IGF banner incident

This year topics on the agenda of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) – in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt – are amongst others managing critical Internet resources, security, openness, privacy, access and diversity. On Sunday in their opening talks both the Egyptian Prime Minister and the Minister of Telecommunication were stressing especially the economic opportunities internet offers. Not one word was referring to the open character of internet, technical- and content wise.  “Egypt’s legitimacy to host such a meeting is questionable as it has repeatedly been guilty of violations of online free expression,” Reporters Without Borders said.

However minister Tarek Kamel of Communication and Information Technology welcomed explicitly the two fathers of the internet – Sir Tim Berners Lee and Bob Kahn – both very much in favour of an open and inclusive internet. Tim Berners Lee gave a summary of the past twenty years of the Internet existence as we know it. There has been lots of debate about the open structure of internet – transparency and openness versus security and safety. Berners Lee: ‘But two webs will not work, it has to be one web. No matter which device you use. Not only a matter of the language and signs you use. This universality implies an international approach. As time went on, standards did not seem enough. The web had to serve humanity to its up most including the disabled, poor and illiterate.’ Berners Lee than officially launched the World Wide Web Foundation. With support from the Knight Foundation the WWW Foundation will not look at connecting computers or counting webpages: ‘we look at humanity and want to empower the people’. He closed with the announcement of a workshop the next day on the precise goals and tasks of the new foundation.

The IGF has had its political incident just a few hours before. The Open Net Initiative – related to the Hivos partner The Berkman Institute – had their banner removed at the start of their workshop. The banner was taken away by security officer removed because it referred to amongst others Tibet and the Great Firewall of China. After their presentation ONI announced to write a letter to officially protest to the UN/IGF organisation against this act of censorship. Robert J. Deibert: ‘ When we refused to remove it, their security guards bundled it up and took it away. If this is a form of internet governance than how can privacy, access and freedom of expression be seriously discussed at this congress?’

Also read the Jac sm  Kee’s post on GenderIT

including the videoclip on of the situation at the APC website

Tashkent: spacy or spacious

The suprise starts at Tashkent International Airport (Yuzhniy). It is way too big considering the amount of users. The first few days in Uzbekistan – we started last week in Nukus, West Uzbekistan – I thought: wow, impressive building or square but where are the people? But then it starts to look familiar. My first impression proved symptomatic for the towns of this huge country with only 28 million inhabitants. The boulevards, the hotels, the stadiums, the parks, the underground; they all seem several sizes too big.

I know that size matters in some situations but the greatness of all the pubic facilities seems to be chosen to impress. To boost more than to accommodate and serve the Uzbek citizens in a comfortable way. Tashkent is a city that does not allow people to take pictures in the (beautiful) underground. The park opposite hotel Uzbekistan is green, has benches and all things a neat park needs. Everything is in order and brand clean. Every stone, tile, statue and grassroot is properly placed. The statue of Amir Temur is lit brightly by strong spotligts. It is surrounded by about six benches. In the evening men of a certain age play chess and back gammon. On every bench three or four men sit, playing in silence. So far I have not seen people entertain themselves or play in public places. I presume this will mostly take place safely behind closed doors. There are fun parks and a handfull of terraces but they are probable too expensive for the mayority. Nobody hangs around on the streets for fun. Than it struck me: these chess players in the park, they are exceptional. The players are so out of tune in this city governed by an obsessive order and cleanliness. They might well be instructed to play from 8 till 10 in the park. Just the way people are ordered to clean the streets or to work in the cotton fields.

Mmmh, if so than one thing is puzzeling. Why are the about ten prostitutes in front of the hotel allowed to wait for their clients? It is a very visible place. Or are prostitutes part of the picture the government wants to communicate of Uzbekistan? Intrigueing. It almost keeps me awake at night. More short stories and photos will follow soon.

Solomon’s throne (4)

Sulamain-Too Sacred Mountain – in popular speech Solomon’s throne – of Kyrgyzstan will become Kyrgystan’s first site to be inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Read more in Elena’s article on NewEurasia

Also read my earlier posts about this tiny but much discussed mountain hill

Kazakhtan’s internet is closing down

Kazakhstan is known for being ‘not free’ according to reports of Reporters sans frontiers and the FreedomHouse. But protests continue. Last week for example journalists held a silent protest in Almaty, former capital of Kazakhstan. More details on the redesigned Neweurasianet.

The protest also addressed the growing repressive nature of the media legislation. Lately the Kazakh parliament has adopted controversial amendments to the Law on Information and Communications Networks, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reports.  Main point is the Internet in Kazakhstan – including chat rooms, blogs, and public forums – will be recognized as mass media and gives the Kazakh prosecutor-general the right to shut down online resources without going to court.

Despite several protest under the flag of this symbol. More background information in this article published in The Guardian.

Making of the Modern World

The Mongol army led by Genghis Khan subjugated more lands and people in twenty-five years than the Romans did in four hundred. Jack Weatherford is the author of Genghis Khan, and the making of the modern world did not want to write a autobiography of Khan or a book about the Mongols. He rather wanted to describe and analyse the impact of the Mongols on the world.

Many reviews and articles have been written since the book was published in 2004 and even Wikipedia consists of an article on the book.

I just want to point out  some paragraphs that stroke me while reading the book.

- Genghis Khan together with his sons and grandsons, conquered the most densely populated civilizations of the thirteenth century.  (..) The majority of the people today live in countries conquered by the Mongols; on the modern map Genghis Kahn’s conquests include thirty countries with well over 3 billion people. The most astonishing aspect of this achievement is that the entire Mongol tribe under him numbered around a million, smaller than a workforce of some modern corporations.  From this million he recruited his army which was comprised of no more than one hundred thousand warriors – a group that could comfortable fit into a larger sports stadium. (..) As Genghis Kahn’s cavalry charged across the thirteenth century, he redrew boundaries of the world. His architecture was not in stone but in nations.  (xviii)

- Genghis Khan’s empire connected and amalgamated the many civilizations around him into a new world order. (..) He smashed the feudal system of aristocratic privilege and birth, he built a new and unique system  based on individual merit, loyalty and achievement. He took the disjointed and languorous trading towns along the Silk Route and organized them into history’s largest free-trade zone. he lowered taxes for everyone and abolished them altogether for doctors, teachers, priests and educational institutions. he established a regular census and created the first international postal system. His was not an empire that hoarded wealth and treasure; insisted he widely distributed the goods acquired in combat so that they could make their way back into commercial circulation. He created a international law and recognized the ultimate supreme law of the Eternal Blue Sky over all people. At a time when most rulers consider themselves to be above the law, Genghis Kahn insisted on laws holding rulers as equally accountable as the lowest herder.  (xix)

The next episode will tell about warring queens, the origin of the word assassin, paper money and other inventions. To be continued…