Comment Neelie (Kroes)

Making speeches talk

Comment Neelie

The Internet needs better governance, starting now

Sao Paulo, 23 April 2014

Opening remarks, NETMundial
SPEECH/14/333 (see the source)
by Neelie KROES
Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda

This could be an historic gathering.

So ask yourself: are we here to make a change, and live up to the call made by President Rousseff in New York, or are we here to waste time?sentence permalink

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The Internet is more disruptive than the printing press, electrification and industrialisation combined.sentence permalink

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The Internet is the quickest, biggest revolution in history.sentence permalink

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The Internet is now a global, common, public resource and its governance must be truly global, transparent and accountable.sentence permalink

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That means we all have to change. No existing organisation or nation is exempt.sentence permalink

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This puts a huge responsibility on us in this room.sentence permalink

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This week we must move forward.

If we simply do more talking, use more nice words, we will have wasted the opportunity and failed the global community.sentence permalink

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What should we do?

First: we can only create positive change based on what we agree on, not what divides us.sentence permalink

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Let’s admit our recent work has produced a large degree of consensus. We can get excited about a word here or there, but let us not lose sight of the bigger picture.sentence permalink

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In most cases we want the same things. We agree on:sentence permalink

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(1) An improved multi-stakeholder model: transparent, democratic, based on human rights; and a roadmap to get there;sentence permalink

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(2) A process for the transition of the IANA functions involving all the stakeholder community;sentence permalink

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(3) Strengthening the Internet Governance Forum;sentence permalink

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(4) Capacity building through information sharing and Internet observatories;sentence permalink

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(5) We must address jurisdictional issues on the Internet with transparent systems.sentence permalink

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In summary: we agree on more than we disagree on.sentence permalink

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While I do not want to trivialise the challenges, I believe we can meet them.sentence permalink

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We need to decide where we want to be, by the end of 2014.sentence permalink

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During these next two days I will be breathing down everybody's neck until we have a discussion on concrete actions.sentence permalink

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So two days of dialogue please, not a string of monologues.sentence permalink

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This is what open and democratic debate should be: we listen, we discuss, and then we reach real decisions.sentence permalink

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I'm looking forward to that.

Thank you.