Public Interest Groups Give Recommendations to ITU: Focus on Digital Divide, Avoid Internet Policy
Public Interest Groups Give Recommendations to ITU: Focus on Digital Divide, Avoid Internet Policy
Public Interest Groups Give Recommendations to ITU: Focus on Digital Divide, Avoid Internet Policy

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    Today, Public Knowledge and other public interest organizations from around the world sent a list of eight recommendations to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and its Members meeting at the 2014 Plenipotentiary Conference in Busan, Korea.

    The recommendations address issues varying from net neutrality and spectrum policy to the very role of the ITU itself in Internet Governance, where we have witnessed a disconcerting expansion of powers paired with a lack of transparency and multistakeholderism.

    The following contains a portion of our statement delivered to the ITU:

    “The ITU’s 2014 Plenipotentiary conference is taking place at a watershed moment. The growth of the open, borderless Internet and the increasing availability of ICTs are revolutionizing access to knowledge, commerce and creativity. Building on the ITU’s nearly 150 years of experience in expanding humanity’s capacity to communicate, the Plenipotentiary provides an historic opportunity for the ITU to craft strategic approaches to closing the digital divide.”

    The following can be attributed to Carolina Rossini, Vice President for International Policy at Public Knowledge:

    “In an era where a number of international organizations are opening up their processes and documents, ITU members still negotiate the future of the open internet behind closed doors where only governments and a select few can peek in.

    “Civil society has done an excellent job reviewing both leaked and non-governmental group information to develop a comprehensive and important set of recommendations on issues that are core to creating and maintaining access to affordable, reliable ICTs infrastructure. Adopting these recommendations would help ensure that when the ITU interferes in internet policy, the organization does so in a multistakeholder fashion.”

    You can read the executive summary or the whole briefing note and recommendations here.

    You can also join the effort and support this document by adding your name through the Best Bits platform.

    Members of the media may contact Communications Director Shiva Stella with inquiries, interview requests, or to join the Public Knowledge press list at shiva@publicknowledge.org or 405-249-9435.