From pranesh at cis-india.org Wed Jan 5 12:42:34 2011 From: pranesh at cis-india.org (Pranesh Prakash) Date: Wed, 05 Jan 2011 12:42:34 +0530 Subject: [Commons-Law] China will make it easier to prosecute IPR thieves Message-ID: <4D2419E2.7020708@cis-india.org> Dear all, An interesting article in China Daily about a nationwide campaign (till March) to stamp out piracy. http://goo.gl/XMcPt [snip] > He said the complicated and difficult procedures connected to evidence collection - especially the requirement to produce the certificate and signature - had been a barrier to punishing copyright violators. Yan said many authors of original IPR material could not be found, and that meant some criminals went unpunished. [/snip] [snip] > "In IPR protection, China hasn't done enough, but it is strengthening its efforts to create a healthy IPR protection market," Yan said. "It will need time. But some developed countries are also exaggerating the role of IPR protection, monopolizing the market to some extent." > > IPR protection experts said IPR protection should not be used as an excuse to set a barrier for the transfer of technology and culture. [/snip] ==== Measures aimed at copyright pirates By Wang Qian (China Daily) Updated: 2011-01-01 10:16 Yan Xiaohong is deputy director of the General Administration of Press and Publication. Beijing will make it easier to gather evidence to prosecute IPR thieves BEIJING - China will make it easier to collect proof in copyright infringement cases as it takes another step to better protect intellectual property rights (IPR), a senior official has said. Yan Xiaohong, deputy director of the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP), said a judicial interpretation that will be implemented by China's top court and top procuratorate this year will drop the requirement for a certificate to be produced bearing the signature of the copyright holder before a suspect can be accused of copyright infringement. He said the complicated and difficult procedures connected to evidence collection - especially the requirement to produce the certificate and signature - had been a barrier to punishing copyright violators. Yan said many authors of original IPR material could not be found, and that meant some criminals went unpunished. "The simplification of the procedure on evidence collection will effectively curb piracy," Yan told China Daily in an exclusive interview on Friday. China launched a nationwide campaign in December to crack down on piracy. The initiative will continue until March. Beijing will also issue national guidelines to strengthen law enforcement in copyright infringement cases in the new year, he said. Before the end of February, 55 key copyright infringement cases will be finished under the supervision of GAPP, the top court, the top procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security, he said. One of the cases involves 50,000 pirated DVDs that were allegedly sold by He Zhenyu in Tianjin. Some 1,076 of them were said to have infringed upon the copyright of 59 movies owned by members of the American Film Institute, according to data from GAPP. All such pirated products seized by police will be burned in late April. The incineration is likely to include DVDs, books, software and CDs, Yan said. "In IPR protection, China hasn't done enough, but it is strengthening its efforts to create a healthy IPR protection market," Yan said. "It will need time. But some developed countries are also exaggerating the role of IPR protection, monopolizing the market to some extent." IPR protection experts said IPR protection should not be used as an excuse to set a barrier for the transfer of technology and culture. Copyright terms in most countries - including China - last for 50 years. But if the period of IPR protection is longer than that, a barrier is formed, the experts said. "We will gradually raise people's awareness of the legal issues and at the same time improve the IPR protection mechanism by strengthening cross-country communications," Yan said. He added that the establishment of the IPR protection mechanism was done to balance the benefits of the creators of intellectual property and the public, realizing a win-win situation. Copyright By chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved Regards, Pranesh -- Pranesh Prakash Programme Manager Centre for Internet and Society W: http://cis-india.org | T: +91 80 40926283 From pranesh at cis-india.org Wed Jan 5 18:12:31 2011 From: pranesh at cis-india.org (Pranesh Prakash) Date: Wed, 05 Jan 2011 18:12:31 +0530 Subject: [Commons-Law] Wikileaks: The "Frenchies" Steal More IPR From Germany Than China/Russia Message-ID: <4D246737.5030604@cis-india.org> http://www.aftenposten.no/spesial/wikileaksdokumenter/article3972436.ece [snip] THE "FRENCHIES" STEAL MORE IPR FROM GERMANY THAN CHINA/RUSSIA --------------------------------------------- ---------------- 8. (C) Smutny said his primary reason for leaving Tesat-SpaceCom was that he was sick of developing world class German-origin satellite technology only to have the "Frenchies" swoop in via their influence in EADS and siphon German intellectual property. Smutny frankly said "France is the evil empire stealing technology and Germany knows this", but Germany´s decentralized government is not willing to do much about it. Going on at length of his despise of the French, Smutny said French IPR espionage is so bad that the total damage done to the German economy is greater the that inflicted by China or Russia. When asked about the possibility of EADS acquiring OHB-System Smutny responded that OHB is a special case and the German government is particularly careful to ensure that OHB stays within Germany´s sphere for German military/intelligence reasons. CUT THE CHINESE A LITTLE SLACK ON ITAR -------------------------------------- 9. (S) While Smutny spent a great deal of time accusing the French of economic espionage, he took a much softer view on China´s espionage activities. Smutny said the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), though a good apparatus for preventing illicit technology transfers and something that he personally supports, is severely hurting US business opportunities in China. Smutny opined the US should relax ITAR restriction on the exports of goods with black box technologies, such as that found in integrated circuits. He reasoned the risk of technology transfer is very low because these devises can not be easily reverse engineered. (COMMENT: Per ref C, Chinese entities have attempted to procure German satellite technology from Tesat-SpaceCom in the past under the guise of the Galileo program. END COMMENT) [/snip] -- Pranesh Prakash Programme Manager Centre for Internet and Society W: http://cis-india.org | T: +91 80 40926283 -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: signature.asc Type: application/pgp-signature Size: 262 bytes Desc: OpenPGP digital signature URL: From news-service at milligazette.biglist.com Mon Jan 17 16:20:02 2011 From: news-service at milligazette.biglist.com (MG News e-Alerts) Date: Mon, 17 Jan 2011 05:50:02 -0500 Subject: [Commons-Law] Workshop on economic empowerment use of RTI Act / Delhi Message-ID: <20110117055002.57692@milligazette.biglist.com> ZFI workshop on economic empowerment through information and use of RTI Act On 22 January Zakat Foundation of India is organising a workshop on "Economic empowerment of the deprived through timely information and its utilisation" to acquaint and sensitize the participants of welfare schemes for minorities and how to monitor their implementation making use of Right to Information Act (RTI). ZFI was established in 1997 as a grassroots level non-Governmental/Non-Profit Organization which collects charity for socially beneficial projects. Their projects include running an orphanage, charitable hospital, providing stipends to widows, micro credit among others. One may register online as a participant at www.zakatindia.org . For ZFI plans similar workshops in other parts of India. Schedule is available on their website. It is worth mentioning that the factual position of the Jangpura Noor Masjid demolished by Delhi Govt/DDA was brought the fore by Zakat Foundation of India. Interestingly, the venue of this workship is 100 metres from the martyred mosque. Workshop: Economic empowerment of the deprived through timely information and its utilisation Time and date: Saturday 22 January 2011 from 10 am to 4 pm at Venue: CISRS House, 14 Jangpura B, Mathura Road (Facing Hotel Rajdoot), New Delhi. (Map below) RSVP Phone: 011-24375195-96; 09971618022 View Larger Map Text : God helps those who help His cause Apprise yourself of Welfare schemes for minorities and how to Monitor their implementation making use of Right to Information Act.(RTI) Register online as a Participant at Zakat Foundatlon of India's Workshop Conducted by experts & successful activists on Economic empowerment of the deprived through timely information and its utilisation to be held on Saturday 22 January 2011 from 10 am to 4 pm at RSVP Phone: 011-24375195-96; 09971618022 For ZFI workshops schedule in other parts of India please see our Website. www.zakatindia.org Email: info at zakatindia.org CISRS House, 14 Jangpura B, Mathura Road (Facing Hotel Rajdoot), New Delhi. --~---------------------------------------------------------------- You are subscribed as commons-law at sarai.net EasyUnsubscribe or manage your settings http://milligazette.biglist.com/do/unsub/news/23972962/kv79xgssgm/99 or EasyUnsubscribe by email news-cunsub-kv79xgssgm-23972962-99 at milligazette.biglist.com --~-- BIGLIST e-Newsletter delivery. Over 8 years for Milli Gazette. Ready for you. http://biglist.com/contact/?MG -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From news-service at milligazette.biglist.com Sat Jan 22 21:10:12 2011 From: news-service at milligazette.biglist.com (MG News e-Alerts) Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2011 10:40:12 -0500 Subject: [Commons-Law] Graham Staines murder case: Civil Society condemns comments of Apex Court Message-ID: <20110122104012.12989@milligazette.biglist.com> We, the undersigned, take strong exception to the gratuitous observations in the Supreme Court judgment on Friday in the 1999 murder of the Australian Graham Staines and his two young sons by Bajarang Dal activist Dara Singh, which read, "In the case on hand, though Graham Staines and his two minor sons were burnt to death while they were sleeping inside a station wagon at Manhoharpur, the intention was to teach a lesson to Graham Staines about his religious activities, namely, converting poor tribals to Christianity." A bench of Justices P. Sathasivam and B. S. Chauhan went on to add: "It is undisputed that there is no justification for interfering in someone's belief by way of 'use of force,' provocation, conversion, incitement or upon a flawed premise that one religion is better than the other. It strikes at the very root of the orderly society, which the founding fathers of our Constitution dreamt of." This statement is patently unconstitutional as it goes against the guarantees of freedom of faith on the one hand and seems to acknowledge vigilante actions of criminals like Dara Singh who take upon themselves 'to teach lessons' to persons serving lepers and the poor. Did the SC ever take into consideration the report of the Wadhwa Commission which was set up to probe the murder of Graham Staines and which had observed, "There has been no extraordinary increase in the Christian population in Keonjhar district between 1991 and 1998. The population had increased by 595 during this period and could have been caused by natural growth." The SC ruling may in fact send the wrong signals to courts trying cases of religious violence in Kandhamal, for instance, and in other places. It also tends to preempt possible challenges to the black laws enacted by many states in the guise of Freedom of Religion Bills. The secular India looks at SC and other judicial forums as its last hope to preserve Constitutional gurantees given to religious minorities and other marginalized groups. It is, therefore, understandly disturbed when judgments such as this one and the Allhabad-Lucknow Bench ruling on Ayodhya are made and interpreted as supporting the bigoted point of view of right wing fundamentalists such as the Sangh Parivar. The state cannot abrogate its responsibilities to ensure the secular fabric of the country. We expect the government to ask the SC to expunge the unnecessary, uncalled for and unconstitutional remarks. Anand Patwardhan Fr. Dominic Emanuel, New Delhi Harsh Mander, Member, National Integration Council John Dayal, Member, National Integration Council Navaid Hamid, Member, National Integration Council HL Hardenia, Editor, Secular Democracy Praful Bidwai, Columnist Ram Puniyani, Mumbai Shabnam Hashmi, ANHAD Shahid Siddiqui, ex-M.P. Seema Mustafa, Journalist Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan, Editor, The Milli Gazette Related Stories: Indian court rejects death for missionary killer Graham Staines killing: A timeline SC decries forceful religious conversions --~---------------------------------------------------------------- You are subscribed as commons-law at sarai.net EasyUnsubscribe or manage your settings http://milligazette.biglist.com/do/unsub/news/23972962/kv79xgssgm/100 or EasyUnsubscribe by email news-cunsub-kv79xgssgm-23972962-100 at milligazette.biglist.com --~-- BIGLIST e-Newsletter delivery. Over 8 years for Milli Gazette. 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