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26 October 2009 COUNCIL OF EUROPE
A DRAFT CODE OF GOOD PRACTICE
FOR
INTERNET GOVERNANCE FORUM
Background The Council of Europe, UNECE and APC have been reviewing the arrangements for information and participation in entities concerned with Internet governance since the Rio de Janeiro meeting of the Internet Governance Forum in 2007. The work resulting from this study has included an initial discussion paper, presented at an open workshop during the Hyderabad IGF in November 2008, and a second paper which mapped experience with information and participation in major Internet governance entities, which was discussed at an open meeting during the May 2009 IGF consultation in Geneva. Wide-ranging discussions have also been held with prominent participants in different entities concerned with Internet governance.
The organisations involved in this project hope that a code of good practice on information, participation and transparency in Internet governance can secure agreement and adoption within the Internet community, and thereby a) provide stakeholders who have an interest in Internet governance with guidelines they can use in their efforts to improve information, participation and transparency; and
Why a code of good practice?
Internet governance was defined by the World Summit on the Information Society as ‘the development and application by governments, the private sector and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decision-making procedures, and programmes that shape the evolution and use of the Internet.’ These norms, rules and processes address a variety of challenges including technical standards, coordination, administration and interactions between the Internet, other communications media and areas of public policy. Different Internet governance entities have established diverse governance arrangements which have served them well as the Internet has evolved. These arrangements are generally more transparent and inclusive than their counterparts in other public policy spheres. Most entities concerned with Internet governance share a commitment to transparency and information sharing, to multistakeholder participation, and to open discussion and decision-making. The draft code of good practice in this document presents a framework which those concerned with Internet governance can use to enhance and maintain this commitment as the Internet continues to evolve. It is hoped that those concerned with Internet governance will use this code of practice in three ways: a) to review their experience, current arrangements and practices, from first principles, to ensure that they continue to meet their commitment to transparency, information and participation; b) to consider and compare their experience, arrangements and practices with those in other Internet governance entities, to see if there are ways of working in other entities that they might usefully import into their own arrangements; and
In addition, as the Internet becomes increasingly important in society, economy and culture, it intersects more and more with other spheres of public policy, which are the responsibility of governance entities that have developed and adopted different – often less inclusive - arrangements and practices for transparency, information and participation. It is hoped that this code of practice will help entities concerned with Internet governance to negotiate appropriate information and participation arrangements in these increasingly complex and important areas of intersection with other public governance entities. The workshop at IGF 2009
In addition to comments on the text itself, the project sponsors would welcome views from within and beyond the Internet community on the wider implications of a code of practice of this kind. In particular, they would welcome comments in three broad areas. 1. the operationalisation of the draft code of practice, including ways in which its implementation and impact might be monitored and evaluated over time; 2. the applicability of the draft code of practice at national as well as international levels of Internet governance; and 3. the implications of wider challenges facing Internet governance as a result of continued growth in the Internet’s technology, applications and user communities, and its increasing impact on wider public policy. DRAFT CODE OF GOOD PRACTICE ON INFORMATION, PARTICIPATION AND TRANSPARENCY IN INTERNET GOVERNANCE Introduction The Internet is increasingly important in all aspects of human society. It is continually developing - in technology, in access and participation, and in its impact on many different spheres of life. The development and governance of the Internet have been largely built upon principles of transparency and information sharing, multistakeholder participation and open discussion and decision-making. These principles have contributed greatly to the Internet’s dynamism and inclusiveness. This code of good practice builds upon the experience of the many entities concerned with Internet governance to reinforce transparency, information and participation, and to establish a framework which can help them to maintain and develop transparency and inclusiveness as the Internet continues to grow in range and diversity, and to extend its influence and impact.
Principles of Internet governance
6. Well-informed individuals and organisations provide the basis for an open and inclusive global Internet. Access to information and opportunities to participate in decisions concerning the Internet and its relationship with other aspects of society are essential if these principles of engagement are to be achieved.
Guidelines concerning information
2. Internet policy, standards development, coordination and administration, and the internal governance and decision-making processes of entities concerned with Internet governance, should be - and be seen to be - open, transparent and inclusive.
5. The information resources produced by Internet governance entities should include materials which are written so as to be readily understood by those who do not have specialist knowledge or expertise. These should seek to enable understanding and informed choice by users. 6. Internet governance entities should strive to make information available in diverse languages, formats and standards in order to facilitate inclusiveness of all potential user communities. 7. Internet governance entities should provide accessible points of contact, including offline points of contact, for accessing further information about their work, about specific decision-making issues and processes, and about the processes through which decisions are reached. 8. Internet governance entities should seek to extend these information principles and practices into areas of dialogue and joint working with other governance bodies, including those whose concerns lie primarily outside the Internet.
Guidelines concerning participation
6. Internet governance entities and processes should enable and encourage all those who wish to participate in decisions concerning Internet governance to contribute, with the expectation that their views will be considered. 7. Any individual or organisation should be able to initiate ideas for policy, standards development, coordination or administration of the Internet, and for the governance of Internet governance entities, and should be able to take part in discussions concerning Internet policy, standards development, coordination and administration.
4. Internet governance entities should activity foster participation in their work by all those who are or may be affected, or consider themselves affected, by the decisions that they make, including individuals and organisations, from all stakeholder communities and world regions. 5. Internet governance entities should strive to include within their deliberations those who are currently under-represented, including non-users, and recognise the needs of future users of the Internet.
7. Internet governance entities should strive to make participation in decision-making independent of physical location, ability to travel to physical meetings and financial resources. This should include offline and other mechanisms that meet the needs of particular communities, as well as remote online participation. 8. Internet governance entities should seek to extend these principles into areas of dialogue and joint policy-making with other governance bodies, including those whose concerns lie primarily outside the Internet.
Monitoring and review
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1 The “WSIS principles” are summarised as follows in para. 29 of the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society: “The international management of the Internet should be multilateral, transparent and democratic, with the full involvement of governments, the private sector, civil society and international organizations. It should ensure an equitable distribution of resources, facilitate access for all and ensure a stable and secure functioning of the Internet, taking into account multilingualism.”