Letter to ICANN CEO on World Internet Conference

Presidential candidate U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Mike Lee (R-Utah) sent a letter to Fadi Chehade, CEO of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), currently under contract with the federal government February 4, 2016. The senators “raised serious concerns and requested information regarding Mr. Chehade’s involvement with the World Internet Conference, organized by the Chinese government, a regime notorious for its censorship of the Internet and criminalization of forms of online speech,” they write in a press release.

“As you must know, the World Internet Conference is not a beacon of free speech,” Cruz, Lankford, and Lee wrote. “It has been heavily criticized by members of the press for refusing to allow China-based reporters for the New York Times and Washington Post to cover the conference.

Reporters Without Borders demanded an international boycott of the conference, calling China the ‘enemy of the Internet.’ In addition, GreatFire co-founder, Charlie Smith, described foreign guests of the Conference as ‘complicit actors in the Chinese censorship regime and are lending legitimacy to Lu Wei, CAC and their heavy-handed approach to Internet governance. They are, in effect, helping to put all Chinese who stand for their constitutional right to free speech behind bars.’”

The senators continued: “ICANN’s participation in the World Internet Conference is especially concerning because of the Chinese government’s long and established record of restricting free access to the Internet, censoring content, and criminalizing certain forms of online speech. Just recently, Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization dedicated to the expansion of freedom and democracy around the world, released their report ‘Freedom on the Net 2015’ in which China was ranked last in the world for Internet freedom. Not only has China used the Internet as means of surveillance within its borders, but some believe that Chinese hackers may be responsible for a breach of U.S. Government databases at the Office of Personnel Management, which resulted in the theft of personal information of more the 22 million Americans.”

The U.S. Senators wrote to the CEO of ICANN:

“On March 14, 2014, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) announced its intent to relinquish oversight of Internet domain name functions to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the “global stakeholder community.”

When testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, you stated that “NTIA’s announcement preserves and prolongs the free and open Internet that has brought so much economic growth and social and cultural development.”

As you must know, the World Internet Conference is not a beacon of free speech. It has been heavily criticized by members of the press for refusing to allow China-based reporters for the New York Times and Washington Post to cover the conference.

ICANN’s participation in the World Internet Conference is especially concerning because of the Chinese government’s long and established record of restricting free access to the Internet, censoring content, and criminalizing certain forms of online speech. Just recently, Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization dedicated to the expansion of freedom and democracy around the world, released their report “Freedom on the Net 2015” in which China was ranked last in the world for Internet freedom.

Also concerning is the membership of the Conference’s advisory committee on which you have agreed to serve. Your co-chair, for instance, is Jack Ma, founder of China’s Internet giant Alibaba, which is currently helping the Chinese government develop a “social credit system” to monitor and score the behavior of individuals and businesses in China. In addition, some of the members of the committee, such as the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union, the League of Arab States, the Russian Safe Internet League, and the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology of Iran, represent countries whose policies have undermined a free and open Internet.

Finally, your participation as a co-chair of the committee raises concerns about a personal conflict of interest while you serve as the Chief Executive Officer of ICANN under contract with the United States Government. According to federal regulations, a personal conflict of interest is defined as “a situation in which a covered employee has a financial interest, personal activity or relationship that could impair the employee’s ability to act impartially and in the best interest of the Government when performing under the contract.” Potential sources of personal conflicts are gifts, including travel; compensation, including wages, salaries, commission, professional fees, or fees for business referrals; other employment or financial relationships (including seeking or negotiating for prospective employment or business); and consulting relationships (including commercial and professional consulting and service arrangements, scientific and technical advisory board memberships, or serving as an expert witness in litigation).”