Dr. Vaezi, the Minister of Communication and Information Technology, attending the World Internet Conference (2015) in China, stated that: “The system for Global Internet Governance should be democratic, transparent and government-supportive.”
Public Relation Center of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology reports that Dr. Vaezi, stated at the closing ceremony of China’s second World Internet Conference in the city of Wuzhen that: “One of the current major concerns of virtual space is the abuse and exploitation of internet by groups and persons; a topic which was one of the main concerns of the participants of this conference, and was extensively addressed and discussed in the related specialized committees.”
He included that: “The subject was so serious that even many western countries participating in China’s gathering were also stressing on the necessity of earnestly confronting cyber-crime and cyber-terrorism.
Vaezi went on to say: “World Internet Governance should be democratic and transparent, and at the same time, supportive of governments so that the expectations and the desired security which every country and government wishes of the virtual environment, could be realized in practice.”
He expressed that: “The United Stated is trying to keep the monopoly of the internet for itself, but with the topics presented and discussed during the last three days, it seems that a serious determination is taking shape to put an end to this monopolization.”
Vaezi highlighted that: “All countries wish for a virtual environment where respect is shown to sovereignty of nations, enjoys safe and secure infrastructures, and provides a clean and healthy environment free from any threat, something which can only be realized through collective effort and collaboration.”
He referred to the topic of ‘personal privacy’ and respecting these boundaries, as one of the main themes in the specialized meetings of the World Internet Conference, including that: “Government representatives stated in this session that there should guarantees and safeguards in place to protect this privacy and stop any attempt to steal its data.”
In another part of his statement, Vaezi referred to the growth and expansion of the virtual environment, and the difficulties such an environment can cause for our young generation from a cultural aspect, adding that: “Although virtual environments can be at the service of mankind, they can also be extremely dangerous for people of the world; because the possibility exist that some persons might be thinking of abusing virtual space and the internet for their own gain and benefit, and by designing programs, to endanger the whole structure of the internet.”
The ICT Minister reminded that: “These topics were among the key subjects for the Islamic countries present in the World Internet Conference in China, especially Iran, and we announced that we cannot sacrifice ethical, spiritual, and cultural issues in the virtual environment for the sake of advancing technology.”
He went on to say: “Therefore we emphasized that respecting the variety and diversity of ethics, beliefs, and cultures must be universally recognized as a common cultural inheritance in the virtual space, and should be respected by all countries.”
Vaezi reminded that: “Being careless toward the above mentioned items can create a suitable situation for criminals and wrongdoers in the internet environment from every aspect, enabling them to abuse the opportunities and carry out actions which can threaten and endanger countries.”
The Communication Minister highlighted the creation and execution of special rules and regulations as a solution for preventing possible misuses in virtual environment, saying that: “Doing what we already did in the ITU by passing regulations regarding the existing situation of telecommunications, international community must walk the same path in the virtual space by regulating it.”
He stated that: “International rules and regulations should be compulsory for all nations, and one of the discussions we had in the conference in China was that we should do a similar thing for the internet, to avoid having a chaotic situation in the virtual space.”
Vaezi asserted that: “To have and enjoy a safe and transparent virtual space, it is highly essential to formulate special rules and regulations, so that governments can not only carry out the necessary management, but protect that environment from any sort of abuse, and unethical and anti-cultural actions.”
He underscored the importance of fighting terrorism in virtual space, by saying: “Confronting this ever-growing phenomenon was one of the main concerns of the participants of the conference.”
He announced that: “Just like the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Heads of Governments (Prime Ministers) Council in China, the participants of this conference also stated that in order to put up a serious resistance against phenomenon, they have to act together in form of international collaborations, and agreed on the fact that no country can act alone in trying to fight this problem.”
He expressed that: “Since terrorism is transforming into a global predicament, it was emphasized in this conference that all countries should actively participate in this area, so that the privacy and boundaries of state data is not harmed or violated by terrorist groups.”
In continuation, Vaezi referred to the reaction of the participating ministers and high-ranking officials of the World Internet Conference to the news concerning the removal of the ‘PMD’ case from the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), stating that: “The circulation of this news caused widespread contentment and pleasure among the participants, resulting in a cascade of congratulation messages to the government of the I.R. of Iran, announcing their willingness to develop relations and extend cooperation with Tehran in all fields and areas.”
He reminded that: “They were acknowledging the new position of Iran in the International area, stressing that the conditions were now favorable for the full membership of Iran in Shanghai Cooperation Organization.”
Dr. Vaezi concluded by asserting that: “Many participating officials in the Wuzhen conference were even stating their intention to return to Iran’s market and make up of for the time they have lost, in view of the new developments.”