[ppml] Afrinic and so-called sub-regional policies

[Bill Woodcock]

      On Tue, 30 Sep 2003 Michael.Dillon at radianz.com wrote:
    > By doing this we are supporting Afrinic as an independent organization
    > that is able to make its own policy decisions for its own members. I
    > believe this is the only reasonable choice for ARIN members and it's not
    > based on the contents of the policy but on the fact that it is a policy
    > for Africans that was made by Africans. I don't believe that it sets any
    > precedent for so-called sub-regions because this policy is actually about
    > uniting the regions of a continent, not about subdividing. Internal North
    > American issues are irrelevant to 2003-15. This is a unique situation that
    > will not happen again and an opportunity for us to make a gesture of
    > goodwill towards the ISPs in southern African countries.

I couldn't agree more strongly.  This summarizes some of the best
arguments in favor of helping Africa be self-governing.  Just one thing to
add:  By bringing more African ISPs into RIR membership now, we assist
AfriNIC in its jump-starting process, by handing over a larger number of
members to them at their inception.  That means more membership revenue
more quickly, for them, and it means more people coming to their meetings
and voting on policy.  I would be really sad if we were only able to hand
nineteen members over to them at their inception.

                                -Bill