[A2k] First Arab International Copyright Conference

[Teresa Hackett (eIFL)]

<SNIP>

According to the WIPO director-general Kamil Idris, who took part in the
conference, the organisation is in the process of examining cooperative
programmes with developing countries that would adopt a developmental
rather than purely commercial approach of some publishers and
insensitive legislators. Idris was convinced that, across the Arab
world, there is a growing awareness of the "importance of copyright" and
indeed a clearer sense of how to approach the issue from a developmental
standpoint.

The WIPO is currently engaged in debating how to pursue its work along a
developmental path. Originally proposed by a group of southern American
states, the WIPO Development Agenda has support from a considerable
number of Arab countries, particularly those with limited resources.
Later this month the WIPO General Assembly (sic) will convene at the
Geneva headquarters to discuss the proposal, which is particularly
welcome in that it extends to patent rights and the transfer of
technology. For Idris as for many others it is not impossible to find a
common ground on which property rights can be managed without incurring
negative consequences on the progress of developing countries.


Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM

http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2007/831/feature.htm

Intellects for sale

The debate over intellectual property rights, while not new to the Arab
world, is gaining unprecedented momentum: Dina Ezzat follows the latest
developments

A two-day event held last week on the fringe of the Cairo Book Fair
served as a reminder of the growing interest in intellectual rights. An
initiative of the Arab Publishers Union, in collaboration with the World
Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the International
Publishers Union -- sponsored by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak -- the First Arab
International Copyright Conference did not draw in a huge audience,
testifying to the fact that interest in property rights is as yet more
or less restricted to specialists. The conference did receive extensive
media coverage, but this was due largely to the participation of Mrs
Mubarak rather than to any real awareness of the importance of the issue.

"What is copyright -- what does it mean?" The taxi driver inquired,
perplexed. "I've never heard of any such thing." As it turned out, this
reaction was far more common than one might expect -- extending across
classes and groups; some university students showed the same
unfamiliarity with the concept. Yet there is a small coterie of people
who are not only aware of, but concerned with, intellectual property
rights in the Arab world.

The topic of the conference, though discussed in the context of Egypt,
was crucial for many other parts of the Arab world -- "copyright and
development: from cultural diversity to social prosperity". The first
message was simple enough: literary, artistic and scientific works and
inventions, including performances and broadcasts, for example, are
subject to copyright legislation, which, as the WIPO defines it, is part
of the wider body of jurisdiction known as intellectual property law.
After that other topics were discussed, in turn: cultural and
development policy; the role of Arab publishers; copyright and education
reform; creativity in the Arab world; and, most importantly, the impact
of copyright, or the lack thereof, on developing countries, from both
the economic and cultural perspective.

The event had more speakers than audience members; and they did not
delve too deeply into technical and indeed confusing issues like
branding, trademarks, service marks and commercial designations. Nor was
there much attempt at engaging the participants in an academic debate
about the difference between industrial and intellectual property, the
one covering invention and design patents, the other artistic and
literary work. The idea was rather to spread awareness of the
significance, legitimacy, economic and artistic value of copyright. As
Mrs Mubarak put it in the opening speech, "we are here to discuss the
direct, inevitable link between concepts of culture and wider social
development." According to Chairman of the Arab Publishers Union Ibrahim
El-Moallem, indeed, the conference was intended to shed light on how
someone like Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz never reaped the fruits of
his labours to the full -- because of the absence of copyright.

In straightforward language, one speaker after another shared their
views and offered perspectives on how the observation of copyright could
make a difference not only to those who own it as "creators" entitled to
the rewards, both financial and moral, but equally, as many speakers
insisted, for society at large. Speakers found an endless variety of
ways to express the benefits of copyright: without copyrights the
publishing industry would collapse, sooner or later; the introduction of
adequate copyright laws in Canada in the 1970s helped enliven the
literary sphere and raised the volume of book production very
significantly; copyright is the way to encourage gifted individuals to
pursue creativity knowing that they could make a living out of it;
without copyright, including traditional knowledge in Egypt and much of
the Arab world, a lot would be in danger of misappropriation.

Speaking to a largely well informed audience of publishers and writers,
the conference participants were nonetheless aware of the sensitivities
involved in the wider audience's response to economic impact of new
legislation on access to knowledge. "Books," as Ali, a doctor on his way
into the fair grounds complained, "are very expensive this year -- or so
I'm hearing. I'm just going to have a look at what's on offer." This
complaint is increasingly widespread, and has even extended to curricula
and research books: one university teacher explained that the high
prices of novels and plays included in her literature curriculum are one
reason why students depend, rather, on inexpensive summaries: "If a
student can buy the summary for LE5 instead of spending LE50 on the
original or even LE20 on a photocopy of it from the university library,
well, can you really blame them?"

Addressing that concern, speakers referred to business communities
providing for the cost of books and other educational material -- a
partnership between the government and civil society. Local, less
expensive copies of books and films should also be considered for
developing countries. According to the WIPO director-general Kamil
Idris, who took part in the conference, the organisation is in the
process of examining cooperative programmes with developing countries
that would adopt a developmental rather than purely commercial approach
of some publishers and insensitive legislators. Idris was convinced
that, across the Arab world, there is a growing awareness of the
"importance of copyright" and indeed a clearer sense of how to approach
the issue from a developmental standpoint.

The WIPO is currently engaged in debating how to pursue its work along a
developmental path. Originally proposed by a group of southern American
states, the WIPO Development Agenda has support from a considerable
number of Arab countries, particularly those with limited resources.
Later this month the WIPO General Assembly will convene at the Geneva
headquarters to discuss the proposal, which is particularly welcome in
that it extends to patent rights and the transfer of technology. For
Idris as for many others it is not impossible to find a common ground on
which property rights can be managed without incurring negative
consequences on the progress of developing countries. As WIPO experts
point out, while some creations -- scientific inventions, for example --
are immediately entered into the public domain, there is plenty of room
for the priceless cultural products of poorer societies to be profitably
transferred from the public into the private domain.

According to Anthony Taubman, acting director of the global intellectual
property issues division of the WIPO, "when it comes to traditional
knowledge and biotechnology, the sky is the limit for the right of
traditional communities to benefit from the laws and regulations of
copyrights. The protection of cultural expression -- including the
obviously and repeatedly misappropriated ethnic music and paintings,
traditional medicine and generic resources is wide." Taubman gave
numerous examples of cases in which researchers from pharmaceutical
multinationals have arrived in traditional communities and helped
themselves to indigenous techniques and knowledge -- taking it back to
the rich countries for the benefit of able consumers and allowing the
profit to be funnelled directly into the pockets of the factory owners,
without the communities in which that knowledge developed over centuries
gaining anything in return; knowledge is as such "illicitly" acquired.

Taubman, who has been working closely with Arab countries, believes that
a good portion of the developing world is increasingly aware of the
possibilities -- so much that such awareness has prompted a debate on
the need for an internationally binding treaty. "Arab countries are in a
very good position with regard to this issue," he said, adding that, "a
regional position" to be adopted by the Arab group within the WIPO could
be "very influential in this respect". When all is said and done,
according to the WIPO, Arab countries have much to gain from an overall
copyright-patenting regime.

According to Cynthia Cannady, director of the intellectual property and
new technologies division at the WIPO, patenting in areas related to oil
and natural gas as well as water desalinisation is something in which
Arab countries could make leaps and strides, provided they invested in
the required effort and resources. During recent tours, Cannady sensed a
growing awareness among officials that, where desalinisation plants are
available, desalinisation technology is needed, where hospitals are
available, medical research centres are needed. As Idris puts it, "Arab
countries need to learn that protecting culture is as important, if not
more, than having access to oil. Arab scientists need to learn how to
benefit more from patenting rights."

According to Maha Bekhit, director of the Arab League Intellectual
Property Rights, there have been efforts on the part of both the WIPO
and her own organisation to promote copyright and patenting since a
memorandum of understanding was signed in 2000 with the aim of
strengthening cooperation. Through Intellectual Property Offices
established in 19 out of the 22 member states (Comors, Somalia and Iraq
are the exceptions), the Arab League has been promoting both public
awareness of and academic training on the issue. The secretariat has
allocated financial and technical resources to addressing the issue with
governments and non- governmental bodies alike. "We have held workshops
and seminars," she said, "but it is such a long process. Technical
issues require time and patience to resolve."

Both Bekhit and WIPO Arab office coordinators are aware of the
possibility of confusion between the WIPO and the World Trade
Organisation TRIPS agreement, which is notoriously associated with
allowing rich countries to deny poor societies access to developed
medication. Such confusion, they concede, is not without reason, since
patenting is also connected with medical innovations. But their hope is
that it will eventually be clear that, where the WIPO is concerned,
developing countries stand to gain rather than lose. Arab states, Bekhit
announced, have been called upon by the League to develop national
strategies for intellectual property as well as study the economic
impact of embracing intellectual property rights in the Arab world. Such
measures are needed.

Arab countries have a long way to go before they can bridge the
intellectual-property divide separating them from others, even
developing countries. They have much to worry about: the shocking
difference between copyright and patenting in their societies and in
Israel, for example. Last week's conference was a step in that
direction. According to WIPO and Arab League officials, much hard work
remains to be done to make sure that Arab countries do not continue to
lag behind for much longer -- even if they are to do so out of fear of
the possibility of negative consequences vis-=E0-vis education and medicati=
on.