Cruz, Other IANA Transition Skeptics Question ICANN CEO's Involvement in China-led Internet Governance Group

GOP presidential contender Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and two other senators who have been skeptical about the planned Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition raised concerns Thursday about retiring ICANN CEO Fadi Chehadé's involvement with the controversial Chinese government-led World Internet Conference (WIC). Chehadé agreed to become the co-chairman of a high-level advisory committee to WIC after his planned March departure from ICANN, along with planned roles as a senior adviser to Abry Partners and World Economic Forum Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab. Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke at WIC's December conference in Wuzhen, China, supporting allowing countries to “independently choose their own path of cyber development,” raising concerns among pro-multistakeholder Internet governance stakeholders (see 1512180049 and 1512290044).

“Given your assurance to preserve and prolong the free and open Internet, we were surprised and dismayed to learn that [Chehadé] agreed to co-chair a high-level advisory committee” for WIC in the midst of his leadership of ICANN, which NTIA currently contracts to administer the IANA functions and the root zone file, said Cruz and Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, in a joint letter to Chehadé. Lankford and Lee co-sponsored Cruz's failed attempt to attach a modified version of the Domain Openness Through Continued Oversight Matters Act (S-1551) as an amendment to the Transportation for Tomorrow Act highway funding bill (HR-22) that would have required Congress to vote on the IANA transition (see 1507290061). Chehadé's participation in WIC “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,” the senators said. They also raised concerns about other members of the high-level WIC advisory committee, including Alibaba founder Jack Ma and representatives from the League of Arab States, Iran and Russia, who all “represent countries whose policies have undermined a free and open Internet.”

Cruz and the other senators are seeking responses from Chehadé to pointed questions about his participation in the WIC advisory committee, in part because his role at WIC “raises concerns about a personal conflict of interest,” given his current role at ICANN, the senators said. Federal regulations define a personal conflict of interest as including travel and any other form of compensation. Cruz and the other senators are seeking further information on WIC, Chehadé's becoming involved in WIC, compensation he's receiving for joining the WIC advisory committee, and the extent to which ICANN and NTIA approved Chehadé's involvement with the advisory committee. The senators want a response to their inquiry by 9 a.m. Feb. 19. An ICANN spokesman said ICANN received the letter to Chehadé and is reviewing it, but declined to comment further.