vinay ವಿನಯ್ wrote:
> Dear All,
>
> I have attached an earlier draft by mistake, in my previous mail.
> Apologies for the same.
> You will find the latest draft here - http://fosscomm.in/OpenStandards
>

Dear All,

Please find below (and attached) the review comments sent from IT for
Change to MCIT.

-----------------------------------------------

Dated:7^th July, 2009


Shri Shankar Aggarwal

Joint Secretary,

Department of IT, GoI.

Reg: 'National policy on open standards for e-governance' - comments on
the draft


Dear Sir,

We thank you for providing us an opportunity to comment on the draft
'national policy on open standards for e-governance'. The following is
submitted on the behalf of IT for Change, a Bangalore based NGO.

Setting up appropriate open standards is basic both to collaborative
development of technology and its mass use. The nature of ICTs use by
government agencies can by default determine society-wide standards, and
hence an 'national policy on open standards for e-governance' has a
special significance far beyond ensuring interoperability of different
governmental systems. It should therefore be strongly informed by long
term public interest and not merely short term expedience. In this
respect we find the present draft of the proposed policy a very
progressive document which can help shape the new ICT paradigm in a
manner that ensures the best democratic and development-oriented
possibilities in the emerging information society.

Two central features of the draft policy are, single and royalty-free
standards. However, we understand that there is a lot of pressure from
vested interested to dilute these key aspects of the policy by sneaking
in provisions for 'multiple standards' as also possibilities of allowing
revenue streams from some 'proprietary standards'. We consider both
these concepts – 'multiple standards' and 'proprietary standards' – as
oxymorons. A standard is by definition 'single' and fully 'public', and
therefore 'non-proprietary', – things like weights and measures, and the
shapes of electric plugs.

These new forms of 'standards' - multiple and proprietary - are being
constructed with the sole purpose of setting up illegitimate
rent-seeking positions in the emerging digital infrastructure of our
societies. Including them in our e-governance policy will, perhaps
irretrievably, set the basis for a flawed architecture of our emerging
social systems, compromising the immense potential we see in ICTs for
greater democracy, equity and social justice.


It is important that the issue of 'open standards' is seen in the light
of this wider societal significance and a commitment is made to
completely public, free and single standards for e-governance in India.
We strongly recommend that the present draft policy is not diluted on
these counts. It is also important that the policy is finalized at the
earliest since a lot of e-governance activity in taking place right now
all across the country.


Sincerely


Parminder Jeet Singh

Director,

IT for Change, Bangalore


> Thanks,
> Vinay.
>
> vinay ವಿನಯ್ wrote:
>> Dear All,
>>
>> As you may already be aware, DIT released a draft policy on open
>> standards for eGovernance-
>> http://egovstandards.gov.in/Policy_Open_Std_review
>>
>> The last date for review comments to be sent is 07 July 2009.
>> Requesting members to please review the standards document and send
>> in your feedback over the next few days. (the site says the document
>> is closed for public review, but actually the last date for review
>> comments is July 7, 2009)
>>
>> Please mail your review comments to - dg@... and
>> egov.standards@...
>>
>> Also,there seems to be some last minute drama with some requests
>> going in for  'multiple standards', thus defeating the whole point of
>> going for a set of standards.
>>
>> Venky Hariharan has articulated well on this issue at -
>>
http://osindia.blogspot.com/2009/07/last-minute-dramas-around-around-open.html
>>
>>
>> Please do read that entry.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Vinay.
>>
>

--

Vinay Sreenivasa
IT for Change
91-98805-95032
vinay@...

http://itforchange.net
http://public-software.in

http://osindia.blogspot.com/2009/07/last-minute-dramas-around-around-open.html

Friday, July 03, 2009
Last minute dramas around around Open Standards

Now that India's Draft Policy on Open Standards is close to
finalization, the usual last-minute dramas are on. In a new twist, I
am told that NASSCOM and MAIT have submitted their recommendations,
purportedly on behalf of the industry. If this is indeed the case, my
organization, Red Hat was not consulted. I also checked with IBM and
they too were not consulted. Since Red Hat and IBM have been key
players in this area, this is definitely intriguing. I shot off a
letter to both MAIT and NASSCOM and a copy of the letter to NASSCOM is
reproduced below. It is self explanatory. The letter to MAIT had minor
editorial changes but is essentially the same letter.

     To,

     Mr. Som Mittal,

     President,

     NASSCOM,

     International Youth Centre,
     Teen Murti Marg,
     Chanakyapuri,
     New Delhi 110 021
     Phone: 91-11- 2301 0199

     Dear Sir,

     We have been informed that NASSCOM has submitted its opinion on
the Draft Open Standards Policy for e-governance to the Department of
Information Technology, Government of India. We have been informed
that NASSCOM's submission supports the inclusion of standards under
Reasonable and Non Discriminatory (RAND) terms and also the usage of
multiple standards in the same domain.

     Red Hat has been actively involved in the standards issue and we
would like to place on record that we have not been consulted by
NASSCOM before this submission was made. We DO NOT support the above
recommendations of NASSCOM for the following reasons.

     1) Standards should belong to humanity and not be controlled or
owned by anyone. In the physical world, we do not pay for using
standards like weights and measures. These are norms of civil society
that have evolved over centuries and the digital world should be no
exception to these norms.

     2) In order to protect India's digital sovereignty, we must ensure
that national data is stored in formats that are open and free of all
encumbrances like royalties, patent claims etc. The Government is the
custodian of data that belongs to the citizens of India. It must
therefore ensure that this data is not stored in formats that are
owned and controlled by anyone.

     3) e-Government data like land records etc remain relevant for
hundreds of years. If this data is stored in proprietary formats, it
will prove expensive for the country in the long-term. It is also seen
that proprietary formats are controlled by monopolistic outfits that
(a) drive the adoption of a technology (b) file a thicket of patents
around that technology and (c) litigate or threaten litigation if
royalties are not paid. India must avoid getting into this trap at all
costs.

     4) For each application area, there must be only a single
standard. The use of multiple standards will lead to tremendous
complications in the practice of e-governance. Since data is at the
heart of e-governance, the confusion created by using multiple
e-government standards in the same domain may bring e-governance to a
stand still. For example, if different government departments use
different standards for document storage, it could greatly slow down
or even thwart the process of exchanging files among government
departments.

     5) Vendors should collaborate on standards and compete on their
implementation. The most popular standards like HTML and Unicode are
standards that are supported by a vast number of industry players.
Multiple standards in the same domain leads to fragmentation. It also
helps vendors who can leverage their marketing muscle to drive users
towards their own proprietary standards instead of open standards that
are created through collaboration and consensus.

     6) The Draft Open Standards Policy for e-governance has been in
the works for the last two years and several public consultations have
been held on this subject. NASSCOM's presence was not visible at any
of these consultations and therefore a comment being made at this late
stage, when the policy is close to being finalized is surprising. The
two recommendations (RAND terms and multiple standards), if accepted,
will lead to nullifying the work of the committee that has toiled for
the last two years to create this policy because it will land us back
to the current status quo dominated by multiple, proprietary
standards.

     7) We welcome the acknowledgment of open source in the policy.
Both open source and open standards are inclusive movements and are
therefore closely related to each other. In India, open source is now
an integral part of many mission-mode e-government projects and it
mention in this policy recognizes its long-term strategic importance
in the e-Government sector.

     8) We have reviewed version 1.15 of the Draft Policy and would
like to place on record our appreciation of the excellent work done by
this committee. The Draft Policy does an great job of protecting
India's digital sovereignty and avoiding the clutches of proprietary
standards. We therefore request NASSCOM's help and support in ensuring
that the policy is approved "as is" without any further dilution.

     With warm regards,

     Venkatesh Hariharan
     Corporate Affairs Director
     Red Hat

--
FN * http://fredericknoronha.wordpress.com http://twitter.com/fn
M +91-9822122436 P +91-832-2409490
http://fredericknoronha.multiply.com/ http://goa1556.goa-india.org

Dear All,

I have attached an earlier draft by mistake, in my previous mail.
Apologies for the same.
You will find the latest draft here - http://fosscomm.in/OpenStandards

Thanks,
Vinay.

vinay ವಿನಯ್ wrote:
> Dear All,
>
> As you may already be aware, DIT released a draft policy on open
> standards for eGovernance-
> http://egovstandards.gov.in/Policy_Open_Std_review
>
> The last date for review comments to be sent is 07 July 2009.
> Requesting members to please review the standards document and send in
> your feedback over the next few days. (the site says the document is
> closed for public review, but actually the last date for review
> comments is July 7, 2009)
>
> Please mail your review comments to - dg@... and egov.standards@...
>
> Also,there seems to be some last minute drama with some requests going
> in for  'multiple standards', thus defeating the whole point of going
> for a set of standards.
>
> Venky Hariharan has articulated well on this issue at -
> http://osindia.blogspot.com/2009/07/last-minute-dramas-around-around-open.html
>
>
> Please do read that entry.
>
> Thanks,
> Vinay.
>

--

Vinay Sreenivasa
IT for Change
91-98805-95032
vinay@...

http://itforchange.net
http://public-software.in

Dear All,

As you may already be aware, DIT released a draft policy on open
standards for eGovernance-
http://egovstandards.gov.in/Policy_Open_Std_review

The last date for review comments to be sent is 07 July 2009. Requesting
members to please review the standards document and send in your
feedback over the next few days. (the site says the document is closed
for public review, but actually the last date for review comments is
July 7, 2009)

Please mail your review comments to - dg@... and egov.standards@...

Also,there seems to be some last minute drama with some requests going
in for  'multiple standards', thus defeating the whole point of going
for a set of standards.

Venky Hariharan has articulated well on this issue at -
http://osindia.blogspot.com/2009/07/last-minute-dramas-around-around-open.html

Please do read that entry.

Thanks,
Vinay.

--

Vinay Sreenivasa
IT for Change
91-98805-95032
vinay@...

http://itforchange.net
http://public-software.in

Please browse www.abolombon.org.bd, which will be up again after
restructuring on August 01, 2009. It is a Bangla language website with
more than 10000 pages.

Thanks

Ananya

Hakikur Rahman wrote:
>
>
> (Forwarded on behalf of Grace Armstrong. Please contact directly at
> the following email address, if you have any update on this issue.)
>
>
> As part of a cross-country study on the free online availability of
> legal information, the Centre for Internet and Society
> (www.cis-india.org <http://www.cis-india.org>) is seeking to produce a
> comprehensive list of online sources of legal information for several
> countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Specifically, we are looking for
> databases or websites that post statutory or caselaw for Bangladesh or
> countries in the Southeast Asian region, such as Malaysia, Indonesia,
> Thailand, or the Philippines. Advice from people who have done legal
> research in those countries would be particularly appreciated, but any
> information will be very welcome.
>
> Thank you again for your help!
>
> Best,
>
> Grace
>
> Grace Armstrong
> The Centre for Internet and Society
> No. D2, 3rd Floor, Sheriff Chambers
> 14, Cunningham Road, Bangalore,
> Karnataka 560052, India
> Phone: (+91)-080-4092-6283
> Fax: (+91)-080-4114-8130
>
>



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Panos Radio South Asia | Latest Development Dilemmas Issue, 1 July 2009
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Latest Upload on Development Dilemmas:

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freedom, a BBC documentary follows rock star Salman Ahmed of the
Pakistani band Junoon into northwest Pakistan, where the mullahs have
banned and silenced all music as un-Islamic More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200504116260/Film-Forum/Documentary/The-Rock-Star-and\
-The-Mullahs.html

Page 3 People
Madhur Bhandarkar's film reveals what goes on behind the gloss and
glamour with such gloss and glamour that it inadvertently ends up
glorifying the very ethos it sets out to critique More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200503116259/Film-Forum/Documentary/Page-3-People.htm\
l

Some Roots Grow Upwards: The Theatre of Ratan Thiyam
A timely film on the theatre of Ratan Thiyam explores the feeling of
oppression and injustice that pervades the psyche of the Manipuri
people More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200412116258/Film-Forum/Documentary/Some-Roots-Grow-U\
pwards-The-Theatre-of-Ratan-Thiyam.html

The Source of Life for Sale
Across Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi,
local people speak out against commercial interests soaking up their
water resources More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200410116257/Film-Forum/Documentary/The-Source-of-Lif\
e-for-Sale.html

The City Beautiful (Sundar Nagari)
A fly-on-the-wall account of two families in a low-income
neighbourhood of New Delhi, living on the edge of globalisation, on
the edge of 'India shining'
http://infochangeindia.org/200409116256/Film-Forum/Documentary/The-City-Beautifu\
l-Sundar-Nagari.html

Tales of the Night Fairies
A film about the confidence and vitality of Sonagachi's sex workers, a
charmed circle where women have control over their bodies, where they
choose their clients, and insist on the use of condoms
http://infochangeindia.org/200409116255/Film-Forum/Documentary/Tales-of-the-Nigh\
t-Fairies.html

Miles To Go
A 6000-km bus journey documents several industrial and environmental
disaster zones in India
http://infochangeindia.org/200409116254/Film-Forum/Documentary/Miles-To-Go.html

Manjuben, Truck Driver
India's only female truck driver wants to travel and be free. And she
has found a way to live the life she wants
http://infochangeindia.org/200408116253/Film-Forum/Documentary/Manjuben-Truck-Dr\
iver.html

A Night of Prophecy
Amar Kanwar's film takes the viewer from Kashmir to Andhra Pradesh,
recording songs of oppression, pain, exclusion and marginalisation
More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408116252/Film-Forum/Documentary/A-Night-of-Prophe\
cy.html

Ladies Special/ A Pyramid of Women
Two recent films explore the supportive and assertive spaces that
women carve out for themselves in the metropolis of Mumbai More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408116251/Film-Forum/Documentary/Ladies-Special/-A\
-Pyramid-of-Women.html

Naata /Ektaa Sandesh
Monteiro and Jayasankar’s Naata is about Bombay, and about Dharavi,
the city’s most economically efficient neighbourhood, but the heart of
the story lies with two extraordinary citizens, Waqar Khan and Bhau
Korde and the making of their film, Ekta Sandesh. More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408106250/Film-Forum/Documentary/Naata-/Ektaa-Sand\
esh.html

Matrubhoomi - A Nation Without Women  By Huned Contractor
Manish Jha's Matrubhoomi - A Nation Without Women, a futuristic story
about a village with no women, has created a storm with its
no-holds-barred presentation of female infanticide More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408096249/Film-Forum/Documentary/Matrubhoomi-A-Nat\
ion-Without-Women.html

Unlimited Girls
A film that centres around a chat room filled with the voices of older
Indian feminists and younger urban women searching the ideologies of
feminism to find a room of their own More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408086248/Film-Forum/Documentary/Unlimited-Girls.h\
tml

Development Flows From the Barrel of a Gun
This film presents and examines orchestrated state violence against
indigenous and local peoples when they protest against development
projects on their lands More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408076247/Film-Forum/Documentary/Development-Flows\
-From-the-Barrel-of-a-Gun.html

In Dark Times
How fascism grows and takes over unsuspecting societies More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408066246/Film-Forum/Documentary/In-Dark-Times.htm\
l

The Bee, the Bear and the Kuruba
A document of the displacement of indigenous lives, not by
‘development’ but by ‘eco’-development More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408056245/Film-Forum/Documentary/The-Bee-the-Bear-\
and-the-Kuruba.html

Kol Tales
The Kols, a tribe that inhabits the badlands of Bundelkhand, struggle
with bonded labour, the fraudulent seizure of their lands and a
national democracy that does not seem to include them in any way at
all More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408046244/Film-Forum/Documentary/Kol-Tales.html

Sita's Family
A portrait not simply of family dynamics, but of the spaces that women
must continually negotiate between the home and the world More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408036243/Film-Forum/Documentary/Sita-s-Family.htm\
l

Words On Water
A film that explores the struggle of the people of the Narmada Valley
against the big dams that threaten to submerge their lands and
displace them from their homes, traditions and cultures More...
http://infochangeindia.org/200408026242/Film-Forum/Documentary/Words-On-Water.ht\
ml
--
FN * http://fredericknoronha.wordpress.com http://twitter.com/fn
M +91-9822122436 P +91-832-2409490
http://fredericknoronha.multiply.com/ http://goa1556.goa-india.org
"I used to be Snow White -- but I drifted." - Mae West

Agriculture in the global South: 12 women’s projects putting ICTs to work
GenARDIS Website
http://ow.ly/g1yh

Sustainable Farming Internships and Apprenticeships (U.S. & Canada). Directory
e-agriculture:
http://ow.ly/g13p

President of Costa Rica highlights favorable business environment of
his country-Costa Rica Services Summit 2009 (Spanish)
Sistema de Boletines
http://ow.ly/g11W

RT @e_agriculture The Use of Mobiles for Massive Agricultural Data
Collection- Interview (Video)
e-agriculture:
http://ow.ly/fJmf

Redes para el intercambio de información y conocimientos- América Latina
e-agricultura:
http://ow.ly/fU1n

Technology to enhance Agricultural Development & Food Supply.Sumit
your initiatives or a project you know toTech For Food
Tech For Food
http://ow.ly/fU2P

RT @UNEPandYou WTO & UNEP launch a report explaining for the first
time the connections between trade & climate change.
-- Press Releases June 2009 - Trade and Environment: WTO and UNEP
launch a report explaining for the first time the connections between
trade and climate change - United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=589&ArticleID=\
6235&l=en

Health data & Health Services from more than 20 African & Asian
countries collected by the University of Oslo
News - The Research Council of Norway
http://ow.ly/fTYy

RT @ictlogist #ICT4D Symposium: IPID 4th Annual Conference 2009
(programme updated and regsitration open)
ICT4D Symposium 2009 - IPID
http://bit.ly/1IpaB

Prize for a journalist who has contributed to agricultural development
in the ACP countries
e-agriculture:
http://ow.ly/fIAC

Seminar "Role of the media in agricultural development in ACP
countries” Brussels, Belgium from 12-16 October 2009
e-agriculture:
http://ow.ly/fIAR

And more online links...
--
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M +91-9822122436 P +91-832-2409490
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"Ever wonder what the speed of lightning would be if it didn't
zigzag?" - George Carlin

'Traditional knowledge should not be overlooked'  Text

New Delhi, June 29 (IANS) Communities the world over risk losing
control over their traditional knowledge because a UN agency insists
on using existing intellectual property standards for managing access
to the information, a global research organisation has warned.

The London-based International Institute for Environment and
Development (IIED) has done a case-study of the Yanadi community of
Chittoor and Nellore districts of Andhra Pradesh, and suggested
immediate recognition for traditional knowledge, ahead of a meeting of
the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The study was based on participatory research with indigenous and
local communities in areas of important biodiversity - including the
Lepchas and Limbus in the eastern Himalayas, Yanadi in Andhra Pradesh,
and the aivasi in Chattishgarh (besides in Kenya, Peru, Panama and
China).

"The Yanadis are recognized as a Scheduled Tribe under the
Constitution of India. Through their reliance on forests they have
developed extensive knowledge of bio-resources, medicinal and aromatic
plants and wild foods - including unique remedies for snake bite,
paralysis, skin diseases etc," said the IIED study, made available to
the media Monday.

Yet, it charged, the Yanadis have been relocated to isolated hamlets
away from the forests, where they are "marginalized, living as farm
labourers, supplemented with minor NTFP (non-timber forest produce)
collection.

IIED said, in a case study specifically released to the media, that
the rich traditional knowledge of the tribe is "on the verge of
extinction due to lack of recognition".

It argued that the codified systems - Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani - in
India have relatively more recognition and patronage.

But Yanadi traditional health knowledge is not recognized by policy
makers and is branded as the "superstitious knowledge of illiterates,
making the tribes afraid to come out openly asserting their
expertise".

Yanadi traditional health knowledge, in Andhra, is closely linked to
availability of bioresources - medicinal plants, knowledge generation
depending on a traditional lifestyle.

Says the study: "Medicinal knowledge is acquired and transmitted
through rituals in sacred forests. Plants for specialized cures are
harvested wild through special rituals and are believed that their
cultivation will remove their potency."

IIED's study argues that maintenance of knowledge systems depends on
access to sacred forest flora. Ceremonial visits are traditionally
made to the forest to show respect to nature and ancestors, worship
health goddesses and revere plants.

Under their community law and practices, forest bioresources are
considered to be the common property of the community.

Yet, forest protection laws prevent free access to the tribes to
collect herbs from the forest, while "the smugglers and multinational
companies are let in freely to tap the rich bioresources", says the
IIED study.

The Scheduled Tribe Recognition of Forest Rights Act 2006 "does not
seem very useful and though notified is yet to come into force", it
adds.

"Yanadi traditional knowledge is on the verge of extinction. The youth
are not interested in learning it, and the status of elders is
weakening due to the extension of government control," says the study.

The WIPO meet aims to develop rules for protecting rights over
traditional knowledge, such as indigenous knowledge about medicinal
plants, which conventional intellectual property laws do not cover.

"WIPO's call for consistency with existing intellectual-property
standards is a flawed approach as these have been created on Western
commercial lines to limit access to inventions such as drugs developed
by private companies," said IIED's Krystyna Swiderska who coordinated
the research in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

IIED argued that this "is a problem" because traditional communities
tend to protect knowledge and resources in entirely the opposite way,
meaning that ideas and life-forms cannot be privatised and that access
to them remains non-exclusive.

It pointed out that this ensures access to knowledge held by others
which is essential for survival in often harsh environments.

Researchers warned that the loss of such customary approaches would
lead to a loss of biological diversity and traditional knowledge and
"would limit the abilities of poor communities to adapt to climate
change through, for instance, sharing climate-resilient plant
varieties".

Studying the situation in India, China, Panama, Peru and Kenya, the
organisation argued for accepting some "key components".

These included: recognising collective rights and decision-making;
finding ways to share benefits equitably among communities; finding
means to share benefits equitably among communities; recognise
customary rights over genetic resources; enabling reciprocal access to
genetic resources; and managing external access to traditional
knowledge with community protocols.

"The UN Convention on Biological Diversity requires member countries
to equitably share benefits from the use of genetic resources and
related knowledge, and to protect and encourage customary use of
biological resources in accordance with traditional cultural
practices," said Ruchi Pant of Ecoserve in India.

"But nearly 20 years after the convention was created it still has no
legally binding rules to manage access to biological resources and
traditional knowledge, and to govern how the benefits from their use
are shared."
--
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"The only true standard is death." - The Zen Of Programming

From: Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies

> *From:* rebecca gomperts [mailto:gomperts@...
> <mailto:gomperts@...>]
> *Sent:* 24 June 2009 13:36
> *To:* Worldbytes
> *Subject:* [worldbytes] signatures for letter to google
>
> Dear worldbytes members,
> The Health Equity and Law Clinic of the University of Toronto wrote
> the following letter for Google on behalf of Women on Waves.
> It concerns the recent Google policy to restrict adds for abortion
> related information and services in certain countries.
> We are looking for reproductive right organizations who would like to
> co-sign the letter in order to increase the impact of the letter to
> google.
> If you would like to sign, please email me your name, organization and
> country
>
> Thanks a lot
>
> Rebecca Gomperts
> On behalf of Women on Waves
>
>
>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\
------------------------------------------------------
>
> June 24, 2009
>
> *
> *
>
> Google Inc. Legal Department
>
> 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
>
> Mountain View, CA 94043
>
> Google AdWords, Google Ann Arbor
>
> 201 S. Division St., Suite 500
>
> Ann Arbor, MI 48104
>
> To:    The Google AdWords Team and the Google Inc. Legal Department
>
> **
>
> *Re:   Google AdWords Advertising Policy Update: Restricting
> Advertisements that Promote Abortion Services ***
>
> **
>
> We are writing on behalf of Women on Waves (�WOW�), a non-profit
> organization providing health services and sexual education to prevent
> unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortions, and the Health Equity and Law
> Clinic, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, an academic clinic
> specializing in reproductive and sexual health law and policy. This
> letter concerns a change to Google Adwords policy respecting the
> advertising of abortion services.
>
> On September 17, 2008, WOW received notice of a /Google AdWords
> Advertising Policy Update/ (�Revised Policy�).[i] <#_edn1> Under the
> /Revised Policy/, Google AdWords will:
>
> no longer accept ads that promote abortion services and that target
> any of the following countries: Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany,
> Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Philippines,
> Poland, Singapore, Spain, or Taiwan. 'Abortion services' include, but
> are not limited to, abortion clinics and abortion counselors.
>
> While we acknowledge much consideration was given to your decision on
> the advertising of abortion services and the potential effect of the
> /Revised Policy/, we request the policy be reviewed for the following
> reasons:
>
> 1.     The effects of the /Revised Policy/ for persons other than
> Adwords advertisers. We are concerned about the adverse effect of the
> /Revised Policy/ for women seeking safe and lawful abortion services.
> By restricting access to information, the /Revised/ /Policy/ may
> contribute to unsafe abortion in a manner inconsistent with human
> rights principles.
>
> 2.     The justification for the /Revised Policy/. We understand that
> Google may refuse or terminate any advertisement at any time and for
> any reason. Given the adverse impact of the /Revised Policy/ on human
> rights to safe abortion, a reasoned justification in this instance is
> warranted but lacking.
>
> We believe these reasons merit the rescission of the /Revised Policy/.
>
> Google plays an important role in the protection of human rights.
> Through participation in the /Global Network Initiative/ and other
> programs, Google has demonstrated its commitment to protect access to
> information as a human right consistent with internationally
> recognized laws and standards. These include the human rights outlined
> in the /International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
> Rights[ii] <#_edn2>/ among other international treaties.
>
> Given the impact of the /Revised Policy/ on human rights to safe
> abortion, we respectfully request the policy be reviewed and
> rescinded. If following your review, Google decides there are reasons
> to maintain the /Revised Policy/ we request these reasons be publicly
> disclosed. Justification for the /Revised Policy/ avoids an adverse
> inference that Google is acting without concern for the human rights
> impact of its policies.
>
> *1. The Adverse Impact of the /Revised Policy/** on Human Rights to
> Safe Abortion*
>
> We are concerned about the adverse effect of the /Revised Policy/ for
> women seeking safe and lawful abortion services. By restricting access
> to information, the /Revised/ /Policy/ may contribute to unsafe
> abortion in a manner inconsistent with internationally recognized
> human rights.
>
> Unsafe abortion is a major cause of maternal mortality and morbidity
> worldwide. Every year an estimated seventy thousand women die and five
> million more women suffer with disability from unsafe abortion.[iii]
> <#_edn3> Many women who resort to unsafe abortion live in countries
> where abortion is lawful under certain conditions, such as where
> necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman or to protect her
> physical and mental health. Women resort to unsafe abortion because
> they cannot access safe services to which they are lawfully entitled
> within the health system.[iv] <#_edn4> Unsafe abortion is a
> consequence of access barriers to safe and lawful services.
>
> Access to health services without discrimination is an essential
> component of the rights to health and equality under international
> law.[v] <#_edn5> Women�s right to health includes an entitlement to
> access services specific to their health needs. It is discriminatory
> under international law to restrict the promotion or provision of
> appropriate health services for women, including those related to
> reproductive health, and to obstruct action taken by women in pursuit
> of their health goals.[vi] <#_edn6> Given the /Revised Policy/
> restricts advertising on abortion services, sex-specific health care,
> its adverse impact is borne exclusively by women thereby raising
> equality concerns.
>
> Access to information � the right to seek, receive and impart
> information on health issues � is a key determinant of access to
> health care.[vii] <#_edn7> This is especially true respecting access
> to abortion services. Many women seek unsafe abortion because they
> lack access to information on the legal status of abortion and the
> availability of services.
>
> Women and health providers in many countries are uninformed about the
> legal status of abortion, the conditions under which it is
> lawful.[viii] <#_edn8>  Many wrongly believe that abortion is
> prohibited by criminal law in all circumstances. Despite satisfying
> the conditions for lawful abortion, women are unfairly denied services
> and/or seek unsafe services in clandestine settings.[ix] <#_edn9>
>
> The stigmatization of abortion, attributable in part to its criminal
> regulation, also deters women from inquiring about the availability of
> services. Women may be reluctant to request services for fear of
> health provider judgment or refusal, and public disclosure and
> retribution from families and communities. Many women for this reason
> do not consult their regular health providers and seek care outside
> their communities. They are without traditional sources of health
> information. Recognizing the vulnerability of women seeking
> inter-jurisdictional access to abortion services, the European Court
> of Human Rights has emphasized the right to impart and receive
> information on abortion services as essential to ensuring women�s
> health and well-being.^[x] <#_edn10>
>
> Advertisements on abortion services can be a valuable source of
> information on both the legal status of abortion and the availability
> of services, and thus a crucial measure to mitigate access barriers to
> safe and lawful abortion. International law recognizes advertisements
> as a protected media for the exchange of information.[xi] <#_edn11>
>
> The United States Supreme Court, in holding a law that restricted
> advertisements promoting abortion services as unconstitutional,
> recognized that such advertisements contained factual material of
> public interest.[xii] <#_edn12> The advertisement did not merely
> inform readers of available commercial services, valuable information
> itself. Viewed in its entirety, the advertisement conveyed information
> about the subject matter including the law on abortion. The mere
> existence of the services, the possibility that the advertiser was
> typical of other organizations and the availability of the services,
> was important information. Recent reform in the United Kingdom on
> television advertisement of abortion services was similarly motivated
> by the public health need for access to full and complete information
> on abortion services.[xiii] <#_edn13>
>
> The internet is a primary health information source. It is of
> particular importance to individuals who lack access to traditional
> sources of health information, require confidential and timely access
> to information and seek services outside of their communities. Online
> advertisements that promote abortion services can improve access to
> information on the legal status of abortion and the availability of
> lawful services, and can thereby reduce recourse to unsafe abortion.
>
> Vehicles such as a /Google Adwords/ moreover increase the credibility
> of information sources, defined in terms of their expertise and
> trustworthiness. The service facilitates access to relevant
> information by isolating the advertisement and the availability of
> services from a string of search engine results, which in the case of
> a political and social issue such as abortion may be overwhelming for
> an individual woman seeking services.[xiv] <#_edn14>
>
> By restricting access to information on safe and lawful abortion, the
> /Revised Policy/ may thus contribute to unsafe abortion in a manner
> inconsistent with human rights under international law.
>
> *2.  Justification for the Revised Policy and its Adverse Human Rights
> Impact*
>
> Given the human rights impact of the /Revised Policy/, we believe that
> a reasoned justification for the policy is warranted. Google�s
> decision on the advertising of abortion services may have been
> informed by the following considerations:
>
> A.   the criminal regulation of abortion,
>
> B.    abortion as a high-risk health service,
>
> C.    legal restrictions on the advertisement or promotion of abortion
> services, and
>
> D.   government or other political pressure.
>
> Careful analysis demonstrates these considerations cannot justify the
> /Revised Policy/ and its adverse human rights impact.
>
> _A. The Criminal Regulation of Abortion_
>
> The /Revised Policy/ may have been informed by the criminal regulation
> of abortion in the target countries, and the concern that acceptance
> of advertisements promoting abortion services may be construed as
> promotion or the aiding and abetting of criminal activity.
>
> Rather than illicit activity, counseling and information about
> abortion services, even where criminally restricted, is regarded as an
> important component of harm reduction and safe abortion initiatives.
> The Ministry of Health in Uruguay, for example, has enacted guidelines
> that allow health providers to provide information and counseling
> about abortion to women ineligible to receive lawful services.[xv]
> <#_edn15>
>
> More importantly, in all target countries of the /Revised Policy/
> abortion services are lawful under certain conditions.[xvi] <#_edn16>
> A blanket restriction on advertisements that promote abortion services
> for reason of their criminal status is therefore unjustified. Women
> are entitled by law to access abortion services albeit under a set of
> regulated conditions. The target countries in this respect cannot be
> distinguished from the many countries, such as the United Kingdom, to
> which the /Revised Policy/ does not extend. Abortion is a lawful and
> legitimate health service in all of the target countries.
>
> //
>
> _B. Abortion as a High-Risk Health Service _
>
> The /Revised Policy/ may have been informed by evidence of maternal
> mortality and morbidity related to unsafe abortion, and thus concern
> about accepting advertisements that promote a high-risk health
> service. It is necessary, however, to distinguish between unsafe and
> safe abortion.
>
> Unsafe abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by
> individuals without the necessary skills or in an environment that
> does not conform to minimum medical standards, or both.[xvii]
> <#_edn17> When appropriately regulated and provided by skilled persons
> under conditions that meet medical standards, abortion is a safe,
> low-risk procedure, safer than pregnancy and childbirth.[xviii] <#_edn18>
>
> The /Revised Policy/ may have been directed to particular concerns
> about online abortion services, the sale of abortifacients or
> medicines for use in pregnancy termination. As a non-invasive
> alternative to surgical abortion, medication abortion is widely
> regarded as having significantly improved access to safe abortion. It
> is safe and effective, with few serious complications and success
> rates of 95�98%.[xix] <#_edn19>
>
> Medication abortion, moreover, is an especially important innovation
> for safe abortion because it may be delivered by a more diverse set of
> providers in a range of health settings. Research demonstrates that
> outcomes of services provided through telemedicine (provision of
> medicines, counseling and information through the internet) are
> comparable with results reported in studies on medication abortion in
> outpatient settings.[xx] <#_edn20>
>
> A restriction on advertisements that promote abortion services for
> reason of safety is therefore unjustified. The /Revised Policy/ is
> over-inclusive insofar as it restricts access to information on safe
> health services. It is also under-inclusive. Safety concerns about the
> online sale of medicines is not limited to abortion services, but of
> equal relevance to all health services. Ensuring the safe provision
> and use of online health services is a legitimate concern, and we
> encourage Google to develop a tailored policy directed to this objective.
>
> _C. Legal Restrictions __on the Advertisement or Promotion of Abortion
> Services_
>
> The /Revised Policy/ may have been implemented because of domestic
> laws or policies respecting the advertisement of abortion services in
> the target countries. Some (e.g. Brazil and France) but not all target
> countries have laws specific to the advertisement of abortion
> services. No target country, however, absolutely prohibits the
> advertisement of abortion services. Advertisements are permissible in
> Brazil, for example, where the conditions under which abortion is
> lawful are appropriately indicated.[xxi] <#_edn21> This policy
> recognizes that under certain conditions abortion services are lawful
> and should be treated without distinction from other health services.
> Rather than an absolute prohibition against advertisements that
> promote abortion services, the /Revised Policy/ should reflect a
> similar flexible standard. The /Revised Policy/ in this respect is
> inconsistent with Google Adwords� general policy on advertisements
> subject to legal regulation, which states that it is the
> responsibility of the advertiser to ensure that its advertisements are
> in full compliance with the applicable domestic law.[xxii] <#_edn22>
> There is no clear reason why the same approach cannot be applied to
> abortion service advertisements, which may be subject to different
> legal regulation across jurisdictions.
>
> //
>
> _D. __Government or other Political Pressure___
>
> The /Revised Policy/ may have been informed by government policies
> that abortion, even when lawful, should not be promoted as a health
> service. Such policies are often based on the mistaken assumption that
> greater access to information and services will increase abortion
> rates. Evidence confirms that increased access to safe and lawful
> abortion does not increase the number of abortions nor lead women to
> use abortion as an alternative to contraception for family planning.
> Rather it ensures that a greater number of abortions are safe
> abortions.[xxiii] <#_edn23>
>
> Such policies are more importantly inconsistent with human rights
> principles. Individuals should not be denied access to information as
> a measure to change health-seeking behaviour. Women are entitled as of
> right to information about all safe and lawful health services,
> including those related to reproductive and sexual health. We believe
> that Google shares this conception of access to information as a
> fundamental human right.
>
> //
>
>
> The lack of reasoned justification for the /Revised Policy/ given its
> impact on human rights to safe abortion merits its rescission. We thus
> respectfully request in light of Google�s demonstrated commitment to
> protect access to information as a human right that the /Revised
> Policy/ be reviewed and rescinded. If Google decides there are reasons
> not addressed in this letter to maintain the /Revised Policy,/ we
> would appreciate your sharing these reasons with us.
>
> We look forward to your response and appreciate your time and
> consideration. **
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Rebecca Gomperts
>
> gomperts@... <mailto:gomperts@...>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Women on Waves Foundation
>
> P.O. Box 15683, 1001 ND Amsterdam, The Netherlands
>
> Phone: +31 20 465 0004, Fax: +31 20 465 0004
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Joanna Erdman
>
> joanna.erdman@... <mailto:joanna.erdman@...>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Susan Newell
>
> susan.newell@... <mailto:susan.newell@...>
>
> Health Equity and Law Clinic
>
> Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
>
> 78 Queen�s Park, Toronto, Ontario M5S 2C5
>
> Phone: 416-946-3755, Fax: 416-978-2648
>
> *The undersigned organizations support this letter and its request
> that the /Revised Policy/** be reviewed and rescinded. *
>
> 1.  Name, Organization, Contact Info
>
> 2.  Name, Organization, Contact Info
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> [i] <#_ednref1> Email Communication from The Google AdWords Team to
> Women on Waves (September 17, 2008) (on file).
>
> [ii] <#_ednref2> /International Covenant on Economic, Social and
> Cultural Rights/, Dec. 16, 1966, 993 U.N.T.S. 3, (/entered into force
> /Jan. 3, 1976).
>
> [iii] <#_ednref3> World Health Organization (WHO). /Unsafe abortion:
> global and regional estimates of the incidence of unsafe abortion and
> associated mortality in 2003. /(Geneva: WHO, 2007).
> [iv] <#_ednref4> WHO. /Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance
> for Health Systems. /82 (Geneva: WHO, 2003). See Concluding
> Observations of U.N. bodies that monitor compliance with international
> human rights conventions, e.g. /Concluding Observations of the
> Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women:
> Colombia, /CEDAW, UN Doc. CEDAW/C/COL/CO/6 (2007): While noting the
> decriminalization of abortion under certain conditions, the Committee
> remained �concerned that, in practice, women may not have access to
> legal abortion services� (para. 22); /Concluding Observations of the
> Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women: Saint
> Lucia/, CEDAW, UN GAOR, 61st sess., supp. no. 38 (A/61/38) part II
> (2006) 114: While welcoming legal reform that permits abortion under
> certain circumstances, �[t]he Committee notes with concern the
> persistence of unsafe abortions in the country. It also notes with
> concern that no information was provided about measures to provide
> safe abortion services where those are permitted by law� (paras. 154,
> 181).
> [v] <#_ednref5> U.N. Comm. on Econ., Soc. and Cultural Rights,
> /General Comment No. 14. The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard
> of Health/, UN doc E/C.12/2000/4 at para. 12 (Aug. 11, 2000).//
>
> [vi] <#_ednref6> U.N. Comm. on the Elimination of all Forms of
> Discrimination against Women, /General Recommendation No. 24: Women
> and Health/, UN Doc. A/54/38/Rev.1 at paras. 11, 14, 23 (1999)
>
> [vii] <#_ednref7> /Supra/ note 5.
> [viii] <#_ednref8> See e.g. Chelsea Morroni, Landon Myer & *Kemilembe
> Tibazarwa. *�Knowledge of the abortion legislation among South African
> women: a cross-sectional study� (2006) 3 /Reproductive Health/ 7; Lisa
> A Goldman, Sandra G Garc�a, Juan D�az & Eileen A Yam, �Brazilian
> obstetrician-gynecologists and abortion: a survey of knowledge,
> opinions and practices� (2005) 2 /Reproductive Health/ 10; Davida
> Becker, Sandra G. Garcia & Ulla Larsen �Knowledge and Opinions about
> Abortion Law among Mexican Youth� (2002) 28(4) /International Family
> Planning Perspectives/ 205-213.
> [ix] <#_ednref9> /See Concluding Observations of the Human Rights
> Committee: Argentina, /HRC, UN Doc. CCPR/CO/70/ARG (2000): �[T]he
> Committee is concerned that the criminalization of abortion deters
> medical professionals from providing this procedure without judicial
> order, even when they are permitted to do so by law� (para. 14).
> [x] <#_ednref10> /Open Door Counselling and Dublin Well Woman v.
> Ireland/ [1992] 15 EHRR 244.
> [xi] <#_ednref11> /International Covenant on Civil and Political
> Rights/, 16 December 1966, GA Res. 2200A (XX1), art. 19.
> [xii] <#_ednref12> /Bigelow v. Virginia/, 421 U.S. 809 (1975).
> [xiii] <#_ednref13> U.K., Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice
> (BCAP) and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), /The BCAP Code
> Review: Consultation on the Proposed BCAP Advertising Standards Code/
> (2009).
> [xiv] <#_ednref14> See Mike Benigeri & Pierre Pluye, �Shortcomings of
> health information on the Internet� (2003) 18 /Health Promotion
> International/ 381. Article analyzes the rising number of Internet
> sites providing medical information and services and the lack of
> available assistance in sorting through this information. See also:
> Berland et al., �Health Information on the Internet: Accessibility,
> Quality and Readability in English and Spanish� (2001) 285 /JAMA/ 2612.
> [xv] <#_ednref15> Uruguay, /Ordenanza/ 369/04, 6 de agosto del ano 2004.
> [xvi] <#_ednref16> United Nations, Department of Economic and Social
> Affairs, Population Division. /World Abortion Policies 2007./ (New
> York, United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
> Population Division, 2007).
> [xvii] <#_ednref17> WHO. /The prevention and management of unsafe
> abortion. Report of a Technical Working Group. /3 (Geneva: WHO, 1993).//
>
> [xviii] <#_ednref18> D. Grimes et al. �Unsafe abortion: the
> preventable pandemic� (2006) 368 /Lancet /1908-19, 1908.
>
> [xix] <#_ednref19> C. Fiala & K. Gemzell-Danielsson. �Review of
> medical abortion using mifepristone in combination with a
> prostaglandin analogue.� (2006) 74 /Contraception/ 66�86.
>
> [xx] <#_ednref20> R.J. Gomperts et al. �Using telemedicine for
> termination of pregnancy with mifepristone and misoprostol in settings
> where there is no access to safe services� (2008) 115 /BJOG: An
> International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology/ 1171-5.
>
> [xxi] <#_ednref21> Sandra Coliver, Article 19 International Centre
> Against Censorship, /The Right to Know: Human Rights and Reproductive
> Health Information/ (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995).
> [xxii] <#_ednref22> Google AdWords, �Advertising Policies� (2009).
> [xxiii] <#_ednref23> G. Sedgh et al. �Induced abortion: estimated
> rates and trends worldwide� (2007) 370 /The Lancet/ 1338-1345.
> ---



--

Vinay Sreenivasa
IT for Change
91-98805-95032
vinay@...

http://itforchange.net
http://public-software.in

[excerpt]

As Engelbart saw it, his inventions were not products in themselves but a
means for individuals to more easily interact with computers and, by
extension, each other. He believed the world�s problems were becoming more
urgent and complex, and that the only way to fix them was collectively. By
building faster and smarter connections between people, computers could be
harnessed for collaborative problem-solving. Skills could be shared and
new solutions discovered. What Engelbart envisioned, in other words, was
the marriage of technology and humanitarianism�an idea he called
�bootstrapping.�

Engelbart was marginalized for decades, but now, at the age of 83, he has
lived long enough to see his ideas vindicated with blogs, wikis, search
engines and social networking platforms like Facebook. But while the Web
2.0 boom has exploited the interactive possibilities of Engelbart�s
innovations, his original ambition�to boost mankind�s �collective
IQ��remains relatively uncharted. Will the twenty-first century be the era
of his long-envisioned bootstrappers?

Here are five Englebartians who think so. They belong to a movement that
believes the rise of Web 2.0 spells promise for web-enabled social tools.
As Clay Shirky writes in Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing
Without Organizations (2008), such tools threaten the existing order by
�allowing loosely structured groups, operating without managerial
direction and outside the profit motive� to tackle problems traditional
institutions cannot. Whether the crisis is poverty or health care, the
line of attack is simple and potent: like-minded strangers point their
browsers to the same site, and brainstorm.

Full story at:

http://www.maisonneuve.org/pressroom/article/2009/may/25/web-20-rescue/#

Cameron Sinclair
Modest Wish: Improve the living conditions of five billion people.
How: www.openarchitecturenetwork.org

Marty Tenenbaum
Modest Wish: A collaborative healthcare system.
How: www.collabrx.com, www.sciencecommons.org/projects/healthcommons

Modest Wish: Shrink the planet by bridging cultural and linguistic divides.
How: www.globalvoicesonline.org

Matt and Jessica Flannery
Modest Wish: Eradicate poverty.
How: www.kiva.org

Social networking for Indian elders...
http://ibnlive.in.com/videos/95283/watch-exclusive-social-networking-site-for-ol\
dies.html
--
FN * http://fredericknoronha.wordpress.com http://twitter.com/fn
M +91-9822122436 P +91-832-2409490
http://fredericknoronha.multiply.com/ http://goa1556.goa-india.org
"Never miss a good chance to shut up." - Will Rogers

With the spirit of Jules Verne, the virtual journey “80+1 days around the Dhaka” would be arranged. One by one the major market spots would be visited, however will guide the audience during live bits virtual tour. The live video from the spot would be web cast via wireless internet connectivity. A favorable mode would be created to unite the audience with the people, culture and lifestyle of Dhaka which never done before. By overcoming the time and space limitations during the tour an unprecedented friendship and neighborhood would be establish between Dhaka, Linz as well as the world Tour. In a way the audience would be travelers of Dhaka and surly once would be proved, “we are all citizen of One World, we are the member of same Global Family” 1st day the journey would be started from New Market and would be end at ULAB ( University of Liberal Arts ) on 81 day’s victorious closing ceremony.

The market spots of the journey would be selected based on goods and popularity with the special consideration to the diversity of Dhakai life styles. Along with formal markets, entertainment spots, performance and contemporary art and culture, event and practices would be web cast. In the tour we will do unique live bits event by riding on a rickshaw (non motorized eco friendly tricycle vehicle) in new Dhaka; and in old Dhaka riding on a “Tom Tom” ( horse car). By this event the audience will get the unique experience of rickshaw and tom tom riding , however looking the scenarios of Dhakai streets. Moreover we will do live bit from Dhaka’s famous restaurants to stream Dhaka’s food market, culture and hospitality.     

Along with regular daily Live Bits schedule, we will do fresh bit in the same day by uploading video clip in online ( at http://www.80plus1.org and artist’s blog )  on the same market place with caption story and photographs. Moreover with the footage collected in 81 days a complete video documentary with 81 minutes duration would be produced. The videos, photographs and content of Dhakai Market would be available at 80plus1.org, however the final video ‘cannet bits’  production would be available as DVD both in Dhaka and Linz. For the live bits high speed wireless internet connectivity with portable devices and multimedia set up would be used.

Schedule:  The Dhaka tour would be started on 17th June to 4th August. The Live Bits duration is for one hour from 4-5 P.M. of Bangladesh time that is 11-12 A.M. in Linz with hour’s time difference.

Dear  All,

Many of us have been advocating for several years, the adoption of FOSS
applications and platforms in our country. FOSS related advocacy has
been gradually gathering energies, including the campaign against
software patents, including FOSS in the CBSE syllabi , suggesting a FOSS
manifesto for political parties in the recent elections etc.

However, we do have a long way to go before FOSS is taken as a default
software option. Towards this cause, a network or a coalition of
organizations working on FOSS adoption and promotion, would be able to
act more cohesively on issues and strengthen our individual efforts.
While such an initiative will be energy-intensive and time-consuming, it
would help orchestrate our advocacy for FOSS adoption. We are writing to
you to invite you to a meeting to discuss the building of such a
coalition comprising of members from academic institutions, NGOs and
CBOs, research and advocacy groups, professional associations, FOSS
enterprises, FOSS user groups, government officials, media professionals
etc and also its possible priorities.

The first meeting of this network was held in Bangalore in February 09,
when over 30 people met and discussed issues including working with
Universities in Karnataka through NRC-FOSS, to adopt FOSS, train
teachers on GNU/Linux (the Karnataka Computer learning program in
schools is on GNU/Linux), countering monopolistic and restrictive
practices in the IT sector,  technical aspects such as developing local
language fonts that are Unicode compliant etc. A mailing list and a wiki
(http://fosscomm.in) have been since created.Please see the
wiki(http://fosscomm.in) for a more detailed update on that meeting and
activities post that meeting.

We now plan to continue building this coalition, with a meeting in
Delhi. We request you to join for a full-day meeting on the 4th of July
at the JNU, New Delhi (exact venue within JNU will be communicated shortly).

The proposed (draft) agenda for the meeting is as follows-
1. Reporting on the Bangalore FOSSCOMM 1st Meeting and follow up

2. “Open Standards” Follow up on the Department of IT's draft policy on
open standards (http://www.mit.gov.in/download/Policyonopensandards.pdf)
3. FOSS in Education
  What the FOSS community can do to promote the use of FOSS in School
Education and Higher Education

4. Software Patents and other legal issues
a) Take up pre and post grant opposition for selected cases
b) Take up the issue of Draft Manual which deviates from the Patent Act
c) Take up with the Competition Commission, practices which seem to be
restrictive or monopolistic.

5. Building political consensus around FOSS as an important factor for
India's development

If you require accommodation, please let us know, we will try and
arrange at JNU.
The travel costs as well as the cost of stay would have to be borne by
the participants.

For those requesting accommodation, please write to the following:
Prof. Andrew Lynn lynn.andrew@... and Rajesh Kalithody -
myidrajesh@...

Any suggestion/modifications to the agenda are welcome.

Thanks,
Vinay Sreenivasa
On behalf of the Delhi Organizing Group, FOSSCOMM(National network of
the FOSS Community in India)

--

Vinay Sreenivasa
IT for Change
91-98805-95032
vinay@...

http://itforchange.net
http://public-software.in