[Chapter-delegates] AMS celebration day 2024 [was Re: Happy third anniversary MemberNova initiative]

Mon Mar 18 06:47:27 PDT 2024

The term “Modern Slavery” is primarily used in the UK, and to a lesser
extent in the EU. The Modern Slavery Act is UK law. As such, the term will
sound odd and unfamiliar to UK or US ears.  The focus and intent of a
Modern Slavery Statement is to describe an entity’s efforts to tackle
issues of forced labor, servitude, trafficking of workers and other similar
labor abuses in the entities business and its supply chain (I.e., its
vendors’ labor practices of this nature), typically including due diligence
of its supply chain, policies for its suppliers and its procurement
department, etc. Thus, a Modern Slavery Statement is reflective of efforts
taken by the entity relative to its supply chain and labor practices — a
statement without a project behind it would be useless, or worse,
misleading.

The Modern Slavery Act doesn’t really extend to other human rights issues
and a Modern Slavery Statement is not intended to be a catch-all for issues
that do not fall into its relatively narrow focus.

As previously noted, I would be quite surprised if ISOC falls into the
scope of the Act, e.g., ISOC would have to have revenue from selling goods
and services in the UK in excess of 36 million pounds. Even a voluntary
statement (and underlying efforts) would only make sense if ISOC believed
it was at high risk for labor abuse in its supply chain (e.g., because it
was manufacturing clothing in areas where such abuses were prevalent).

Even if ISOC wanted to deal with the larger issues of labor abuse and the
Internet, I don’t think a Modern Slavery Statement would be the place to
document it.

(Just my 2 cents, as I am not providing legal advice nor am I qualified in
the UK. That said, I do run into issues relating to the Modern Slavery Act
in the course of my “day job,” so I have some familiarity with it.)

Greg

On Mon, Mar 18, 2024 at 21:46 Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond via
Chapter-delegates <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org> wrote:

> Dear Vint,
>
> Certainly! The impact of the internet on modern slavery is a complex and
> multifaceted issue.
>
> Here are some sources that delve into this topic:
>
>    1.
>
>    *Modern Slavery on Social Media | Walk Free
>    <https://www.walkfree.org/global-slavery-index/findings/spotlights/modern-slavery-on-social-media/>*
>    :
>    - This report explores how social media facilitates modern slavery.
>       - It discusses recruitment, exploitation, and risks associated with
>       online anonymity.
>       - Examples include deceptive job advertisements and the use of
>       platforms like TikTok for trafficking.
>    2.
>
>    *Using Technology in the Fight Against Human Trafficking and Modern
>    Slavery
>    <https://trilateralresearch.com/research-highlights/using-technology-in-the-fight-against-human-trafficking-and-modern-slavery-challenges-with-tech-mediated-interventions>*
>    :
>    - Discusses how technology intersects with human trafficking and
>       modern slavery.
>       - Highlights the role of the internet in enabling traffickers to
>       reach wider audiences and bypass geographical distances.
>    3.
>
>    *Freeing the Modern Slaves, One Click at a Time: Theorizing Human
>    Trafficking and Modern Slavery
>    <https://antitraffickingreview.org/index.php/atrjournal/article/view/442/352>*
>    :
>    - Examines how the internet and smartphones contribute to trafficking.
>
>
>    4. *The Role of the Internet in Trafficking for Labour*
>    <https://www.antislavery.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/FINE-Tune-project-internet_and_labour_trafficking.pdf>
>       - An older report examining the use of online job recruitment,
>       looking at case studies from several EU Member States
>
>
> And then it can go further into how online criminals snare vulnerable
> individuals into working for them in online schemes - for this, the EUROPOL
> IOCTA reports are particularly interesting.
> https://www.europol.europa.eu/publications-events/main-reports/iocta-report
>
> I hope this helps.
> Kindest regards,
>
> Olivier
>
>
>
>
> On 18/03/2024 12:23, vinton cerf wrote:
>
> "The Internet has an enormous impact on modern slavery and trafficking"
>
> please explain
>
> v
>
>
> On Mon, Mar 18, 2024 at 8:11 AM Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond <ocl at gih.com>
> wrote:
>
>> It is a Charity that funds projects all around the world.
>> Of course, unlikely to be fully concerned with this. As I said it's a
>> voluntary thing. The Internet has an enormous impact on modern slavery and
>> trafficking. An estimated 50 million people are living in situations of
>> modern slavery.  Compare this to 5-10 million under Roman Times and a peak
>> of 10 million slaves in US slavery -- this is not a small, fringe problem.
>>
>> As I said, it's a voluntary thing. Just like some organisations have an
>> explicit non-discrimination policy in relation to gender as well as
>> disability issues.
>> Kindest regards,
>>
>> Olivier
>>
>> On 18/03/2024 11:53, vinton cerf wrote:
>>
>> Olivier, I am at a loss to understand what purpose would be served by
>> Internet Society having a modern slavery statement? How does any form of
>> slavery have a connection to the Internet Society? Slavery seems pretty far
>> outside the ambit of the Society - what's the connection?
>>
>> v
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Mar 18, 2024 at 7:46 AM Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond via
>> Chapter-delegates <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Andrew,
>>>
>>> please find my comments inline:
>>>
>>> On 16/03/2024 14:51, Andrew Sullivan via Chapter-delegates wrote:
>>>
>>> On Sat, Mar 16, 2024 at 12:41:35PM +0000, Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> note that the link on
>>> https://www.internetsociety.org/about-internet-society/governance-policies/
>>> is wrong as it points to the Board and Officer Code of Ethics.
>>>
>>>
>>> Hmm, that seems to be an error.  It's weird since that's the page I used
>>> to get to it, so there's something inconsistent somewhere.  We'll fix,
>>> thanks for catching this.
>>>
>>>
>>> Thanks - that's fixed now.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Are there plans to make the strategic plan public?
>>>
>>>
>>> Yes; as I said in my previous message, there is a communications plan,
>>> already shared with the board, for how this will be rolled out.  Look for
>>> more details in the coming weeks.
>>>
>>>
>>> I fail to understand how there should be a difference between what is
>>> presented to the Board of Trustees and what is communicated to the general
>>> public, unless there is a significant difference between the two, which
>>> makes me really nervous.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> What are your plans for transparency in the way the Board operates?
>>>
>>>
>>> I don't understand what this question is about.  I should note, first of
>>> all, that _my_ plans for how the board operates aren't terribly
>>> interesting, since I don't get to make those rules.  The operation of the
>>> board is governed by our bylaws and by the board policies, and those are
>>> all determined by the board itself.  But our board meets in the open except
>>> when certain items need to be handled in execitive session, its meetings
>>> are recorded and published on the web, and so forth.  I am not entirely
>>> sure what it is you are asking for.
>>>
>>>
>>> You are right. This is a matter of the Board Chair and not CEO. I shall
>>> take this topic up with the Board.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Most of the documents you are referring to appear to point in the other
>>> direction.
>>>
>>>
>>> Again, I don't understand this, but I also think that you may be
>>> addressing the wrong person.  If your concern is board policies, you really
>>> need to take that up with the board.  I think I have suggested this point
>>> to you already within the last month.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Yes my apologies - I shall ask the Board. The discussion has drifted
>>> outside your scope.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Incidentally, does the Internet Society have a Modern Slavery Statement?
>>>
>>>
>>> I am at a loss as to why we might, but perhaps you could elucidate.
>>>
>>>
>>> I realise this is a mandatory UK thing but the UK is also trying to
>>> propose this as "good practice", a statement that alerts the Charity's
>>> interlocutors that it is sensitive to this important topic.
>>> For more information, see:
>>> https://www.ncvo.org.uk/help-and-guidance/running-a-charity/legal-requirements/modern-slavery-statements/
>>>
>>> Many organisations do this on a voluntary basis. I propose that the
>>> Board of Trustees looks into this and decides whether they'd be interested
>>> in promoting good practice, especially given the international dimension of
>>> the Internet Society.
>>>
>>> Kindest regards,
>>>
>>> Olivier
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> As an Internet Society Chapter Officer you are automatically subscribed
>>> to this list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet Society
>>> Chapter Portal (AMS):
>>> https://admin.internetsociety.org/622619/User/Login
>>> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:
>>> https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
>>>
>>
>>
> --
> Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond, PhDhttp://www.gih.com/ocl.html
>
> _______________________________________________
> As an Internet Society Chapter Officer you are automatically subscribed
> to this list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet Society
> Chapter Portal (AMS):
> https://admin.internetsociety.org/622619/User/Login
> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:
> https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
>
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