If you want to comment on that issue you can do it through the ALS.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Fatimata, this is Michel speaking. Can I have the floor?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Michel please, I want to say that Tijani also asks for the floor. So first Tijani, then Michel please.
PASTOR PETERS: And Pastor Peters.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: So Tijani, you have the floor.
PASTOR PETERS: Pastor Peters, also.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Tijani, can you speak? Do you still want to speak, Tijani? Okay, Fatimata is speaking. Michel, you have the floor for some seconds then I can go off this debate.
PASTOR PETERS: Pastor Peters. Can Pastor Peters comment also?
INTERPRETER: Yes.
AZIZ HILALI: I’d like to tell you, I’d like our explanation to be okay. AFRALO is not responsible for giving its opinion – the ALSes have to do it. So I think we have to check the different tools we can use because I’m asking myself, “What are we waiting for?” So I think your proposal is okay for me but in the future I think we need to elaborate the different issues we have to discuss.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Fatimata is speaking.
PASTOR PETERS: Pastor Peters?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: I agree with Aziz. AFRALO is a group of ALSes and these ALSes have to give their opinion. So when we speak about capacity building we are asking for the opinions of the different ALSes. It is not AFRALO. The ALSes must give their opinions. It is very important. So now before giving the floor to Yaovi I want to give the floor to Peter.
PASTOR PETERS: Thank you. Okay, can I speak now? Pastor Peters?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, go ahead.
PASTOR PETERS: Okay, now my take on this matter is one, if there are issues that require AFRALO to take a stand I think the best thing for us to do as a democratic group is to ask for the views of the various ALSes. Now, the [popular view or positions] of the ALSes can now form the results of AFRALO. AFRALO is not an entity in itself. AFRALO is a community of all the ALSes, so if there were no ALSes there would be no AFRALO. So there is no way that AFRALO can be neutral in every issue that concerns Africa; rather, AFRALO should ask for the opinions of the ALSes and then these coordinated opinions are taken into a decision that is popular in the democratic (inaudible) of the ALS as a position of AFRALO. I think that is how it should be done.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Fatimata speaking. Thank you very much, Peter. Yes, it is… So now we are going to give the floor to Yaovi and then to Tijani.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Thank you very much, Yaovi speaking. I think that we don’t have very much time left for our meeting and I agree with what Aziz said. I think that we need to… All these discussions are really on political issues so we need a lot of time to do declarations. So I think that it’s better that AFRALO won’t intervene here and so each ALS can do its statement.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Tijani is disconnected so I think each ALS can comment for itself. Michel, as an ALS, you can do a comment; and each ALS can do a comment. Tijani? Tijani is back? Okay, Tijani, you have the floor. Tijani, you have the floor.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Thank you, Fatimata. First I support Aziz’s point of view about the ALS comments and AFRALO comments. And then I want to tell Aziz that the request of the [Uniforum] is not a commercial request – it is a community request. So you have to see it that way. You are not agreeing but it is like that, officially it is like that – it is that way. Okay, please, and third, I don’t want to begin discussions here about the request. AFRALO was asked to do a comment. I think we are still waiting for that comment. It’s not an objection, it’s a comment, and this comment can be a support to [Uniforum] but if there is an objection, each ALS or AFRALO can present an objection – but it depends on the nature of the objection we want to make. Okay?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Fatimata speaking, thank you, Tijani. Yes, I think probably the issue is closed. You can do your comments to support the structure you want to support. It’s okay. Okay, Yaovi wants the floor, Aziz wants the floor – yes? Aziz, you have the floor.
AZIZ HILALI: I want to remind you that the role of AFRALO is to support the African community and its participation in the internet world through .africa. But we don’t have to take a position for a company, even if it’s the African Union. But here it’s another company, so just, we have to lead the ALSes. A person can do some objection, can do some comments, any entity can do some comments, can do some objections; but in AFRALO if we take a position we have to be very, very careful so at least to keep a certain way of moving forward so every African is represented in AFRALO. I don’t want to create a war among us. I think it’s very important that we all [attend] to what I’m saying.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Aziz, this is Fatimata speaking. Thank you, Aziz. I regret it but there is a person saying that he disagrees. There is the Dakar Declaration of AFRALO. What Tijani said is very clear. Okay, Fatimata is speaking. We were agreeing and Michel was agreeing with us, with Aziz, too, and I think that’s everybody in this meeting or the majority think that each ALS can do its comments; and that AFRALO can’t as a structure present an objection or a comment because AFRALO is a group of structures, it’s a group of ALSes. So as AFRALO President, AFRALO Chair I want to tell you that we can’t do a comment through AFRALO. We have not that right. So the ALSes can do their comments as individuals, and I’d like to close this debate on this issue if you please agree?
I’m going to read the two last items of the agenda because we have no time. It’s almost 8:00. So this was the first item. The second item is the AFRALO/AfrICANN Joint Meeting in Beijing. As usual we are going to organize a joint meeting and the problem is that we have to speak about mature items. So these issues, what are we going to speak about during this meeting? I don’t want to do the same as last time; that is to say to organize this meeting at the last moment, at the last minute. I think we have to work in a democratic way, and we thought that it was not necessary because there was the strategic group working on that. But it’s not like that.
I think we need to speak about all the problems we have in ICANN. We are going to speak on that to know if there are new issues that we want to address in that next meeting. Aziz, you have the floor.
AZIZ HILALI: Yes, thank you Fatimata.
[background conversation]
AZIZ HILALI: I wanted to remind you, the way we worked during the Toronto Meeting, we made a draft committee and we asked ICANN to create a fund for the developing countries. Now I am asking, it’s a question I am asking to the members of this meeting: do you still want to address this issue during the Beijing meeting?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Fatimata speaking. Aziz, I think this issue has been taken into account in the strategic document, in the strategic statement, so…
AZIZ HILALI: Okay, Fatimata, three persons are asking for the floor.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Michel, Tijani, Yaovi… Yaovi then Tijani. Okay, Yaovi.
YAOVI ATOHOUN: Thank you very much. I think that for Toronto there was the strategic group working, and this group said that they had not finished. But I think that now they are finished and the strategy has been presented. Now I’d like to say that it’s good to have, to meet – it’s good to meet, but now we have a Vice President for Africa. So I want to discuss first on the format we need to have. We are still working as before or we want this meeting to be the opportunity for Africa to speak with the Vice President for Africa’s commitment?
This is the proposal I wanted to do. We need to analyze the new formats for these meetings. If these meetings are going to be the opportunity for the African community to speak with the Vice President for the African commitment, so I’d like to discuss on that issue. So are we going to work as before or are we going to change our methodology because of our new Vice President and the opportunity we will have to meet him and discuss some issues.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Okay, Fatimata speaking. Thank you very much Yaovi. Tijani, you have the floor.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes, this is an item we put in the agenda to speak about, all these three items. All these three items are for the organization of the Beijing meeting. I want you to reflect at the AFRALO level before it’s presented to ICANN. I want us to speak about the AFRALO consensus. I’d like you to give us different issues you want to have on the agenda. Yaovi’s proposal, I think that we are going to invite the Vice President to participate in our meeting, and if you want to discuss with him the subjects we need to discuss it’s okay.
I think we need to keep the same format we had but even when he wasn’t the Vice President he was invited to our meeting, so we’re still inviting him. We are always inviting people from ALAC or from ICANN to discuss with them, to address different issues we are going to address. So this time we have an African Vice President so he will participate in our meeting and he will always be invited to our meetings.
So we consider that issue from the African point of view. We are not going to take a decision today.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: No? Okay, thank you, Fatimata speaking. Thank you. I will ask you to be a little shorter when you take the floor, please. Now before I give the floor to Michel I’d like to tell you that it should be good to have a special, to book a special schedule in our program for that question, for that issue. Now Aziz asks for the floor and Michel, too, so Aziz and Michel. One minute each, please.
AZIZ HILALI: Michel first, you go first, Michel.
MICHEL TCHONANG: Thank you, Aziz, this is a democracy. Thank you, Aziz; Fatimata, thank you. I’d like to tell you that I agree with Yaovi and with Tijani, too, and I’d like to say that the work of the strategic group is the first phase. Now, it was about the proposals that were made and I’d like to propose that we reflect on the priorities, actions, and the way to plan those priority actions; and how to implement those actions. So I think it’s very important and I think that we have to book a slot in our schedule for that issue.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Michel, it’s Fatimata speaking. I agree with you. It is important that our next meeting take all those questions into account. Aziz, you have one minute now.
AZIZ HILALI: Thank you, Fatimata. Thank you.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Thank you, Aziz.
AZIZ HILALI: I’d like to tell Yaovi that he’s right. The problem that I think still exists is that the classical format of our meetings, of the African meeting was we present an issue, we debate on that issue, we prepare a statement and we present it to the ICANN meeting – and we try to pass it, to adopt or pass it. Now I’m afraid that if we choose an issue it will have a [league] to the African strategy because everything was in that strategy. So Yaovi’s comment is very important because he speaks of change. So we should change something or improve things or try to help the African strategy, try to help share in its work so for AFRALO to be a support more than another work in the same work. During the next weeks we are going to address some issues and these issues are going to be linked with [their] work so we have to think about the format of this meeting. We have to think about the format of our meetings and to think how we can change it, and improve our work.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Fatimata speaking, thank you very much, Aziz. We have to move on because we no longer have the time for these issues. Thank you very much.
Now, the last item is activities to be programmed for July in Durbin and it’s suddenly something we need to do online. But unless Tijani takes over I cannot go on, and I’ll read Tijani’s report later. So the meeting… Tijani, if you want to take over because I have to go…
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Yes, Fatimata, we can go on online. Can you hear me?
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Yes, I hear you. Yes, yes, I hear you, Tijani.
TIJANI BEN JEMAA: Okay, we’ll go on online because these two items were included here so that we can all start thinking ahead and plan what activities we would like to program for July, for our African Showcase. So we can do it online.
FATIMATA SEYE SYLLA: Perfect then. Thank you very much, all of you. Today was a very good meeting. We had a great turnout. I’m very, very happy. I see that the year is starting wonderfully, and I see that this year we’ve begun with renewed energy. And I hope that we can hold our capacity training sessions, our capacity building sessions and follow all this advice that we have received from you all. I thank you all. Have a wonderful evening.
I would like to thank our interpreters and the staff, Silvia, Gisella, Pastor. Thank you all and goodbye.
[End of Transcript]
