Steve,

You had a sane idea putting again in historical perspective the
RCP success story, after the diffamatory statement
addressed, by Randy Bush, (apparently) to the UNDP, via a
listserver we created, administrated and moderated, which is widely open to persons (in majority non specialist end-users) interested in research and networking in LA&C (see attachment).

While the practice of celebrating and congratulating after
such events sounds good to everybody (as a genuine
expression of shared happiness), one may wonder if the practice
must be encouraged to become a recurrent game of obscure or
personal fights. First, listservers have to be considered as
mass media, with ALL the implications that carries. Second,
working for networks requires too much energy to spoilt it in
useless struggles.

Your note recording the contributors of the RCP birth obviously did not pretend to be exhaustive. However, it is probably correct, at this point of time, to provide the whole picture and remember the contributions from the Union Latina and, indirectly, from the EEC. Please, let me do so now and complement your wise and timely statement.

UNION LATINA CONTRIBUTION
REDALC's Office took care of all the non technical matters (instititutional, organizational and financial aspects) for the creation of the RCP, as described hereafter:
-GENERAL COORDINATION, PLANS, STRATEGY AND CONTROL: Daniel Pimienta, Head of Redalc Office and Daniel Prado, Second Program Director, with the participation of all the REDALC team (some 10 people), special mention, from that team, to Jose Soriano, who was given the project execution lead.
-FIRST STUDIES: May-June 91, including Jose Soriano's Lima mission (11/5/91 - 5/6/91);
-FEASIBILITY STUDY: August 91, including Jose Soriano's Lima mission (7/8/91 - 14/8/91);
-PLANNING: October 91, including Daniel Pimienta and Jose Soriano's Lima missions, respectively (17/10/91 - 23/10/91) and (17/10/91 - 14/11/91);
-EXECUTION: November 91 and December 91, including Jose Soriano's Lima mission (14/11/91 - 21/12/91)

REFERENCE

"RCP, the Peruvian network", Daniel Pimienta, Internet Society News, V1 N2, 1992

BUDGET

30,000 US$ (includes salary, mission expenses and a 5000$ cash donation for the RCP administrative and legal matters. Does not include indirect costs).

BUDGET

No direct contribution, but the REDALC methodology, which is one of the result of important EEC investments, has been used and published thanks to EEC special authorization.

contribution of the technical partners

UNDP (Enzo Puliatti), Randy Bush, and the team leaded by Ted Hope.

Just few comments about the discussions imbedded in the actual celebrations:
-Giving credits to persons is often a subjective and delicate matter (giving credits to teams is probably more appropriate in most of the case). Giving credit to institutions is part of the rights and obligations of the cooperation process. -Internet is, above all, a PEOPLE (team) odyssey, there is no doubt about that. However, cooperation is a matter of both INSTITUTIONS and persons (teams). Internet in developing countries is then a matter of persons (teams) AND institutions. -Professionals of cooperation know well than the critical path of the process consists in finding the right trade-off between persons and institutions.

As a conclusion, reinforcing the weakness of the level of institution in the developing countries is an extremely poor action, when it is done accidentally. When it is done systematically, the name is lack of responsibility. Most of the countries and people of LAyC consider one of the key challenge of the coming decade to reach a level of institution comparable to industrial countries. Internet should participate and contribute to this essential objective, and become one of the building stone of the coming participative democracy.

Take care Steve, and keep working for the benefit of all of us, as you did with your useful clarifications.

Daniel Pimienta, Daniel Prado, Pablo Liendo, Senaida Jansen, and all their colleagues who worked for the REDALC project.

PS1

As for the INET94 discussions, we do not want to participate to an unclear debate, but let us take that opportunity to express two wishes:

1. that after consecutive unjustified absences, a technical representative of the REDID network will, at last, be sponsored to participate in the INET94 DC Workshop. 2) that the workshop focus will be, at last, widen to cover non technical matters (which network administrators all know represent the bulk of the workload and challenges of networking in developing countries).

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Credit goes to many people, as Peru's effort is outstanding in its open cooperation and, in the majority, its self-funding. But my personal congratulations to Jose Soriano, whose dream it has been and whose personal drive got it done, two generations of smart hard working Peruvian engineers at RCP, the Consejo of RCP, who supported Jose and the engineers, and two tios, Steve Goldstein (NSF) and Saul Hahn (OAS) who supported, encouraged, cleared obstacles, ...

[ And shame to a noted international organization whose minion meddled, blocked, and fought, and will now liklely try to attach their name to it. ]

randy

......