[New-imc] imc-palestine, moving forward with the list

[Petros Evdokas]

Hello,

I'm sending a copy of this letter to the new-imc work group, and to each 
of the proposed admin/moderators jof the imc-pal email list.

Please feel free to send copies of this letter to whoever else you think 
should see it. As soon as the list is functional, I will repost it there 
as well.


Moving forward.
Thank you both, George and Boud, for helping clarify where we're at with 
establishing the new list.


I'd like to propose the following, and if there are any questions, 
suggestions for improvement, disagreements, needs for further 
explanation, I'd be happy to engage in further dialogue about any of them.

- Please consider me as an applicant to be subscribed to the new imc-pal 
email list. Please enroll me as soon as the list becomes available. I'll 
send a personal introduction to the list as soon as I'm enrolled.


Please consider the following proposals for the activity and orientation 
of the administrator/moderators of the list:

- We should ask every single person who is requesting to be enrolled, to 
send a personal introduction to the list so that we all know who is 
talking to whom.

- I would strongly ask that anyone among our list applicants who has had 
anything to do with previous incarnations of imc-palestine, should be 
strongly encouraged to also include in their introduction something to 
tell us about their role or participation or knowledge of that previous 
period.

- I would suggest that any and all list applicants be reminded to look 
at the IndyMedia Principles of Unity, here:
http://docs.indymedia.org/view/Global/PrinciplesOfUnity
and the page titled "New Imc - How To"
http://docs.indymedia.org/view/Global/NewImcHowTo
which describes the process of establishing a new imc group.

These readings will help all of us to remain within the same context 
during our discussions.

- There are some general, "large", clusters of themes that need to be 
discussed. We will need good moderation to navigate through those 
themes. Before we even list those clusters of themes, it will be 
necessary to identify some qualities of the discussion process on the list:

      a. the dialogue on the list shall not be in any way a replacement 
for the actual dialogue occuring in the context of organizational work 
among Palestinian indymedia members, supporters, friends aimed at 
establishing imc-Palestine. That organizational process and dialogue 
must keep taking place among Palestinians, in Arabic. Hopefully it will 
continue to solidify by a combination of person to person contact 
through actual meetings, telephone contacts, and fax, email, etc, 
exchanges. The imc-pal list is *~not~* a substitute for that organizing 
process.

      b. for now, until palestine indymedia becomes established as a 
functional local group, let's try to use the imc-pal list as a tool to 
clarify through dialogue everything that needs to be clarified in a 
direct exchange between our Palestinian colleagues and indymedia groups. 
Primary among those groups is the new-imc work group, but there will be 
occasional need to discuss with listworks, imc-process, 
imc-communication, imc-finance, plus any other local/regional indymedia 
groups. Let's consider that the list, imc-pal, will be a tool of open 
and direct dialogue between indymedia (and its parts) and the 
Palestinian individuals and organizations that are converging to 
re-establish imc-Palestine.

After we're done with that big first step and the group has become fully 
established as a fully independent and autonomous indymedia 
organization, the list can be re-oriented to other uses.

- The proposed cluster themes.
It needs to be understood that the struggle to establish and maintain a 
well- organized and valid imc-Palestine group is not separate from the 
struggle for the liberation of Palestine. Many of the same principles 
such as democracy, autonomy, Palestinian self-determination apply in 
both projects.

In addition, the process of clarifying the issues in the cluster themes 
below now, from the beginning, will prepare the group politically and 
organizationally so that when we are ready to present the new formation 
to the rest of indymedia in order to gain approval, we can be ready to 
handle any objections or opposition with a solid and coherent behaviour, 
good politics, clear editorial policies, mature organizational form. 
Otherwise, the chaotic and (often unprincipled, often unaccountable) 
kind of opposition we sometimes see mobilized among indymedia procedures 
will destroy us directly at the outset. I would like to make sure that 
we will be able to present a new Palestinian imc group whose case (and 
application) will be unshakeable. The global liberation movement and 
Palestine have a very strong need for a highly functional and coherent 
imc-Palestine group.

Here are some of the cluster themes:

Editorial Policy issues,
Organizational affiliations, origins, etc.
Politics.

There might be more clusters or issues that each of you may wish to add 
to the dialogue agenda - please feel free to do that.

On the above cluster themes, subdivisions of related subjects include:

Editorial Policy issues
- we are going to need to clarify to ourselves and to others that 
webpage design is not editorial policy, they are different subjects 
(related of course). Indymedia is not a website, it's an organization of 
radical and progressive community activists and free media journalists.
- the multiplicity of voices from Palestine - at least from all the 
sectors of society involved in the progressive and radical community - 
needs to be served as a whole by indymedia. We'll need to find ways to 
ensure that they are all given access to be channelled through 
indymedia. Some of the individuals and organizations that are involved 
at this level, already have some sort of orientation (editorial 
direction); we need to find ways to expand that.
- the reality in Palestine is so complex and highly charged that we 
can't have simplistic solutions; if the editorial policy that becomes 
finalized is, or appears to be, exclusive of some points of view or 
aspects of reality, we're going to have to re-examine everything until 
we can ensure a polyphony.

Organizational affiliations, origins, etc.
- we will need to guide the organizational efforts of the very near 
future to include as many more Palestinian organizations, wings, 
tendencies, individuals active within the radical and progressive 
community as possible, so that imc Palestine will not become a monopoly 
or a franchise solely in any single pair of hands.
- we are still going to have those dialogues about relationships between 
imc-Palestine and groups with employees. Also, about affiliations with 
other local and international organizations. Everyone who is invited to 
participate by becoming a member, friend, ally, or even just as a 
reader, will need to have access to enough transparent information about 
all of us, in order to be able to evaluate who we are and what we do.

Politics
- everything that applies in the above clusters, applies to politics. 
Unfortunately, the terms (words, concepts) we use in politics might be 
difficult sometimes to use in a dialogue without "pushing the buttons" 
of aggravation, but we're going to have to find a way to do this with 
politeness, pleasantly, and consciously. The political terms (words, 
concepts, ideas, principles) that end up being the common ground of 
imc-Palestine will have to be as inclusive as possible. We'll need to 
find ways to improve on this.


Well, that's all for now. I hope we'll find warm and positive ways to 
overcome a common reluctance discuss these themes, and find ways to 
enjoy building this organization together.

I look forward to your thoughts,
Petros
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