[Politech] Anyone going to the United Nations summit in Tunisia next month? [fs]

From: Declan McCullagh (declan@private)
Date: Wed Oct 19 2005 - 13:54:43 PDT


I've got my plane tickets (arriving a few days before the formal start). 
Looks like the pre-summit politicking is beginning, as you can see below.

-Declan

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	Business leaders descend on Tunis to set out their vision of
an information society
Date: 	Mon, 17 Oct 2005 17:04:15 +0200
From: 	nnl@private
To: 	declan.mccullagh@private


For the attention of Mr Declan McCullagh

Business leaders descend on Tunis to set out their vision of an
information society


Paris, 17 October 2005 - Business leaders from four continents will set
out their vision of the future of information and communication
technologies and the Internet during a specially-convened session at the
UN World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis.

Hailing from as far afield as India, Korea, Egypt and the Americas, and
representing companies which span the gamut of businesses – from
multinational mobile phone companies to web-based start-ups and India’s
largest Internet Service Provider (ISP) - the business delegation to
WSIS will pause during the Summit deliberations to take stock of
proceedings and offer a business commentary.

“This will be an opportunity for the private sector to pass comment on
the WSIS negotiations and outcomes, and set out what we believe are the
essential ingredients for a truly inclusive information society,”
explained Guy Sebban, ICC’s Secretary General and chair of CCBI
(Coordinating Committee of Business Interlocutors for WSIS). “Issues of
internet governance, creating digital opportunities, how countries can
best lay the groundwork for ICT investment will all be examined.”

Mr Sebban said he was encouraged by the wide cross-section of industry,
from “all corners of the globe”, who would be represented at the
interactive session.

Participants in the CCBI session include business leaders from such
large companies as, Vivendi Universal and Nokia, as well as the CEO of
India’s largest ISP, Sify Corp and one of Korea’s fastest growing web
companies, Netpia.com.

“The diversity of countries and experiences represented at this meeting
will offer a wide range of business perspectives and experiences, from
many different countries and markets, on the crucial issues being
debated at WSIS,” he said.

Featured speakers at the meeting will include:
Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh and Co, Arab States
Jean-Philippe Courtois, President, Microsoft International; Senior Vice
President, Microsoft Corporation, France
Mohamed Ibrahim, Chairman, Celtel International, The Netherlands
Amin Lakhani, Managing Director, Lakson Group of Companies, Pakistan
Pan Jung Lee, Founder and President, Netpia.com, South Korea
Jean-Bernard Lévy, Chairman of the Management Board and Chief Executive
Officer, Vivendi Universal, France
Velusamy Mathivanan, Chief Executive Officer, CrimsonLogic, Singapore
Richard McCormick, Chairman Emeritus, US West; Vice Chair, United States
Council for International Business; Chairman, International Chamber of
Commerce (2001-2002)
Rama Ramaraj, Chief Executive Officer, Sify Corp, India
Veli Sundbäck, Senior Vice President, Nokia, Finland

One of the focuses of the business-led session will be to identify the
conditions that are required to encourage investment in ICTs and the
importance of ensuring the Internet remains an open environment with a
free flow of information.

“Business alone has the experience, capability and financial resources
to turn many of the words at WSIS into action,” said Mr Sebban. “But it
cannot do it without the cooperation of governments or in isolation from
civil society”


Meeting Information:
“The business view on critical issues for the Information Society”

Thursday 17 November 10.00-13.00
Kram Conference Centre
Interactive Roundtable Discussion


Note to editors:

About CCBI
The Coordinating Committee of Business Interlocutors (CCBI) is the voice
of business at WSIS. The summit organizers invited the International
Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to create a vehicle to coordinate private
sector input. The result is CCBI, a network of business organizations
whose members include companies of all sizes, in all sectors, from all
over the world.

"Business has the unique capability to generate the ingredients required
to continue to build the infrastructure, technology, and tools to make
the information society a reality. Information and communication
technologies are critical tools for economic growth and social
development. Maximizing business innovation, entrepreneurship and
resources, and building partnerships that draw upon the complementary
fields of experience and expertise of all stakeholders will help us to
realize the full potential of this global asset."
Guy Sebban, Secretary General, ICC


For further information on the event, WSIS or the CCBI, visit the
website: www.businessatwsis.net.

About ICC

ICC is the largest, most representative business organization in the
world. Its thousands of member companies in over 130 countries have
interests spanning every sector of private enterprise.

A world network of national committees keeps the ICC International
Secretariat in Paris informed about national and regional business
priorities. More than 2000 experts drawn from ICC’s member companies
feed their knowledge and experience into crafting the ICC stance on
specific business issues.

The United Nations, the World Trade Organization, and many other
intergovernmental bodies, both international and regional, are kept in
touch with the views of international business through ICC.

For more information please visit: www.iccwbo.org

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