[Community-Discuss] [rpd] Unaddressed queries by AFRINIC during AGMM

[Paschal Ochang]

+1 @Owen

On Saturday, June 26, 2021, Owen DeLong via Community-Discuss <
community-discuss at afrinic.net> wrote:


>

>

> > On Jun 25, 2021, at 23:29 , Noah <noah at neo.co.tz> wrote:

> >

> > Hey Ronald,

> >

> > You are spot on.....

> >

> > I have always argued that every single IPv4 integer that numbers a NIC

> on some router/server on this continent, goes to have a profound

> socio-economic impact, whether its some unemployed AFRINIC youth who has

> figured that they can run a small ecommerce business off a local ecommerce

> platform or a Telecom/ISP that is doing what it takes to get every single

> AFRICAN connected to the Internet on the AFRICAN Continent.

> >

> > Folk got guts out here openly telling folks that we ought to turn

> intergers into a commodity worthy some 30USD.

>

> >

> > My question to AFRINIC, do your resource members justification for IPv4

> needs, include that of running IPv4 Leasing?

>

> Virtually every LIR leases addresses in one form or another. What is your

> exact definition of leasing in this context?

> What definition do you (apparently) feel should be or is precluded by

> policy?

> If you feel that some definition is precluded by policy, please point to

> the relevant policy by section number in the CPM.

>

> > Does AFRINIC have IPv4 brokers as resource members?

>

> Are you saying that an LIR who is also a broker is not entitled to

> membership for some reason? Unless that is your claim,

> what is the point of this question?

>

> > Because it seems to me that folk out here are arguing that IPv4 integers

> themselves are meant to be some product sold at 30USD.

>

> Whether you like it or not, whether I like it or not (and I’m not overly

> fond of it), the reality is that IP address registrations (not the

> addresses themselves, actually) are being bought and sold for ~30USD each

> every day all over the world.  I held out against this

> longer than virtually anyone else in the ARIN region, but eventually even

> I had to face the reality that the sale of IP address

> registrations was going to be a reality and the question was whether it

> would include updates to WHOIS or simply become

> a way in which the registry became progressively less meaningful/less

> useful over time.

>

> What we were able to do is somewhat (even mostly in most regions) preserve

> the needs basis for receiving addresses

> even if received through a purchase.

>

> > My understanding was that the need for IPv4 was for the intergers to be

> used by the requester to number infrastructure for their networks/systems

> and their downstram customers/users so as to offer a wide range on

> services/products that Impact AFRICA's socio-economically and politically

> from, NREN, Higher Learning Institutions, Agriculture, ISP/Telecoms,

> Egovernment, FINTECH, SME's, Ecommerce (I know of unemployed youth

> leveraging the power of online platforms to forge a decent life and

> economically empower themselves through ecommorce, entertainment,

> influencers etc). The true digital transformation if you will.

> >

> > So I really need to understand what Paul is going on about to ascertain

> what I view as clear misunderstanding and misinterpretation of what AFRINIC

> is all about.

>

> Here’s where you lose me. I have tremendous difficulty connecting your

> mostly rational questions/statements above with this. Please point to the

> part of the bylaws, RSA, or CPM that constrains number usage to things

> which impact AFRICA socio-economically or politically. I don’t recall

> seeing either of those terms in any of the three documents. It’s certainly

> not contained in section 6 of the bylaws.

>

> [snip]

> RFG’s early post about members which have no nexus in the region being the

> “clearly prohibited” case.

> [/snip]

>

>

> Note that Ronald makes it clear that entities which have no nexus in the

> AFRINIC service

> region should not be eligible for membership. However, that’s not what

> Paul’s question was

> about. We’ll call that the “clearly prohibited” case.

>

> The obviously “permitted” case is an entity which operates exclusively

> within the AFRINIC

> region.

>

> The gray area in between those two extremes is where clarification appears

> to be sought.

>

> AFRINIC has been claiming that entities with operations both within and

> outside of the

> AFRINIC service region should not be allowed to use their AFRINIC

> resources on their

> infrastructure outside fo the AFRINIC region.

>

> IMHO (and others share this opinion), section 6 of the bylaws does not

> provide a basis

> for AFRINIC to make such a claim. IMHO, one meets the requirements of

> section 6 if

> one merely has a business presence (legal nexus) within the AFRINIC

> service region

> and some amount of operations there. It does not matter whether that is

> the majority

> of ones operations, a tiny fraction, or what. As long as one:

>         1.      Is domiciled within the region (legal nexus).

>         2.      Has some operations (including infrastructure) within the

> region.

> and     3.      Provides some services within the region.

>

> Then one meets the tests of section 6 of the bylaws as currently written,

> regardless

> of what portion of one’s network are numbered using AFRINIC resources and

> regardless

> of what fraction of your (pre-soft-landing-phase-2) resources are used

> elsewhere.

>

> If the membership wants to change that, then there is a process for

> updating the

> bylaws, but until that update happens, there is a need for clarity from

> AFRINIC on

> whether they intend to continue to pursue their previously stated

> misinterpretations

> of the bylaws requiring ALL usage to be in-region.

>

> I won’t presume to speak for Paul, but I do know that Paul has operations

> both

> inside the AFRINIC region and outside, so perhaps that is what “Paul is

> going

> on about”. I’m sure he can clarify if I am wrong.

>

> Owen

>

>

>

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>



-- 
Kind regards,

Paschal.
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