[Chapter-delegates] Interim Information: Serious considerations to dissolve the Cambodia ISOC Chapter

[Norbert Klein]

Dear Members of the ISOC Cambodia Chapter,

and per copy for information, shared with

- Chapter Representatives,

- ISOC central and Asia-Pacific leaders and staff,


With this mail I would like to start a follow-up to the mail sent to you 
in September by Be Chantra, our Secretary. I do the follow-up at present 
because he and some colleagues were invited to attend a number of 
Mozilla meetings in the USA -- and it is time to consider reactions and 
responses received since.

First of all we were impressed by the many mails from other Chapters, 
understanding our situation, deploring that there have often been 
inconclusive discussions between Chapters and the ISOC Staff, but at the 
same time we received so many mail urging that ISOC Staff and leadership 
might find ways to work towards a solution of the problems we had raised 
in relation to the following:

1. Structural Constraints
2. Experiences
3. Impressions

We are happy to see that the questions we had raised led to a deep 
discussion about problems of the Internet Society as a world wide 
structure, especially related to the question of the nature of the 
Chapters in their relation to general ISOC regulations and staff, where 
several Chapter leaders expressed much sympathy with our difficulties. - 
We will send later a collection of such messages.

But secondly, we have also to say that we did not receive much response 
from ISOC staff and leadership. To be more specific, we would like to 
share the following.

One Chapter leader said: "Cutting through the entire mass of text, it 
seems the only real grouse is on funding" - really wrong! Or is it 
acceptable that a regional staff member comes to the country and refuses 
to discuss what the Chapter officers and the members of the Advisory 
Board what they think to be important? Had this Chapter leader carefully 
read what our Secretary had written, he might not have said so. I will 
quote only this one section from our original letter:

= = =

"*    Dear Thip,

     After having received your mail, rejecting our request to serious 
discuss the crisis for our Chapter, created as a result of the general 
situation and legal requirements in Cambodia in the meeting, and the 
refusal to ISOC staff to positively pay attention to our situation, we 
do not think it would be appropriate to cooperate, as a Chapter, with 
organizing a meeting for your 1 - 2.5 hours event, for which you would 
like to invite the Members of the Cambodia Chapter and other non-Chapter 
members. To discuss fundamental problems within ISOC, affecting the 
whole membership, only among officers, as you suggest (which has been 
tried in vain by email so far) would not be in line with our history to 
promote and practice open communication -- high values regularly lifted 
up among the goals of the Internet Society world wide and in its slogan: 
the Internet is for everyone.

     The situation and this response has been shared and discussed with 
the Members of the Advisory Board of our Chapter and is unanimously 
supported.

     Norbert Klein
     President, ISOC-KH*


     The five members of our Advisory Board at that time were 
(reflecting the stipulation of our Bylaws "The Advisory Board of five 
members, from
     important sections of the ISOC Cambodia Chapter membership"):

         the Head of the IT in Education Section in the Ministry of 
Education
         the Editor in Chief of a leading Cambodian daily newspaper, who 
is at the same time President of the Club of Cambodian Journalists
         the President and CEO of a major broadband providing ISP
         a senior staff member in the office of the Council of Ministers 
of the Government of Cambodia, and
         one student.
= = =

It is also surprising that there was no word from some "higher up" staff 
commenting on this; we assume there must be some monitoring of staff 
activities going on in ISOC, though we are not aware in which way 
regional staff is selected (without involvement of the Chapters of the 
regions). - We hope that others will better understand what kind of 
damage has been done by this treatment of our Advisory Board members, 
distinguished persons in Cambodian society.

Also other Chapter leaders have used strong language, related to outside 
financial support:

    I'm following with great attention this discussion initiated by the
    Cambodian Chapter intention to leave the Internet society Great
    family which lead to the old debate about ISOC's direct financial
    support to Chapters.

Before I continue, I would like to clearly express my opposition to that.

The direct financial support to Chapters for their administrative and 
running costs will make the Chapters useless, dependent and 
non-sustainable. If we put in place the systematic direct financial 
support from ISOC HQ to Chapters, we will see many useless Chapters 
flourish around the world only to benefit to that direct financial support."

This is an interesting concept of "family" - others think that in a 
family, the resources available to the family are shared and made 
available to those who need them.

There were also different models discussed on the Chapters list, how 
ISOC could help the Chapters -- for example by taking over some 
administrative or reporting tasks (including to the government) -- but 
it is hardly probable that the 90 or so ISOC staff and advisers have the 
capability to handle things in the Cambodia language (some of our 
members cooperated to translate the Bylaws for the initial contacts with 
the Ministry of Interior); most such proposals try to avoid financial 
payments to the operation of the Chapter, as this -- as one voice said 
-- would result in a bloated staff in the Chapters.

Many of our members are actively involved in a variety of local 
information technology and communication activities: Linux and Android 
groups, a Hackerspace center, regular Barcamps since some years with 
hundreds of participants each time etc. -- all that works well. - In 
other fields, related to the sharing of information which others do not 
like, where people have spoken up related to injustice and corruption: 
Some were beaten, others had to face the court (I had this experience 
also) or were sent to prison, some lost their lives -- but the 
organizations actively helping towards a more just society are 
internationally funded. Are they useless? Who thinks local fund-raising 
in these crucial fields, related to the free sharing of information and 
opinion, is so easy?

We did not say that we just intend to leave the "Internet Society Great 
family" - but we said that we do not see any other way under the present 
Bylaw -- drafted and formulated under the guidance of ISOC staff (using 
material currently on the ISOC website as mandatory text). To our 
surprise a number of Chapter reps said they do not have some of these 
clauses in their Bylaws, and we should do without them. Can we do that 
without being censored, as long there is no authoritative statement from 
ISOC staff and leadership?

One Chapter leader wrote: "Would be good to see ISOC APAC team reply on 
this list on efforts to keep the Cambodia Chapter alive." - That is also 
what we had expected.*But we did not have any mail in response from the 
two ISOC ASIA PACIFIC staff in the office in Singapore **(except from 
occasional circulars sent to all)**.
*

A Board Member of one Chapter had written: "So let's draw in Lynn, 
Waldaor whomever else actually has the power to make things happen and 
prevent a deep organizational problem." *But this also went without a 
response visible to us.*

We had mail from the more recently appointed "Chapter Development 
Manager, Asia-Pacific" Mr. Naveed Haq who had been wrongly informed that 
"ISOC staff has reached out several times to try to find a solution for 
the situation" and who called the chapter officers and members of our 
advisory board to a telephone conference, suggesting also to find 
"non-monetary ways to address the issues" - which, as we had described 
in detail related to the specific Cambodian legal framework and 
regulations, with a serious monetary aspect.

Our Secretary responded on 25 September 2013 to the ISOC Chapter 
Development Manager, Asia-Pacific, saying that such a telephone 
conference is not feasible with the Chapter officers and Advisory Board 
members engaged in their professional obligations in different places 
and times. And our secretary added in his response:

"We suggest that you first carefully re-read our mail, and then respond 
to what we wrote there, and not to some hearsay that 'ISOC staff has 
reached out several times to try to find a solution'" which is not true. 
*There was no response from him to this request.*

Mr. Ted Mooney, ISOC Senior Director, Membership & Services, wrote to 
our Secretary saying: "If the Cambodian Chapter wishes to rescind its 
ISOC chapter status, a letter so stating to the APAC Chapter Development 
manager is sufficient." No discussion necessary? And also:"Please 
indicate to me what you really are trying to accomplish" -- to which our 
Secretary responded also:"Please read our mail again, it is stated 
there." *There was no response to him either.*

But he wrote also:*"*...the characterization of the Regional ISOC Staff 
by the Cambodian chapter as unresponsive is wholly different than what 
has been communicated to me. For the Cambodian Chapter to take this 
opportunity in a broad letter to the Board and Chapter delegates to 
denigrate specific ISOC staff is unprofessional and counter productive." 
We do not know "what has been communicated" to the ISOC Senior Director, 
Membership & Services in this respect -- but the situation continues: 
*neither the Singapore based ISOC ASIA PACIFIC staff, nor the **ISOC 
**Chapter Development Manager, Asia-Pacific, **nor the **ISOC **Senior 
Director, Membership & Services have responded to the **detailed content 
in the**mail from our Secretary*(unless it happened during the last 
couple of days and I have not yet hear about it).

But if such mailwas sent and we did not receive it for whatever reasons 
-- it would be appropriate to share it here on the Chapters list.

Whether the way our Secretary shared our mail widely was unprofessional, 
we leave it to others to evaluate. Obviously many Chapter leaders seem 
to have welcomed it, as it started a fundamental discussion in the ISOC 
fellowship.

Finally, I am quoting here an interesting suggestions from a Chapter 
leader: "If the decision to close the chapter goes forward at least try 
to keep together board members and the current membership through an 
informal group even if the group is not a legal entity. After all, you 
were able to do many things the way you are set up at the moment."


I send this after the members of the Executive Committee agreed on this 
text. Finally, please remember the invitation from our Secretary:

*We would therefore call for such a meeting to discuss the dissolution 
of our Chapter, or not to do so in case practical and timely ways would 
show up within one months from sending out this mail. Such a meeting 
shall be convened as follows:

     Location: #8, St. 352, BKK1, Phnom Penh (Open Institute new office)
     Date and Time: October 26, 2013 at 2:00PM *

Please inform Chantra - chantra.be at gmail.com - whether you will 
participate or not; please send a note in either case.

With my best greetings,



Norbert Klein
Member of the Executive Committee
ISOC Cambodia Chapter

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