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Sibal firm on Internet freedom as ITU Secretary General comes lobbying-Shalini Singh
-The Hindu

 

 

Hamadoun Toure seeks support for International Telecommunication Regulations

ITU Secretary General Dr. Hamadoun Touré, who was at the centre of the International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs) controversy which erupted at Dubai's treaty meet - World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12) in December 2012 - is visiting India this week.

Experts in the know of the treaty negotiations believe Dr. Touré will lobby the government and the private sector to persuade India to sign the treaty. Dr. Touré's schedule includes a line-up of meetings with Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, officials of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) and members of industry chambers.

Confirming the meeting, Mr. Sibal told The-Hindu that India had not taken a final decision on the treaty, and the government is unwilling to move forward without consensus. "We do not want any inter-governmental structure in place which jeopardises the ability of the Internet to empower people. We want to additionally ensure that there is no undue interference in the nature of the medium - either directly or indirectly," he said. The final deadline for signing the treaty is January 1, 2015.

Operationally, not signing the treaty makes no difference to India since it will continue to function under the 1998 treaty under which, while the world added roughly 7 billion mobile subscribers and 2.5 billion Internet users, India added 900 million mobile subscribers and 160 million Internet users.

World divided

The Dubai conference ended up being deeply divided, with 55 member States - including the U.S., EU countries, Japan, Australia, Kenya, Philippines and India - representing a collective population of 2.6 billion refusing to sign the revised treaty or seeking time to consult their national capitals. Eighty nine member States - led by Bahrain, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Russia and China - representing a collective population of 3.8 billion signed it. Being a telecommunications treaty which impacts issues of freedom of expression and Internet freedom, Mr. Sibal chose to side with nations that are pro-democracy and free speech.

Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) which serves roughly 700 million mobile consumers, including mobile Internet, had opposed ITU's control over issues of international roaming and content regulation by way of spam. National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) and Data Security Council of India (DSCI) that represent IT companies had opposed the treaty on issues of ITU's control over cyber security.

Govt's human rights

The main objection to the revised treaty came from language related to "right of access of member states to international telecommunications services" to be included in the treaty. Though Dr. Toure had promised that the treaty would be adopted through a "consensus" both before and during the conference, the final text was adopted through a "vote" rather than consensus. Countries opposing the provision did so because they believed it created new and previously unheard of "human rights for governments", rather than "human rights for their citizens." They believe the language forecloses their ability to act or protect their interest by restricting telecom connectivity with hostile countries promoting terrorism or indulging in acts of war with them.

In India's case, such a commitment would call into question the government's right to restrict international connectivity on pre-paid phones, SMSs, PCOs even for a limited period in the event of terrorist attacks or in "disturbed" areas. Under the treaty, India would also be forced to provide unrestricted international roaming for all visitors from Pakistan and vice versa, even if security agencies advise otherwise.