[Chapter-delegates] ISOC open letter

[Andrew Sullivan]

Hi,

On Wed, May 19, 2021 at 11:29:15AM +0200, Richard Hill via Chapter-delegates wrote:
>
>Wouldn't it also be normal to consult with the membership before signing
>such a letter?

No, it would not.  First, a consultation about the Internet Way of Networking happened through our PDP; it is a staff job to undertake the work in detail in this case, and so that's what's happening.  Second, it is just not possible to consult with the whole membership (or even some subset of it) within the time frame and media strategy required for this sort of effort in addressing the actions of any government.  Finally, in most cases (maybe all), the membership will not fall under the jurisdiction of the country being approached; so it is not clear that such a consultation will result in any response, or one that is adequately informed about the situation of the country in question so as to contribute meaninfully in such a consultation.  

>Which provisions of the bill directly attack which parts of the "Internet
>Way of Networking"?

The bill is in part trying to convert the treatment of at least parts of the Internet from a general-purpose network into a broadcast medium.  The only practical ways anyone has been able to understand most of the provisions (and they're not all in the bill, because a number of the rules would actually have to be made up by the CRTC after the bill became law) involves mucking with the operation of networks themselves in order to implement the goals.  This problem got a lot worse with an amendment that was introduced by the Minister in committee (so the first reading version online doesn't contain it yet).  You might have a look at the content-filtering use case at https://www.internetsociety.org/resources/doc/2020/internet-impact-assessment-toolkit/use-case-content-filtering/.

>Here is what the Canadian government says:
>
>  https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/pl/charter-charte/c10.html

Note that that is just a charter evaluation -- the "Charter" is the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Best regards,

A

-- 
Andrew Sullivan
President & CEO, Internet Society
sullivan at isoc.org
+1 416 731 1261