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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-ZA link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Dear AfrICANN’s<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Please read Khaled Fattal’s honourable submission at <a href="http://forum.icann.org/lists/5gtld-guide/pdfIIMoPfVdQj.pdf">http://forum.icann.org/lists/5gtld-guide/pdfIIMoPfVdQj.pdf</a> and see what an important and disturbing development the “final” new gTLD Draft Applicant Guidebook gives us. I must admit that while I was bogged down to the ccNSO and its council’s business in Cartagena, this important matter escaped my attention.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>What is Africa’s response to the DAG full granting the US government a right to screen new gTLD applicants against the US (probably more supreme) laws? I really think we can expect non-US people starting to push for alternative DNS root seeing the current DNS is US’ and US’ alone! So if you’re not a US applicant and are from a country the US government considers to be terrorist, then forget about getting your new gTLD! This is what this exactly mean,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>While I’ve been usually reserved regarding the ITU advances towards the DNS, if ICANN continues to be a US govt entity as it is doing right now (even when ICANN is supposed to move away from this reality through the Affirmation), then who can blame the ITU or even other “Internet rebels” (or should we not call them “Internet freedom fighters”) who have come up with alternative DNSes!<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I hope subscribers to this list will make their governments aware of this important matter (I believe some already have done so) and that our governments and the AU will not disappoint in withstanding the US monopoly of the currently dominant DNS. It must be fair to expect African governments to express their position even before the ICANN board meets GAC in February 2011.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>And I hope we won’t hear another view that ICANN needs to first build our capacity before we can respond to this straight-forward nonsense from the ICANN DAG.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Regards,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><b>Vika Mpisane<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal>ZADNA<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>+27 11 275 0082<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>