Indonesians arrested in Philippines for piracy

Indonesians arrested in Philippines for piracy

Police seized close to 1 billion pesos (US$20 million) worth of
pirated CDs and copying equipment and arrested seven Indonesian
and five Chinese workers in a raid in the northern Philippines,
officials said Tuesday.

The raid late Monday on a clandestine factory in Meycauyan,
Bulacan province, is the latest step in a high-profile campaign
by authorities against music and movie piracy.

No further details about the raid or the arrests were
released.

Last month, officials used steamrollers to crush 2 million
pirated CDs, DVDs and cassettes seized from sidewalk stalls and
shops to show the Philippine government's efforts to stem the
illegal industry.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who has made fighting crime
a top priority of her administration, visited the clandestine
factory and congratulated the police.

She said the raid "is not only a great help to the members of
the entertainment industry who are being cheated but also our
reputation in the world" as a major violator of intellectual
property rights.

The Philippines has been identified as a major center of film
and music piracy by the Washington D.C.-based International
Intellectual Property Alliance.

Industry players are campaigning to increase punishments for
piracy crime. Current laws punish convicted pirates with a fine
of 10,000 pesos ($200) and a maximum one-year prison term. --AP