A nation of pirates

Piracy in Indonesia is a far more common occurrence than most people in this country care to think. The kind of piracy for which Indonesia has become globally notorious, however, is not limited to the recurrent attacks on ships plying the Strait of Malacca. Far worse than this, Indonesia ranks among the world's worst offenders of intellectual property rights.

The computer industry estimates that as much as 95 percent of all software installed in Indonesian computers are pirated products. Computer giant Microsoft certainly ranks Indonesia among the worst in the region. Piracy is not only hurting foreign producers. The local music, film and book publishing industries, and the artists and writers behind them, have also long complained of a lack of protection for their products.

If you take a stroll around any major market in Indonesia, one can find pirated compact discs, video compact discs and CD-ROMs freely sold in the open. People buy these products, with or without knowledge of the 1987 copyright law banning their sale. As the sales of computer programs shows, it is obvious that most people in this country are abetting the crime. Many people seem to have no qualms about buying and using pirated products. If ever there was a nation of pirates, Indonesia fits the bill.

The International Intellectual Property Alliance estimates that revenue losses from copyright piracy in Indonesia reached US$174 million in 1999. Indonesia should not take consolation in the fact that it is not the worst in the world. That accolade goes to China, where revenue losses are put at $1.7 billion. Even Malaysia ranks higher than Indonesia, with $287 million.

Nor should Indonesia become complacent with the United States' decision in May to remove Indonesia from its "Priority Watchlist" to the "Watchlist", the lightest category of offenders of intellectual property rights in the eyes of the U.S. Trade Representative Office. All it means is that the United States recognizes that some efforts are being made in Indonesia to fight against rampant infringements of copyright.

The problem of copyright piracy is still there and it is not likely to disappear as long as society not only condones the practice but also feels that it is reaping benefits by paying less than it should for intellectual property products. Little does society realize that the savings it makes through buying cheap products pales to the huge losses that this nation as a whole is paying in the long run. The intangible losses could even mean the difference between the survival and failure in an increasingly competitive global economy.

Rampant copyright infringement is blunting the creativity and inventiveness of Indonesians. While foreign artists survive because people in their countries appreciate their work and pay them accordingly, the same cannot be said about Indonesian artists. Yet, the music, film, book publishing and computer industries rely on people's creativity to flourish.

The nation's indifference to copyright piracy is killing indigenous talent. The local music industry is struggling; the film industry is as good as dead and the remaining talent has been condemned to making ends meet in the TV industry. The book publishing industry has been in the doldrums. Indonesia's computer industry has barely gotten off the ground, and is quickly falling behind many of its neighbors. If this keeps up, the nation will eventually be starved of musicians, artists and talents which are essential for its survival. Indonesia will eventually be condemned to become a nation of duplicators of other people's work.

The rampant violations of intellectual property rights are taking place in spite of a series of legislations designed to protect them. Granted, the government is in the process of strengthening the laws, but they are not likely to be effective without the political will to enforce them. It will take a lot of effort to get rid of the nation's pirate mentality, but Indonesia must make the start somewhere and soon. The government must lead the way, not just by enforcing the laws, but also in showing the way, by using original products and giving greater appreciation to people's creativity.