The Internet Battle Initiated: The UN ITC Dubai WCIT Conference Begins - Coverage here

Hello ATS,

In a previous threads, LEAKED! The NWO Internet Takeover AND Kill Switch Agenda! If You Are Reading This - IT AFFECTS YOU! and Father of the internet': Why we must fight for its freedom ( Important! ) - I discussed the United Nations, ITU - WCIT Dubai summit and how one of the fathers of the Internet, Vincent Cerf - one of the men who invented IP/TCIP and who invented the first E-mail software, has been strongly opposing this event.

Those threads, written over the past couple of weeks were all in the future tense. That is no longer the case. The 2012 Dubai United Nations International Telecommunications Union World Conference on International Telecommunications began yesterday.

If you aren't up to speed I'd recommend reading the two threads OP's I previously linked to give you some notion of what it's all about.

The opening ceremonies occurred yesterday and, IMO, contained some troubling aspects.

First off, not only did United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon seemingly go out of his way to downplay the implications involved in this conference - he seemed to perform the services, for it, one would customarily have to hire Madison Ave to obtain. He was the key calming ( you might say disinfo ) agent on hand - it seems:

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in a video message to the conference, underlined the power of ICT that continues to transform our world. “The Arab Spring showed the power of ICT to help people voice their legitimate demands for human rights and greater accountability. As we strive to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and shape the post-2015 development agenda, you here at this conference are well placed to help further unleash the benefits of ICT while promoting an environment that drives innovation,” Mr Ban stated.

Mr Ban went on to underline that the management of information and communication technology should be transparent, democratic and inclusive of all stakeholders, adding that he was pleased that steps had been taken “to open the process – including the vital voices of civil society and the private sector.”

“The United Nations system stands behind the goal of an open Internet. The right to communicate is central to the ITU’s mission. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees freedom of expression across all media and all frontiers,” Mr Ban said.

Referring to the World Summit on the Information Society, which affirmed that the free flow of information and ideas is essential for peace, development, and progress, Mr Ban stressed that these freedoms are not up for negotiation. “We must continue to work together and find consensus on how to most effectively keep cyberspace open, accessible, affordable and secure. I trust that together – governments, industry and civil society will rise to this occasion,” Mr Ban told delegates.

The most disturbing first day development, IMO, is that the ITU and ICANN ( The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ) announced a "A new season of cooperation" between the two agencies.

“I recognize the ITU’s deep impact on the development of the telecommunication industry, and the broadband infrastructure of which we all benefit every day, especially in the developing world – the world I come from. The ITU and ICANN have complementary roles; and moving forward, we shall cooperate in good spirit, while clearly respecting our distinct roles. I therefore join my fellow Internet organizations, ISOC (the Internet Society), IETF (the Internet Engineering Task Force), the regional Internet registries, in our continued deep commitment to service the world’s needs for Internet governance.

Re-read those last thirteen words..."in our continued deep commitment to service the world’s needs for Internet governance - they are important. For those who aren't techies. ICANN is the organization that assigns IP's and Domain names - those neat numbers and words that let us access Internet content. Without them we are severely lost. And the ITU? Well they own all of the fiber optics, phone lines, satellites, cables, etc. An analogy would be that the ITU owns the roads and ICANN sells all the cars. Take away either? No access to Cyberspace.

One of the other interesting things they did on opening day? They had a "dispelling myths" presentation - reassuring the whole world that this is all about making the net, cheaper, faster, more available to those who don't have it yet, etc.

Folks, the United Arab Emerirates are not only the hosts of this event, but are guests of honor and are also some of the strongest Internet censoring nations in the world. Seems like a bunch of mixed metaphors and messages to me. Promising openness from the land of censorship?

What? Were all of the Chinese and North Korean venues booked solid this year???

Regarding ITR's ( International Telecommunications Regulations ):

The Chairman of the Conference, Mohammed Nasser Al-Ghanim, addressing the opening Plenary, pointed out that “WCIT occupies a special place in the ICT industry, on account of the significant and indeed radical developments and changes witnessed by the industry during the past two decades, which have not been matched by any changes in the International Telecommunication Regulations that have governed the industry at the global level since 1988.” Hence the need to update and develop the regulations to reflect this evolution, the Chairman observed, underlining that “the topics to be discussed at this conference are both extremely important and highly sensitive, and require us to cooperate fully to forge a compromise in the common interest of all countries of the world.”

Sounds innocent and benevolent. Doesn't it?

Insult to injury, perhaps... United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the following - with echoes of both Orwell and Huxley invoked....

“To build a knowledge society – where everyone, whatever their circumstances, can access, use, create and share information,” the Secretary-General underlined, adding “We have the power to create a brave new world, where social and economic justice prevails. So let’s get to work!”

Source Article For All Above External Content

So... One day in and we already have deflection, disinformation, reassurances, and NWO level quotes that will surely be being repeated for decades to come. What a wonderful world they are making for us we live in.

I'll be keeping this thread updated as events demand and time allows.

Stay aware ATS - please, even if you never post or even think me a cad. Google this conference daily just to ensure that you are aware of the threats to your freedom.

And, as always, I'll be here, watching the bad men and pointing out their foul deeds.

~Heff

There is only one good thing that could come from this and that would be they could squash all peadophile video sharing on the Internet. I'm guessing this is not what they have in mind though.

Heff, i just want to say thanks alot for your coverage on this important issue.
I wouldn't even be aware what a big deal this is if it wasn't for your threads. I've also been telling friends and family about this. Im not shocked no one else had heard of this yet.
S+F

***Update***

Want to know how awesomely awful of an idea this is? Even the dreaded Council on Foreign Relations is decrying it!

UN Control of the Internet? An Idea Whose Time Will Never Come

The Persian Gulf is receiving plenty of press this week, as climate negotiators debate in Doha and political turmoil buffets Bahrain. But another important drama is unfolding in Dubai, where more than one hundred and fifty nations are meeting for the World Conference on International Telecommunications (Wcit) from December 4-13. Topping the agenda is the future governance of the internet. A bloc of developing countries and authoritarian states is pushing for a sweeping new treaty that would wrest authority for regulating the internet from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), and hand it to International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

Historically, the ITU is among the most venerable of international organizations. A direct descendent of the International Telegraph Union (1865), the ITU’s mandate evolved over the past century and a half as new communications technologies emerged. Today, it serves as the UN’s leading standard-setting agency for telecommunications issues—including the allocation of orbital slots for satellites, the division of the global radio spectrum, and the harmonization of national mobile phone networks. The yawning gap in its portfolio, however, remains the internet, which launched in 1988, the last time the ITU endorsed a major overhaul of global telecommunications regulations.

One of the beauties of the internet has been its reliance on a multi-stakeholder governance structure­­—one in which governments, the private sector, and independent organizations all have a role to play. Such an approach, which would be impossible to replicate through a top-down treaty arrangement, has been integral to the open, dynamic character of the internet. A messy governance system may be a “nightmare for the tidy-minded, and especially for authoritarian governments,” as the Economist notes, but it remains critical for the future of global innovation and human freedom.

Source - CFR Website.

The linked article contains much more information. I strongly advise reading it to get a better grasp on the issue at hand than DMCA issues will allow me to represent.

The summary, for those who won't follow the links - is that the UN wants to remove ICANN from the role it plays and then allow individual governments to serve the purpose ICANN now does.

Sheesh... when the NWO and Big Brother cannot agree on something? Makes one wonder...

~Heff

reply to post by Hefficide


I appreciate the coverage Heff.

Thank you

P

Originally posted by Hefficide
And the ITU? Well they own all of the fiber optics, phone lines, satellites, cables, etc. An analogy would be that the ITU owns the roads and ICANN sells all the cars. Take away either? No access to Cyberspace.

Heff, this isn't exactly an accurate statement. The ITU does NOT own all the fiber optics, phone lines, satellites, cables, etc.... In fact, the ITU isn't even made up just exchange carriers. It is made up of many different types of companies, some of whom would not want a regulated internet.

Sector Membership List of the ITU

There are at least 1300 exchange carriers in the United States alone. For those who don't know, an "exchange carrier" is a local or competitive phone carrier. These are companies who register with the FCC to provide telecommunication services. These are the companies who put fiber and copper in the ground and build the physical network infrastructure.

This isn't even discussing private networks, wireless, or satellite owners. Killing the internet isn't so easy as just letting the ITU take over.

reply to post by CIAGypsy


You are correct, I was vague in my statement. The reality is that the ITU is an organization comprised of those who own those resources. Thanks for pointing that out. I tend to get lost in sources and type too fast when I'm into something that intrigues me.

My apologies.

To be clear, I have stated a number of times, in previous threads and posts, that I do not believe in the notion of a "kill switch" in the national or global sense. But I do strongly feel that a localized kill is possible if it were necessary and this pending collusive relationship between ICAAN and the ITU - would be a huge step towards the potential of that not only being possible, but probable. As proven by the overwhelming support this conference and pending Resolution are getting from nations with a history of total control, such as China and Russia.

The funfact in it all is that the US Government is publicly decrying the Resolution - even though it mirrors the same wording as current pending and active US Cybersecurity measures contains.

~Heff

Thanks for the updates Hefficide!

I´ll follow this thread closely for more.

I tried making a thread about this topic just now, and was redirected here.

This thing truly bothers me, but I pretty much loathe the U.N. and see them as the bad guys.

Say some guy finds a cure for cancer. Cancers generates a whole lot of revenue for giant global corporations. These same corporations have pull with the U.N. just like bastard corporations do here in the states with our government.
If they get their way with the internet there would be no possible way for said cure to reach the public.

That might be a bad example, but I hope you see my point. We need alternative sources of information because it keeps the world in check so to speak.

I view this as a very real start to global governance, and global governance is a terrifying thing. Opposition in all things is needed to maintain balance.

Sad times we live in when your 3 posts on this very important issue get buried with all the crazy non-issue posts. Like the one with 800+ replies still arguing about whether or not there is cloth visible in moon photos.

Do we seriously have our collective head that far up our keester.

Please post your thoughts on this issue and flag this thread. This is quite possibly the biggest issue of our time.

I won't lie. this is a bump.

On a side note I have become increasingly aware that ATS has been hijacked.

Does anyone know of a community that discusses issues like this, and doesn't spend most of it's time dissecting past events?

You know issues that will effect our life from here on out.

News is slow in coming, but the head of the US Delegation to the WCIT, Terry Kramer, has issued an official comment to ZDnet here.

Early reports suggesting failure of support for a joint U.S. - Canada proposal for early discussion on the scope of the International Telecommunications Regulations (ITRs) are inaccurate. The proposal called for priority discussion of certain “foundational” issues and definitions at the WCIT. As of the end of Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012, the following progress had been made:

As proposed by Canada and the United States, the WCIT took up the foundational issues at a high level, within the first two days of the Conference;
As a result, the Preamble of the ITRs was retained with only minor changes, preserving the original scope and purpose of the treaty;
The definition of telecommunications in Article 1 of the ITRs was retained with no change;
The discussion of which entities the treaty would apply to - recognized operating agencies (RoAs) or operating agencies (OAs) – was taken up by a high-level working group reporting directly to the Chairman of the Conference. The RoA issue remains an important point of discussion for the United States, which will continue to work for its retention in the ITRs.

If the above legalize confuses you, don't be alarmed. The reporter who got the quote doesn't understand it either. In the comments section of the story he states that he's scheduled a meeting with the Ambassador, for tomorrow ( given the time difference that could mean anytime in the next 24 hours ) to seek clarification.

RawStory is reporting, as of about an hour ago - that the US House of Representatives voted, unanimously to oppose any UN decisions made in Dubai:

The US House of Representatives voted unanimously Wednesday to oppose any efforts to give the United Nations new authority to regulate the Internet.

The 397-0 vote, following a similar vote in the Senate, came as delegates were meeting in Dubai to revise a global telecom treaty, a gathering which some say could be used to impose new controls on the Internet.

Representative Greg Walden said ahead of the vote that lawmakers should “send a strong bipartisan, bicameral signal about America’s commitment to an unregulated Internet.”

He said Washington should not “stand idly by while countries like Russia and China seek to extort control over the Internet.”

Representative Marsha Blackburn echoed the comments, saying that “several hostile countries are seeking to use this opportunity to impose new international regulations on the Internet.”

She added: “We need to send a strong message to the world that the Internet has thrived under a decentralized, bottom-up multi-stakeholder governance model

Source

Over the next hour or two, as time permits, I will seek to verify the Rawstory source.

~Heff

Thanks for the updates. Im not surprised this thread didn't get more attention.
Talk about burying your head in the sand.

Wow this is crazy my dad works for a big telecom company here in Canada and he just got layed off along with a ton of other employies. I saw a paper on the table from his work... looked like a letter adressed to him but the thing that caught my eye was the logo of this company. It had the illuminati triangle with a eagle, satalite and nucluar symbles inside it.. 3 symbles and a triangle(note the eagle at the top) and the company name abreveated C.E.P. or S.C.E.P. for french. Can anyone explain whats going on? I dont want to get too nosey into my dads personal information myself but i couldnt help but notice the weird illuminati symble. Maybe its just a coincedence...

Update!!!

Real life issues have kept me somewhat sidetracked for the past day or two and ATS member ChaoticOrder kept their eye on the ball - creating this thread entitled "ITU members adopt the Y.2770 standard for global Deep Packet Inspection"!

This is definitely a disturbing development! For details about Y 2770 standards, please visit ChaoticOrders thread!

What world! Sleep for a few hours and wake up having missed the fireworks.

Still... six more days of conference and Russia and China are still wanting even more control.

~Heff

Apparently, others are taking notice of the travesty that this conference is.

Internet Society's Statement Addressing Reported Attacks Against the ITU Website

The Internet Society releases the following statement from President and CEO Lynn St. Amour
"The Internet Society is a strong proponent of openness, transparency, and collaboration. Actions that disrupt these principles and impact dialogue or collaboration are counterproductive to an open and globally accessible Internet.

Currently, numerous media reports suggest that attacks are being planned against the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) website to disrupt the WCIT proceedings in Dubai. Such actions would be wholly counterproductive, making it more difficult to have the kind of collaboration and thoughtful discussions that are needed at this critical point.

IMO doublespeak that Orwell himself would be proud of! It's like saying "Please don't point that gun at me while I am in the process of trying to illegally and immorally disarm you against your will...."

Sadly, taking down a website would and will only serve as a symbolic gesture. The damage from this conference will happen regardless - and our future interactions with cyberspace will be altered because of it.

~Heff

Huh, I miss all the fun. Anyway...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Organizers of a controversial global conference tasked with deciding the future of Internet regulation said today they are “bracing” for cyber attacks as the meeting passes its halfway point.

“There were a lot of people claiming victory for that in the moments after it happened,” Coneally said. Coneally said his group is “bracing” itself for another attack Saturday that he said had been advertised online.
Coneally would not say who he believed was behind Thursday’s attack but said it was “ironic that people championing transparency don’t give you their name.”

Now that, right there? That is some world class "double speak". Internet transparency, Sir, means NOT NEEDING to give our names.

In an unusual twist, part of Anonymous’ argument appears to line up squarely with that of a historic foe, the United States government, which is proposing the revised treaty should have no impact on the way the Internet is already run. Some other governments disagree. Russia, for instance, has proposed the treaty be extended to cover the Internet so that governments can “regulate the national Internet segment” and ensure universal cyber security, according to a leaked version of Russia’s proposal posted online.

Not for nothing, but when Anonymous and the US Government publicly stand on the same side of the fence, side by side? Well, maybe it's time to start giving the whole Mayan doomsday thing a second glance.

As one Anonymous-linked Twitter user said, “A few old ladies [and] gentlemen are flying to Dubai to protect us from the Internet.”

Source

What can one say to add to that?

~Heff

One of the oldest tactics in group discussion is this.

A major powerful player champions one side, in this case internet freedom. All the internet freedom players line up behind their champion.

Much discussion ensures and the voice of freedom is heard.

At the end, the champion of freedom regretfully changes their stance, having been convinced of the error of their ways having found some common ground with the other side.

All of the other players of freedom now find they no longer have a voice because their champion was the only one doing all the talking. Their collective arguments fall to dust and at the last minute decisions are taken before they can regroup.

America comes out looking like a rose, their thorns hidden with leaves.

Tactics, nothing more.

P