W: ALAC-Internal proposal for modification of rule 21- 4 November 2008 –
Proposal by Carlos Aguirre
Foundations for a change to the proposal 21:
The current modification allows to sanction an ALAC Member when the majority of the Members of the Committee so decide in a special meeting (whether the periodic ALAC meeting or an extraordinary meeting called by a definite number of Members in case it should be necessary to call a meeting of the Members sooner). Likewise, it grants the Member in question the undeniable defence rights within a short but practicable delay. Lastly, it entrust the responsibility of finding a substitute for that Member to the body which elected him/her and only to do so when it was so decided by the majority of the ALAC Members after they had considered that his/her activity as well qualitatively as quantitatively had remained unsatisfactory for a period of three months starting after the Committee decided at the majority of its Members that the activity was questionable
The current proposal abolishes the infamous requirement of having to set minimal written participation requirements (these requirements will be determined by all the ALAC Members during an Ad Hoc session) and will grant to the Member whose compliance is called into question the guarantee that he will be assessed by his peers and that the decision to sanction him will require a consensus or the majority of the votes of the committee members. Further, it offers a second guarantee by allowing the body which appointed him/her (RALO – NonCom) to ratify him/her in his/her position
Likewise, it morally compels every Member to participate efficiently in quality and quantity within reasonable limits (the average limits of the ALAC Members) in order to avoid them the stigma that would result from his/her examination and the then communication of the blame sanction to the body that appointed him.
1. ALAC will have to meet in a special session every six month (or every two meetings) or on request of at least one third of its Members in case a shorter period is needed, in order to examine the quantitative and qualitative participation of its Members in their various functions.
2. Once gathered in a special session, ALAC will first determine the relevancy of examining the activity of each of its Members or decide that to examine only the activity of one or more Members, this being decided upon a simple majority of votes of the Members being present.
3. ALAC will ask to the Member under examination a detailed report of his/her activity during the period at question. The report will have to be presented during the same session after a break of 15 minutes following the decision to examine his/her activity.
4. After the 15 minutes break, ALAC will listen to the report of the Member subject to examination and to the reasons or principles for his activity or lack of action.
5. After having listened to the report, ALAC will (during the same session) summarily examine the report and will have to assess whether the examined Member’s activity calls for a comment, some advice or a blame. For any decision, ALAC will seek a consensus. In case this consensus should not be met, any decision to sanction will need at least the simple majority of the votes of the Members being present.
6. ALAC will have to meet in an Ad Hoc extraordinary session, within three months (or at the next meeting) following the decision to sanction, in order to examine the Member’s participation progress or regression. After the ensuing debate, if it results that the Member’s at question participation has evolved the same way during the three months following the blaming decision, ALAC will be entitled, on a simple majority of its members provided there is no consensus intervening, to ask to the appointing body (RALO – NonCom) for a substitute as soon as possible. The ALAC Member subject to the examination and whose replacement has been asked will continue in his/her function until the nomination of his substitute or until the end of his/her mandate in case the appointed body ratifies him/her.
7. The present modification to Rule 21 will take effect after ALAC approbation and after having been duly communicated to each RALO, current ALAC Members and the ICANN Board.