Bedryf pleit by CR om nie Kopieregwet goed te keur | Netwerk24
14 April 2019 18:38
Pres. Cyril Ramaphosa het die laaste sê oor ’n Wysigingswetsontwerp op Kopiereg wat ’n reuse- negatiewe impak op die kreatiewe en skeppende bedryf kan hê.
Dié wysigingswetsontwerp is op 26 Maart in die Nasionale Raad van Provinsies aanvaar en dit sal wet word sodra Ramaphosa dit goedkeur en onderteken.
Die Coalition for Effective Copyright in South Africa, ’n koalisie van verskeie organisasies in die uitgewers- en kreatiewe bedryf, het ’n ope brief aan Ramaphosa geskryf om hom te vra om nié die wetgewing goed te keur nie.
Collen Dlamini, ’n woordvoerder van die koalisie, sê die wysigingswetsontwerp spruit daaruit dat die Wet op Kopiereg reeds in 1978 geskryf is en dus vernuwe moes word.
“Die punt van die wysiging was om die wetgewing te versterk om die lewensbestaan van kreatiewe mense te verbeter.”
Volgens Dlamini sluit die wetsontwerp die konsep van billike gebruik in, wat uit Amerikaanse wetgewing spruit.
“Dit is die teenoorgestelde van wat die wetgewing vir mense in die kreatiewe bedryf moet doen.”
Hy sê ’n voorbeeld hiervan is mense wat afskrifte maak van handboeke. “Indien dié wetgewing goedgekeur gaan word, gaan mense die verskoning gebruik dat dit vir opvoedkundige doeleindes is en dat dit onder billike gebruik val.”
Die skrywer van die boek gaan dan die persoon in die hof moet uitdaag.
“Dit gaan ’n uitdaging wees vir kreatiewe mense wat nie geld het om regskoste te betaal nie. Die nuwe wetgewing sal kopiereg verswak en nadelig wees vir mense wat in die kreatiewe bedryf werk.”
Dlamini stel voor dat die wetsontwerp teruggestuur word aan die parlement sodat dit weer aandag kan kry.
Indien die president die mense in die bedryf ignoreer, sal hulle hulself tot die konstitusionele hof wend.
“Ons het genoeg bewyse en regsmenings om te wys dat die wetsontwerp ongrondwetlik is.”
Hier is die ope brief, wat tans slegs in Engels beskikbaar is:
Hear our voices on the Copyright Amendment Bill.
We have marched. We have sung. We have written to our ministers. We have opened up a public debate on this issue, which is critical to our livelihoods and to our country’s future. We have followed due process, but as yet, we have not been heard. Now we implore you, sir, to hear our voices . . .
We are a coalition of content creators from the publishing, music, filmmaking, animation, visual arts and other industries, who have come together in opposition to the Copyright Amendment Bill in its current form.
We believe that the Copyright Amendment Bill now before you will hurt the very creators it aims to protect. If passed, it would greatly reduce the income of content creators, and remove the incentive for creating original works.
The Bill will rob writers and publishers of their rightful earnings by allowing the republishing of their content for free, as long as it is claimed to be for “educational purposes.”
The Bill will create massive confusion around the sharing of royalties and the payment of suppliers for musicians, performing artists and music companies.
The Bill will sow uncertainty in the film industry, which could lead to disinvestment and the collapse of the sector.
The Bill will primarily benefit the tech multinationals with an interest in republishing our local content for profit and paying the barest minimum to the creators of that content.
The Bill is unfortunately not balanced and now focusses on protecting the rights of users of content, instead of the rights of content creators to earn a decent living from their works. These rights must be proctected if we are to continue growing our nation’s body of knowledge and culture.
Today, the fate of South Africa’s creative industries lies in your hands. We implore you, sir, do not sign the Copyright Amendment Bill. Send it back to parliament for redrafting, so that it better protects the rights of South Africa’s content creators. As the musicians aptly put it: “Don’t sign away our song!”
The Coalition for Effective Copyright comprises:
The Music Publishers’ Association of South Africa (MPASA)
Independent Black Filmmakers Collective (IBFC)
The Writers’ Guild of South Africa (WGSA)
Meer oor: Cyril Ramaphosa | Collen Dlamini | Kopieregwet | Coalition For Effective Copyrigh | Ope Brief
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