[W]e [have] learned that the Internet Society (ISOC), with no warning or public input, intends to sell the control of the .ORG domain registry (called the Public Interest Registry, or PIR) for an undisclosed amount to a for-profit private equity firm called Ethos Capital... This opaque decision was made without consulting civil society groups that rely on .ORG to operate, without taking into consideration the human rights impacts of the business deal, and without taking into account the sale’s deleterious effects on the governance of the open and free internet... We call on ISOC to stop the sale of .ORG until we get answers to the important and fundamental questions this agreement presents. For instance:

• Did the parties involved consider the potential human rights impacts of this sale?
• What safeguards exist to protect against the exploitation of the non-profit .ORG domain registrants? 
• What type of oversight will ICANN engage in to help protect against bad behavior by Ethos and ensure the business respects human rights? 
• Will there be complaint mechanisms to allow for non-profit registrants to challenge decisions by Ethos? 

... We urge Internet Society to open a dialogue with civil society, publicly assess and address the potential human rights impacts of this proposal, and find a common way forward. Until this has happened, ISOC must halt the transfer of .ORG. Should ISOC fail to halt the sale, ICANN must engage in proper due diligence and use its powers to prevent the transfer of PIR from happening.