So it looks like we have to start a weight and strength training program in
order to have the *presence* required to be not thrown out of GAC meetings?
With all these e-mails, at least my fingers are in great shape. Time for the
rest of the upper-body. It sounds like you had some fun there, Tony.
Sorry I missed the show.
Dan Steinberg
Synthesis: Law & Technology
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
613.794.5356
Tony wrote:
> At 12:42 AM 11/8/99 , you wrote:
> >Who was that southern bell you crashed the GAC meeting with? And I
> >understand the Irish delegate allowed you to speak - what happened there?
>
> It's a wonderful story with a happy ending.
>
> The three activist lawyers in LA - Nader's
> Theresa Amato, Cleve Thornton representing
> Tajikistan, and myself decided we would
> insist on our rights under the ICANN Bylaws
> to open meetings of the GAC.
>
> So, on Tuesday morning at the appointed hour
> of the GAC, we stood in the room as all the
> good GACsters stared and wondered who we were.
>
> The GAC Secretariat representative - a slight
> young Aussie - came over and insisted that we
> leave. We respond with a polite "no," that we
> were going to stay and watch.
>
> She went and huddled with her boss, Paul Twomey,
> and then came back and re-iterated her order.
> Cleve then looked down and in a polite southern
> drawl, and said "young lady, if you want me to leave,
> you're going to have to pick me up and move me."
>
> To appreciate this sight, one has to see Cleve.
> He's about 6 ft, 5 inches, tall and must weigh
> 300 lbs. He also ran the ACLU in Alabama during
> the heydays of the civil rights movement, and
> is quite experienced in passive resistance.
>
> More huddling with Twomey.
>
> Meanwhile Theresa went to the tables and found
> a list of attendees. It listed several "observers"
> at the bottom. We then approached Twomey and asked
> if we could be observers. He responded that we
> needed the sponsorship of a governmental representative.
>
> So we went over to the US government representative
> and formally asked to be observers. She firmly
> declined. However, the representative of Ireland,
> Aidan Ryan, overhearing our plea, came over and
> offered to make us accredited observers of Ireland!
>
> So we returned to Twomey with this arrangement.
> However, the response was "no can do - you need
> your own government representative."
>
> So then we noticed that ICANN staff were present,
> and questioned the appropriateness of a double
> standard. At this point, Paul Twomey to his credit
> relented and established a new rule for everyone
> that as long as there was a non-governmental person
> in the room, it would be an open meeting. As a
> result, both the ICANN report and subsequent ccTLD
> dialogue portions of the GAC became open, and a
> new, more open general rule was established.
>
> What was particularly amusing, however, was that
> a few minutes later, one of the most powerful U.S.
> Congressmen in Washington, Chris Cannon, and his
> legislative assistant Todd Thorpe, unexpectedly
> strode into the room and sat down prominently up
> front. When it came time for us to leave, the
> US GAC representative quickly added Cannon and
> Thorpe as observers, and were not asked to leave.
>
> During the open ccTLD session, Twomey even volunteered
> to distribute the Internet Rights Coalition brief
> to the GAC and allowed a short presentation on the
> legal issues.
>
> --amr
>
>
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