April 2017 - KICTANet

ANTI-SHUTDOWN-01 Policy
by Andrew Alston 18 Apr '17

18 Apr '17

Hi All, I've been looking through the archives from earlier this month and reading the discussions around the policy proposal that went into AfriNIC, and figured I'd add some more information and some clarifications. My apologies that this is coming a few days after the discussions initially occurred on this list - there was a problem with my list subscription. So firstly - let's talk a bit about the motivations behind this policy proposal. As many of you will be aware, there was a report out that showed $2.4 billion dollars in economic losses due to internet shutdowns in 2016 - this number is ever increasing and its hurting both the industry and those associated with the industry. Since 1995 when the first shutdown was recorded, the number of shutdowns being seen per year is ever increasing, each with its own cost. Interestingly, one of the most expensive shutdowns is judged to have been the shutdown in Morocco, which is estimated to have cost a whopping $355 million. In addition to this, there is the ongoing shutdown in Cameroon, now in its 91st day I believe and the statements issued by various organisations seem to have little effect. This got us thinking, if the statements from the various internet bodies are not having an effect, perhaps it's time for more drastic action. Now, to fully understand the approach taken, its necessary to go into how the policy development process works within AfriNIC. Firstly - anyone is free to propose policy within AfriNIC - this is then submitted and debated on the AfriNIC mailing lists and finally on the floor at a policy meeting (The next meeting is end of May in Nairobi at the Boma hotel). If the policy reaches consensus it will then go into a last call phase, and if it gets through that it then gets ratified and implemented. Now, this matters - because it means that any policy proposed is subject to modification based on the communities feelings and thoughts - and this played heavily into the authors thoughts when we wrote this - we knew full well that what we were proposing wasn't potentially perfect - it's the start of an idea - and yes - it takes strong action, but the key here is that what triggers that action and the actions we take are now up for debate so that we can come to an ideal solution. Secondly, as I have stated on the policy lists - we are already considering some modifications as suggested - including but not limited to: exempting academia in the cases where academia is directly controlled by state and tightening the targeting of the proposal to aim at the executive branches if possible. Obviously we have absolutely no desire to impact the general population, and the purpose of this policy is to apply pressure to stop the shutdowns -no create further problems for the general population of the countries affected. We also realize that this policy pushes the boundaries of what an organisation like AfriNIC normally is involved in, and asks the question about if an RIR should be involved in what is essentially a political matter. To answer this, we have to look at the AfriNIC mandate as stated in section 3.4 of the bylaws. We believe that section 3.4.(v) when combined with section 3.4.(ix) of those bylaws does actually allow AfriNIC to implement a policy like this within its mandate. The critical point here however is that we get more discussion, both to fine tune the policy to reach consensus within the wider African community and also to continue to shine a spotlight on the issue. The mere existence of this policy and the heavy debate around it may in and of itself encourage governments to think twice about what they are looking at when they attempt to turn off the Internet. So, I'd welcome further questions as I'm sure the other co-authors would, but I'd also encourage everyone to get on the AfriNIC policy mailing lists and get involved in the discussions - as well as to attend the policy meeting at the end of May in Nairobi so that we can have a robust and productive debate on the issue on the floor. I hope this clarifies some things and I welcome further discussions. Thanks Andrew

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When the Web Becomes a Whitelist | Digital - AdAge
by Ali Hussein 18 Apr '17

18 Apr '17

Listers The era of fake news, terrorism and other 'offensive' content is changing the face of the Internet. The ad-supported world wide web is abruptly in danger of shrinking from a sprawling, inventive and untamed territory to a set of safe spaces for advertisers, possibly changing the character of the internet in the process. Read on:- http://adage.com/article/print-edition/web-a-whitelist/308667/?utm_source=d… Ali Hussein Principal Hussein & Associates +254 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." ~ Aristotle Sent from my iPad

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The Future of Telecommuting
by Mildred Achoch 16 Apr '17

16 Apr '17

Hi Listers, Some food for thought: 1. "a new economic axis which separates industries, much like "blue-collar" and "white-collar" did in the early 20th century; location-dependent (LD) and location-independent (LI) jobs" 2. "Some jobs may even split up. Consider elementary and secondary education : teaching is really a fusion of two jobs, teaching and childcare...the separation of these jobs into two different things is already being pioneered by home-schooling co-ops." 3. Offshoring: simply a percusor to automation. A long but informative post on the future of telecommuting: https://medium.com/@yonatanzunger/the-future-of-telecommuting-4d019770d3e7 -- Check out the Rock 'n' roll film festival, Kenya TV Channel! http://kenyarockfilmfestivaljournal.blogspot.com

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IDG Connect – Bitcoin offered only a moment of reprieve for crisis-stricken Venezuela
by Ali Hussein 15 Apr '17

15 Apr '17

Listers As the Venezuelan crisis deepens, more people are struggling with necessities like food and electricity. Food shortages have even led to soldiers cracking down on bakeries using too much wheat. Now up to 81% of Venezuelans are living in income poverty. In the midst of this economic crisis, Venezuela’s currency, the bolivar, has been in steep decline and inflation has skyrocketed. The drop in oil prices in 2014 and ineffective policies have led to chaos, sending the economy into freefall with protesters taking to the streets to demand the resignation of President Nicolas Maduro. Read on:- http://www.idgconnect.com/blog-abstract/25907/bitcoin-offered-moment-reprie… Ali Hussein Principal Hussein & Associates +254 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." ~ Aristotle Sent from my iPad

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Values, biases automated
by S.M. Muraya 14 Apr '17

14 Apr '17

While we Africans argue, politic, loot, fail to fund our own innovation, other cultures document, automate their values, biases.. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/apr/13/ai-programs-exhibit-raci… And the AI system was more likely to associate European American names with pleasant words such as “gift” or “happy”, while African American names were more commonly associated with unpleasant words. The findings suggest that algorithms have acquired the same biases that lead people (in the UK and US, at least) to match pleasant words and white faces in implicit association tests. These biases can have a profound impact on human behaviour. One previous study showed that an identical CV is 50% more likely to result in an interview invitation if the candidate’s name is European American than if it is African American. The latest results suggest that algorithms, unless explicitly programmed to address this, will be riddled with the same social prejudices.

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IGF 2017 Call for Workshop Proposals
by Ilishebo Michael 14 Apr '17

14 Apr '17

*All stakeholders* are invited to submit proposals to hold workshops at the forthcoming IGF, which will be held in *Geneva, Switzerland, on 18-21 December 2017.* The proposed overarching theme for this year's annual meeting is* 'Shape Your Digital Future!'*, emphasizing both the IGF's participatory mechanisms and a forward-looking approach to the Internet governance discussion. The sub-themes for the meeting will be determined in part by the workshop proposals received, with proposers *writing in their own thematic tags.*Tags on new and emerging issues, such as 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Work in the Digital Age', 'Law Enforcement & Encryption', etc., are particularly welcome. *Pre-existing tags* to choose from include but are not limited to, Internet of Things; Internet Economy; Policies Enabling Access; Cybersecurity; Human Rights Online; Gender Issues; and Digital Literacy; among many others. All resources, including *the workshop proposal form*, and *guidelines* and *tips* for submitting proposals, can be found below. *The deadline for submission is Wednesday, 3 May 2017 23:59 UTC-11.* **First-time workshop proposers in particular are encouraged to read through this brief manual <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/index.php?q=filedepot_download/441…> for FAQs, tips and links to all IGF workshop resources. * **All workshop proposers and future workshop speakers should consider joining the 'IGF 2017 Speaker-Session Collaboration Space' <https://groups.google.com/forum/#%21forum/igf-2017-speaker-session-collabor…>, a forum for exchanging ideas and seeking out new collaborators.* http://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2017-call-for-workshop-… *Michael L. Ilishebo,* *Kitwe, Zambia* *Social Media Handles* *Twitter: @ilishebo* *Skype: michael.ilishebo* *"walk a mile,for a while,with a smile"*

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What was that thing again about China and Privacy?
by Moses Karanja 13 Apr '17

13 Apr '17

A new report by CitizenLab details how Chinese authorities censor chats using keywords and images on WeChat and Weibo. https://citizenlab.org/2017/04/we-cant-chat-709-crackdown-discussions-block… -Moses -- Moses Karanja

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China emerges as digital rights champion with new info privacy law
by Nanjira Sambuli 13 Apr '17

13 Apr '17

What times we live in. China emerging as a Data privacy champion https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/04/11/china_emerges_as_digital_rights_ch… Regards, Nanjira. Sent on the move.

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Modern "Free Trade" Agreements and Internet Governance Negotiations
by Nanjira Sambuli 13 Apr '17

13 Apr '17

Been following this domain recently, and as they say, ni kufyam! https://www.cigionline.org/articles/modern-free-trade-agreements-are-not-ab… <https://www.cigionline.org/articles/modern-free-trade-agreements-are-not-ab…> Regards, Nanjira www.nanjira.com <http://www.nanjira.com/> About.Me <http://about.me/ninanjira> | Twitter <http://www.twitter.com/ninanjira> | LinkedIn <https://www.linkedin.com/in/nanjira> | Skype <http://hatscripts.com/addskype?nanjirasambuli> IM: +254722481566, +1(857)498-8934 (WhatsApp | Telegram | iMessage) PGP: 1DBE1F47A6878B0D

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Talk to Safaricom: Asanteni and some pics
by Grace Githaiga 13 Apr '17

13 Apr '17

Good morning Listers On behalf of the organizing team, we wish to express our gratitude to all of you who attended the face to face ‘Talk to Safaricom’ meet up. It was a pleasure to finally get to meet some of you face to face. We thank Safaricom and in particular Steve Chege and his team for the sponsorship, and appreciated the opportunity to discuss issues that had not been discussed during the online engagement. Some of you raised some hard questions! We trust that Safaricom will take on board our suggestions in their strategic direction. To get a feel of how things were, please check out some shots as captured by photography team among them Daniel Muniu, who was one of our participants at the 1st Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG) 2016. https://www.flickr.com/photos/149878027@N06/sets/72157679956498042/ Once again, thank you and looking forward to seeing you during the Kenya Internet Governance Forum (KIGF) on July 6, 2017. Best regards Githaiga, Grace Co-Convenor Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) Twitter:@ggithaiga Tel: 254722701495 Skype: gracegithaiga Alternate email: ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga www.kictanet.or.ke "Change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged and come together to demand it. I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours"---Barrack Obama.

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