In this issue:
- ACTA.net.nz
- PublicACTA and SecretACTA
- s92A Update
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ACTA.net.nz
The CFF have joined the ACTA.net.nz coalition – a collective of individuals and organisations dedicated to keeping an eye on and providing information about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) and its potential impact on New Zealand.
The collective are arranging several events to inform both artists and the wider public about the secretive ACTA negotiations that the NZ government is currently involved in and to take their opinion to New Zealander negotiators. The first of these events – PublicACTA – is taking place this Saturday 10 April (read on for more).
More information about ACTA can be found on the ACTA.net.nz website.
PublicACTA and SecretACTA
There are two important meetings in Wellington in April this year.: PublicACTA and SecretACTA.
PublicACTA is a free public forum about ACTA and will be held in Wellington this weekend ahead of the controversial and secretive international ACTA negotiations.
The forum will feature presentations from Canada’s Michael Geist and respected Australian legal academic Kim Weatherall.
Professor Michael Geist is the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada. He is a leading voice in the public debate surrounding ACTA and has become an invaluable go-to source for current information on the negotiations as it is released/leaked. http://michaelgeist.ca
Organised by InternetNZ, Policy Director Jordan Carter says “The secrecy around the treaty is concerning, with even the location of the negotiations in Wellington from 12-16 April being kept hidden from the public. What is clear is that the negotiations extend well beyond trade and physical counterfeiting to include non-commercial infringement of copyright material by ordinary citizens, and digital rights management. This could affect everyone’s rights on the Internet and it is therefore very important that there is a forum for public discussion.”
The aim of PublicACTA is to raise the public’s concerns, seek improvements to the Agreement, and provide an opportunity for people to connect and discuss the issues. The output will be an agreed statement that the public and interested organisations can sign up to, to be delivered to New Zealand government negotiators and politicians.
PublicACTA will take place at the Wellington Town Hall on Saturday 10 April 2010, and is free of charge.
For more information, and to register, visit http://www.publicacta.org.nz
Organised by CFF’s Luke Rowell, PublicACTA will be followed by an after-party at Bar Bodega featuring Kazaam Blam!, Disasteradio and more!
SecretACTA
Round 8 of international negotiations of the secret Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement will be taking place from 12-16 April – the week following PublicACTA.
There have been several leaked drafts of this secret treaty, but no official information. The leaked ACTA details include prison time for copyright infringement, criminalization of breaking DRM, ISPs eavesdropping on their customers’ internet activity, and “Internet Enforcement” of copyright hidden behind the name “counterfeits”. The leaks so far reveal ACTA drafts containing things that thousands of New Zealand artists already said they don’t want done in their name, such as the three strikes and “Guilt upon Accusation”.
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement has caused concern to a number of organisations and individuals, in NZ and internationally, because the content of the negotiations have been kept secret (unlike many similar ‘intellectual property’ treaties), and because a leaked document shows it appears to include provisions that are related to not counterfeiting, but rather to non-commercial copyright infringements on the Internet.
New Zealand is participating in the ACTA negotiations along with Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Morocco, Switzerland, Singapore, and the United States.
S92A Update
In December Minister Simon Power released the design for the revamped s92A.
CFF are broadly supportive of the proposal, and are pleased to see it resembles our ‘Fix section 92‘ proposal of an extended Copyright Tribunal for judging infringements.
Unfortunately however, the proposed replacement includes a penalty of internet termination, a penalty that has the potential harm many people for the actions of one. We don’t cut off a family’s postal service if one person uses it to break the law. We don’t cut off phones or electricity because someone plays music too loud. How can it be OK to cut off the internet? The internet is now an essential utility for NZ homes and businesses, and this penalty is unnecessary with alternatives like fines available.
S92A will go through a Select Committee process before being introduced to parliament as a bill later this year. The public (and CFF) will have another chance to comment on the current proposal before then.
Thanks, from the Creative Freedom Foundation team http://creativefreedom.org.nz
