The World Summit on the Information Society starting tomorrow is heading for a showdown over governance of the Internet, amid attempts to shift the balance of power away from the US.
Delegates from 170 countries gathered in Tunis on Sunday to start a final attempt to break their three-year deadlock on the issue.
The preliminary negotiations are not expected to be completed by the time the summit organized by the UN's International Tele-communication Union (ITU) begins, a spokeswoman for the ITU, Sarah Parkes, and diplomats said.
The outcome could determine who eventually controls the technical and administrative infrastructure at the root of the Internet, which allows the computer network to function seamlessly worldwide.
Some officials fear the dispute could degenerate and eventually lead to the "balkanisation" of the Internet, breaking it up into a series of unconnected rival networks.
At the moment the Internet is administered mainly by the Internet Corp for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a California-based independent body which is awarded the task by the US government on a renewable tender.
ICANN was set up in 1998 when the Internet boom was largely focused on the US. It is run by a group of free-spirited enthusiasts who were anxious to avoid regulation of the Internet.
However, the exponential growth of Internet connections worldwide, and the Web's growing economic and social importance, have prompted opposition to the US monopoly.
"The idea that the Internet is an unregulated haven, these days are finished," a source close to the talks said.
ICANN assigns domain names worldwide.
Some officials also believe that the people behind ICANN have grown closer to the computer industry, and may face a conflict of interest when it comes to choosing one technology over another at the root of the Internet.
In July, a US government advisory body said that the way the domain name system is run should not be changed.
"Given the Internet's importance to the world's economy, it is essential that the underlying domain name server of the Internet remains stable and secure," the National Telecommunications and Information Administration said.
US officials have refused to allow oversight to be handed over to the UN. Seven other proposals have been made in the talks running up to Tunis, with two other fundamental positions emerging.
Iran and other key developing nations want a body "anchored" to the UN to have oversight over ICANN and other agencies, with an advisory role for industry.
The EU is proposing a formula that would remove US political oversight over ICANN and replace it with a purely technical intergovernmental body after a transition phase.
The role played by ICANN has gained unusual support from the Paris-based journalist's rights campaign body, Reporters Sans Frontieres.
"The situation can certainly be criticized but the proposed remedies seem much worse," the group said in a statement, warning that "repressive countries" might be able to take advantage of weak UN oversight.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
CABINET APPROVAL: People seeking assisted reproduction must be assessed to determine whether they would be adequate parents, the planned changes say Proposed amendments to the Assisted Reproduction Act (人工生殖法) advanced yesterday by the Executive Yuan would grant married lesbian couples and single women access to legal assisted reproductive services. The proposed revisions are “based on the fundamental principle of respecting women’s reproductive autonomy,” Cabinet spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) quoted Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君), who presided over a Cabinet meeting earlier yesterday, as saying at the briefing. The draft amendment would be submitted to the legislature for review. The Ministry of Health and Welfare, which proposed the amendments, said that experts on children’s rights, gender equality, law and medicine attended cross-disciplinary meetings, adding that
RSS