IPR piracy losing game for the future
IPR piracy losing game for the future
By Sugianto Tandra
JAKARTA (JP): Few people are aware of the obscure loophole in
the country's current intellectual property law which allows
copying of books without approval from the legal copyright
holder.
Deputy Cabinet Secretary Bambang Kesowo, who is also a member
of the advisory board of the Indonesian Intellectual Property
Society (IIPS), said recently the allowance was found in the
nonvoluntary licensing policy of the Intellectual Property Rights
Law.
"It means that if the government deems a piece of intellectual
property important to the country's education, science, and
technology sectors, the government will help pay for the royalty
on the copyright," Bambang told The Jakarta Post in a recent
interview.
"Normally, we would go to a holder of an intellectual property
copyright and negotiate to get the license to copy. Yet, in the
nonvoluntary license, you just need to pay the royalty," he said.
No publisher or institution has used the loophole despite the
rife intellectual property piracy in Indonesia. Bambang discussed
widespread violations of intellectual property rights and the
necessity for the government to take a strong stance in a recent
interview. The following are excerpts.
Question: How do you view the widespread product piracy here?
Answer: From a wider perspective on the policy, there are two
aspects that we should be aware of concerning the government's
effort to build an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) system.
First is our effort to establish a better atmosphere that will
be able to encourage creations useful for the nation's
development. These creations will be useful to the nation
economically, socially and culturally.
Second is that we can only bring about more and better
creations if we can deliver better human resources.
Q: Meaning?
A: The point is we have to provide an even better atmosphere so
that people have more freedom to deliver their creations, so that
they will deliver more, and of a better quality. This means that,
directly or indirectly, it is an effort to develop the quality of
our human resources.
I would like to use this occasion to remind us all of how
we've often ignored a fundamental part (of this issue), long our
commitment as a nation since we proclaimed our independence. This
is our development aim for the establishment of accomplished,
mature and developed Indonesian people. It's stated in many of
our state political documents, and is the heart of our
development.
Our development target is for the human being... but it is
often the case now is that we still sometimes hold on to the
commitment. On the other hand, our viewpoints often fall into the
trap of pragmatism, creating the impression that we are in the
course of not building the human being, but rather its
accessories.
We mostly see progress in the material world as important.
That's why I have said right from the beginning that one of
the targets of the establishment of the country's IPR system is
also for the development of the quality of our human resources.
Now, we come to the need of defining the concrete means for
reaching the target; to put it another way, we have to define the
ways to make what constitutes the essence of our development come
true.
It is through establishing the IPR system that I aspire to
help the nation reach its development essence, though this is, of
course, not the only way.
Q: Why the IPR system?
A: The current concept of property is unlike that in the past. In
the past, what constituted property is that it exists, that it
was here for all of us to use because it's God's gift.
Apart from how grand this concept is, it makes people static
and passive, whereas human beings are endowed with a mind, reason
and feeling. They have to be encouraged to bring about new
creations through use of God's endowments.
This is where we come to the concept of the IPR. Only good
human resources can come up with quality creations, and only a
good and conducive atmosphere can make them deliver their
intellectual creations. In this case they have to be sure that
they can create peacefully, that their creations will be
respected and recognized, and that their property rights will not
be violated.
This is the bigger perspective in which we need to see our IPR
system.
Q: Returning to my opening question...
A: The government views the phenomenon with great concern. On the
one side, we strive to establish the atmosphere (conducive to
intellectual creations), while on the other we also witness those
(IP piracy) practices going on.
Q: What is the government's stance then?
A: The government cannot tolerate it, of course. Let's say there
is a proposition which justifies the IP piracy practices, saying
the piracy of books, be they local or imported works, makes books
cheap, subsequently boding well for the progress of science and
knowledge here. Following this, it would make people much
smarter.
My question to such a proposition would be: Is it true that it
is only through reading that we can provide a person with
intelligence?
Let me put it this way. If we want to give our children
education and welfare, do not instill talents and skills through
means that are against the norms and rules. It will be dangerous.
It's like training our children to be thieves.
Yes, we could train them to become an excellent thief, like
the Saint. It would still be good that you are successful in
training your child to be a Saint, otherwise the Cipinang prison
would be overloaded with thieves (he laughs).
From the viewpoint of the children, no matter how well we
train our kids, they themselves will be living their lives
against the norms.
From the viewpoint of the parents, they could be as corrupt as
they want to please their children, their people, but I am sure
their children will not enjoy that for long.
I have simplified the analogy too much, but above all, I think
there are ways to give intelligence and prosperity to our nation
instead of through means that are against norms and rules.
Q: Are there any legal loopholes?
A: Yes. The law here gives us loopholes for that. Look into our
IPR law carefully. There is a clause which enables us to pay only
a certain royalty amount to the international right holder.
By Sugianto Tandra
JAKARTA (JP): Few people are aware of the obscure loophole in
the country's current intellectual property law which allows
copying of books without approval from the legal copyright
holder.
Deputy Cabinet Secretary Bambang Kesowo, who is also a member
of the advisory board of the Indonesian Intellectual Property
Society (IIPS), said recently the allowance was found in the
nonvoluntary licensing policy of the Intellectual Property Rights
Law.
"It means that if the government deems a piece of intellectual
property important to the country's education, science, and
technology sectors, the government will help pay for the royalty
on the copyright," Bambang told The Jakarta Post in a recent
interview.
"Normally, we would go to a holder of an intellectual property
copyright and negotiate to get the license to copy. Yet, in the
nonvoluntary license, you just need to pay the royalty," he said.
No publisher or institution has used the loophole despite the
rife intellectual property piracy in Indonesia. Bambang discussed
widespread violations of intellectual property rights and the
necessity for the government to take a strong stance in a recent
interview. The following are excerpts.
Question: How do you view the widespread product piracy here?
Answer: From a wider perspective on the policy, there are two
aspects that we should be aware of concerning the government's
effort to build an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) system.
First is our effort to establish a better atmosphere that will
be able to encourage creations useful for the nation's
development. These creations will be useful to the nation
economically, socially and culturally.
Second is that we can only bring about more and better
creations if we can deliver better human resources.
Q: Meaning?
A: The point is we have to provide an even better atmosphere so
that people have more freedom to deliver their creations, so that
they will deliver more, and of a better quality. This means that,
directly or indirectly, it is an effort to develop the quality of
our human resources.
I would like to use this occasion to remind us all of how
we've often ignored a fundamental part (of this issue), long our
commitment as a nation since we proclaimed our independence. This
is our development aim for the establishment of accomplished,
mature and developed Indonesian people. It's stated in many of
our state political documents, and is the heart of our
development.
Our development target is for the human being... but it is
often the case now is that we still sometimes hold on to the
commitment. On the other hand, our viewpoints often fall into the
trap of pragmatism, creating the impression that we are in the
course of not building the human being, but rather its
accessories.
We mostly see progress in the material world as important.
That's why I have said right from the beginning that one of
the targets of the establishment of the country's IPR system is
also for the development of the quality of our human resources.
Now, we come to the need of defining the concrete means for
reaching the target; to put it another way, we have to define the
ways to make what constitutes the essence of our development come
true.
It is through establishing the IPR system that I aspire to
help the nation reach its development essence, though this is, of
course, not the only way.
Q: Why the IPR system?
A: The current concept of property is unlike that in the past. In
the past, what constituted property is that it exists, that it
was here for all of us to use because it's God's gift.
Apart from how grand this concept is, it makes people static
and passive, whereas human beings are endowed with a mind, reason
and feeling. They have to be encouraged to bring about new
creations through use of God's endowments.
This is where we come to the concept of the IPR. Only good
human resources can come up with quality creations, and only a
good and conducive atmosphere can make them deliver their
intellectual creations. In this case they have to be sure that
they can create peacefully, that their creations will be
respected and recognized, and that their property rights will not
be violated.
This is the bigger perspective in which we need to see our IPR
system.
Q: Returning to my opening question...
A: The government views the phenomenon with great concern. On the
one side, we strive to establish the atmosphere (conducive to
intellectual creations), while on the other we also witness those
(IP piracy) practices going on.
Q: What is the government's stance then?
A: The government cannot tolerate it, of course. Let's say there
is a proposition which justifies the IP piracy practices, saying
the piracy of books, be they local or imported works, makes books
cheap, subsequently boding well for the progress of science and
knowledge here. Following this, it would make people much
smarter.
My question to such a proposition would be: Is it true that it
is only through reading that we can provide a person with
intelligence?
Let me put it this way. If we want to give our children
education and welfare, do not instill talents and skills through
means that are against the norms and rules. It will be dangerous.
It's like training our children to be thieves.
Yes, we could train them to become an excellent thief, like
the Saint. It would still be good that you are successful in
training your child to be a Saint, otherwise the Cipinang prison
would be overloaded with thieves (he laughs).
From the viewpoint of the children, no matter how well we
train our kids, they themselves will be living their lives
against the norms.
From the viewpoint of the parents, they could be as corrupt as
they want to please their children, their people, but I am sure
their children will not enjoy that for long.
I have simplified the analogy too much, but above all, I think
there are ways to give intelligence and prosperity to our nation
instead of through means that are against norms and rules.
Q: Are there any legal loopholes?
A: Yes. The law here gives us loopholes for that. Look into our
IPR law carefully. There is a clause which enables us to pay only
a certain royalty amount to the international right holder.