Public comment on the Initial Report on the Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers in All gTLDs, by National Red Cross and Red Crescent Society legal advisers and similar officers

["Michael Meyer" <MMeyer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Public comment on the Initial Report on the Protection of IGO and INGO
Identifiers in All gTLDs, by National Red Cross and Red Crescent Society
legal advisers and similar officers
 
On behalf of the National Red Cross and National Red Crescent Societies
listed below, we are writing in relation to the Initial Report on the
Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers in All gTLDs, prepared by ICANN
staff and the PDP Working Group and posted for public comment on 14 June
2013. The National Societies concerned wish to offer the following
comments on the report and its recommendations.
 
(1) Having been actively engaged in this long-standing issue, National
Red Cross and National Red Crescent Societies reiterate our firm support
for permanent protection of the Red Cross, Red Crescent and Red Crystal
designations and related names from registration as top and second level
domain names. In this regard we support the submissions of the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International
Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the two
international components of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent
Movement (the Movement). 
 
(2) We express our appreciation for the progress already achieved, in
particular the confirmation by ICANN's Board of a temporary reservation
of the Red Cross and Red Crescent designations at the top and second
levels, as set out in the Applicant Guidebook and in Annex 5 to the
revised Registry Agreement. This welcome step indicates that the
protection of the designations, which is based upon universally accepted
norms of international humanitarian law and which is supported by the
Government Advisory Committee (GAC) to ICANN, is being given due
consideration. 
 
(3) The protection of these designations stems from the 1949 Geneva
Conventions and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, as well as
from the legislation in force in over 130 countries[1] (
about:blank#_ftn1 ) (a small selection of the latter was identified in
the research undertaken by ICANN’s General Counsel, as set out in Annex
4 to the Initial Report on the Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers in
All gTLDs). Like the distinctive emblems of the red cross and red
crescent to which they relate, their primary use is by the Medical
Service of countries’ armed forces in times of armed conflict. They also
form part of the names of Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations, in
order to show their membership of the Movement. On this basis, the
distinctive emblems and their designations play an essential function in
wartime and in other humanitarian emergencies, and are protected by
international and national laws at all times. Their misuse or
unauthorised use risks undermining their special meaning and purpose.   
 
 
(4) National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies take note of the
Initial Report on the Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers in All
gTLDs Policy Development Process,  and of the various policy
recommendations set out in sections 4.3 to 4.7 of the report. Although
we do not object to the approach of the GAC, which groups the Red
Cross/Red Crescent and IOC cases together, we find helpful the view
taken by the PDP Working Group that protections of IGO, INGO, IOC and
Red Cross/Red Crescent identifiers may be considered separately from one
another. We would encourage ICANN and its decision-making authorities to
confirm the reservation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent designations
from top and second level registration in the current round and in all
future rounds of application.
 
(5) Additionally, we would strongly urge ICANN to further protect the
Red Cross and Red Crescent designations as follows:
 The express extension of the current protection of reserved Red Cross
and Red Crescent designations (as foreseen in Annex 5 to the revised
Registry Agreement mentioned above) to the full names of the respective
Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations (i.e. the 189 recognised
National Red Cr
oss and Red Crescent Societies, the International
Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies). This would conform to the requirements of
international law and ensure that the reservation covers not only the
designations per se (i.e. Red Cross or Red Crescent), but also the full
names of the Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations, such as “American
Red Cross”, “Croix-Rouge française”, or “Egyptian Red Crescent”,  in the
official languages of their respective States of origin. The names of
the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International
Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies should be included in
the six United Nations languages, as well as their usual initials (ICRC
and IFRC). 
Such protection could be implemented in one of two ways: 

 
-       an extension of the current list of reserved Red Cross and Red
Crescent designations to include a full list of the names of the Red
Cross and Red Crescent organisations; or
-       the implementation of a string similarity review mechanism “by
key word” to prevent the registration of strings including either of the
“red cross” or “red crescent” designations. 
 The inclusion of the Red Cross and Red Crescent designations and names
on a “Modified Reserved Names List”. This would importantly preserve the
entitlement of Movement components to register relevant domain names
should they require to do so. This would also conform with the
above-mentioned international treaties and norms, which provide for use
of the designations by the respective Red Cross and Red Crescent
organisations to show their membership of the Movement. 

 The establishment of a string similarity review to prevent the
registration of strings confusingly similar to the Red Cross and Red
Crescent designations and related names at the top and second levels.
This would reflect the provisions of international humanitarian law
expressly prohibiting unauthorised use, at all times, of imitations of
the designations (Article 53 of the First Geneva Convention).
Illustrations of such imitations include, for example, ‘Red Kross’ or
‘Redd Crescent’.

 
We would like once again to express our appreciation to ICANN and its
respective bodies and constituencies for their continued consideration
of this important matter. The protection of the Red Cross and Red
Crescent designations from any form of misuse, while the primary
responsibility of States, is a core function of National Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies. Together with the distinctive emblems, these
designations facilitate the protection and safe access of armed forces’
medical services and of others caring for the wounded and sick in times
of armed conflict. They also serve to identify Red Cross and Red
Crescent organisations, who are mandated to provide neutral and
impartial humanitarian assistance in all situations of crisis. 
 
Thank you in advance for considering the above.
 
On behalf of legal advisers and similar officers from the following
National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies:
 
Afghan Red Crescent Society
American Red Cross
Australian Red Cross
Bangladesh Red Crescent Society
Belarus Red Cross Society
Belgian Red Cross 
British Red Cross
Bulgarian Red Cross
Burundi Red Cross  
Canadian Red Cross
Red Cross Society of China
Cook Islands Red Cross Society
Red Cross Society of Côte D’Ivoire
Colombian Red Cross
Danish Red Cross
Red Cross of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Ecuadorian Red Cross
Egyptian Red Crescent
Ethiopian Red Cross Society
Finnish Red Cross
French Red Cross
Georgia Red Cross Society
German Red Cross 
Ghana Red Cross Society
Red Cross Society of Guinea-Bissau
Iranian Red Crescent Society
Iraqi Red Crescent Society
Irish Red Cross
Magen David Adom in Israel
Jamaica Red Cross
Japanese Red Cross Society
Korean Red Cross (Republic of)
Lebanese Red Cross
Lithuanian Red Cross Society
Malawi Red Cross Society
Malaysian Red
 Crescent
Maldivian Red Crescent
Mozambique Red Cross Society
Namibia Red Cross Society
Nepal Red Cross Society
New Zealand Red Cross 
Red Cross Society of Niger
Nigerian Red Cross Society
Norwegian Red Cross
Philippine Red Cross 
Polish Red Cross
Qatar Red Crescent Society
Saudi Red Crescent Authority
Sierra Leone Red Cross Society
Sri Lanka Red Cross Society
Swedish Red Cross
Swiss Red Cross
Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan
Tanzania Red Cross Society
Trinidad and Tobago Red Cross Society
Red Crescent Society of the United Arab Emirates
                                                                       
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
                                                                        
           

[1] ( about:blank#_ftnref1 )Source: ICRC database on national
implementation (accessible at http://www.icrc.org/ihl-nat).


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