Coalition of willing against EU in online porn dispute

Stan Beer
Friday, 12 May 2006 08:10

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The US, UK and Australia have closed ranks after EU accusations that the US has interfered with the operation of the internet addressing system, following the rejection of a top level domain devoted to pornography. The board of international domain names regulator ICANN yesterday voted down a longstanding proposal to set up a .xxx domain by a margin of 9 to 5. While details of the members who voted and their reasons will not be released until later this month, internet pioneer Vint Cerf from the US and ICANN chairman Paul Twomey, from Australia, are known to have voted against the proposal.

In response to the decision not to allow the new domain to be registered, representatives from the European Union have accused the US of political interference.

“We see here a clear case of political interference in ICANN. It’s a worrying development that the US administration has interfered in this process,” a spokesman for Ms Viviane Reding, commissioner for information society and media in the European Union, is reported to have said in the Financial Times.

ICANN chairman, Paul Twomey, chairman has rejected the allegation of political interference as ignorant but now the Australian Government has bought into the row by issuing a statement of its own.

The Australian Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Helen Coonan, issued a statement yesterday, welcoming the decision by ICANN, to block the establishment of a .xxx domain for adult content.

“This is a positive outcome that has prevented the creation of a domain that could have acted as a haven for illegal and offensive content,” Senator Coonan said.

“The Australian Government had previously expressed our opposition to the creation of a .xxx domain through representations made to ICANN’s Governmental Advisory Committee by my Department.

“The Australian Government had grave concerns about the .xxx proposal, stating strong objection to any measure that would lead to an increase in pornography on the Internet, push offensive content on vulnerable groups or create a haven for illegal material.

“ICANN’s decision is also a reassurance that this body, responsible for overseeing the administration of domains at a global level, has robust decision-making processes that take account of stakeholders’ input.

“The ability for stakeholders, including Governments, to provide public policy input into the decision-making process is a strength of the ICANN model.

“Australia’s involvement in international discussions surrounding the .xxx proposal has been consistent with the Government’s long standing interest in ensuring that Australians using the Internet are able to do so in a safe and secure way.”

The EU, through the European Comission, initiated an unsuccessful power struggle with the US over control of ICANN last year, with one of the major causes of concern being a perception that non-English language domain applications get second class attention.

However, aside from the Anglo-alliance of three, Denmark (an EU member), Sweden and Brazil were opposed to the formation of the domain, putting a dent in the EU's Anglo conspiracy theory.