CircleID

I think James is objecting to the role of Afilias in this (such as his statement that they funded Che-Hoo to organize support for .asia, and that he doubts if other organizations such that get tld management outsourced to them, or local governments, were consulted in the matter) rather than anything else.

Agreed, .asia is something that has been discussed over the last two or three years at least, but some of James' questions are worth discussing.  Getting into an argument over them (as the thread between James and CheHoo is tending to become) may not be as productive though

Hmm ... while there is a commerical interest involved, Afilias' commitment to the proliferation of the Internet is the underlying strategic reason here—the company has funded other initiatives in other parts of the world, including Apricot, AFNOG, NDSS, INET etc. etc.

Attacking Che Hoo's integrity gets us nowhere - he's been an individual of outstanding rectitude. Countries that don't participate in many other international fora are interested in this venture.  I see nothing to apologize for returning domain registration fees back to the country of origin.

Fact is, Che-Hoo now has more members signed up in the not-for-profit .ASIA venture than ICANN's own ccNSO.

Whether ICANN approves the domain or not, this by itself is a remarkable event. Actions, not words.

Note: These comments are my personal opinion

My objection is in the *form* of .ASIA - of how is it been put together. We have to asked ourselves if it is *really* community driven - on the surface it is, but for those who witness the foundation, no.

It already started off wrongly. And experience tells me it is futile to think you can fixed it after it is formed. So lets stop the mistake here and now.

ps: Let me repeat again: I am not anti-afilias or against che-hoo (i have nothing against che-hoo, whom I know for years). I would have said all the same of these if it is someone else, say verisign or neustar. The lack of accountibility is not acceptable.

Dear all,

We are constructing an FAQ Section on our website which will address many of the misunderstandings and questions that people may have.  It should be ready by early next week.  Please have a look then.  Thanks a lot.

Che-Hoo CHENG
Interim CEO
DotAsia Organisation Limited