Stiffer prison sentence sought for IPR violators

A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A high-ranking government official urged the country's judges on Monday to impose harsher sentences on those found guilty of violating intellectual property rights (IPR).

Heavier punishments are needed to deter people from violating intellectual property rights, the director general of intellectual property rights at the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, A. Zen Umar Purba, said.

Umar insisted that the regulations and laws dealing with intellectual property rights were comprehensive and adequate to cope with piracy.

"The problem is in the enforcement of the laws and regulations. The violators often receive light sentences from judges, therefore they never show any repentance and are not hesitant about committing the same crimes," he said during a press conference at the ministry.

The press conference was held ahead of the International Day for Intellectual Property Rights, which falls on April 26.

Umar dismissed speculation that corruption might be one reason for the light sentences.

"The judges might have their own reasons for handing down a light sentence, such as humanitarian grounds. We are not allowed to intervene in the legal process since the judges have the authority to decide (the sentencing)," he said.

According to Law No. 12/1997 on copyrights, violations of intellectual property rights carry a maximum sentence of seven years in jail. However, in most cases those convicted under this law are sentenced to several months in prison at the most.

Umar said judges played a pivotal role in the protection of intellectual property rights, given their position as the last bastion of justice.

"Therefore, the judges are at the forefront of the country's efforts to combat piracy," he said.

Umar insisted that piracy was a cause for concern for the current administration.

According to Umar, Indonesia has been identified by the U.S. government as a haven for violators of intellectual property rights, along with China, Taiwan, South Korea and India.

"The U.S. government has placed us on their priority watch list. If the piracy problem worsens, under the 1974 U.S. Trade Act we could be the target of trade sanctions by the U.S. government," he said, adding that this would threaten Indonesia's textile exports to the U.S.

Piracy also discourages Indonesians from inventing new products in technology, the arts and other fields, according to Umar.

The government and the House of Representatives are in the process of revising the country's intellectual property rights law so it meets international standards.

According to Umar, Indonesia has become increasingly aware of the importance of enacting a revised law, considering the number of applicants registering for patents.

"The revisions (to the law) are designed to make several clauses in the law relevant to international conventions in the field of intellectual property rights," he said.

Indonesia has enacted the Agreement Establishing the WTO, the TRIPS Agreement, the Convention Establishing the WIPO, the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention, the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Trademark Law Treaty and the WIPO Copyrights Treaty.