IV WIPO model of copyright law and translation [1979-2003]
4.1. Introduction
The copyright regime implemented from 1979 to 2003 marks the second stage of the history of Sri Lankan copyright. During this period, Sri Lankan copyright law was exclusively determined by the Code of Intellectual Property Act 1979 (IP Code). The IP Code was an all-embracing intellectual property statute which provided for a copyright regime. Although the IP Code was passed by the Sri Lankan Parliament, it was prepared under the guidance of the World Intellectual Property' Organisation (WIPO). As a result, the copyright regime in the IP Code closely followed the WIPO Model Law on Copyright for Developing Countries) Thus, the copyright regime that was enforced in Sri Lanka from 1979 to 2003 can be called a ‘WIPO model of copyright law’.
This chapter will examine how the way in which the WIPO model of copyright law protected copyright owners’ translation rights affected the translation of scientific and technical books and learning materials in Sri Lanka. It will also examine the reason for the way in which the WIPO model of copyright law protected copyright owner’s translation rights.
As demonstrated in this chapter, the way the WIPO model of copyright law protected copyright owners’ translation rights restricted Sri Lanka’s ability to translate scientific and technical books and learning materials and to reproduce the translations in large quantities in a timely and affordable manner. The WIPO model of copyright law, therefore, did not facilitate access to scientific and technical knowledge in Sri Lanka. The main reason for the way in which the WIPO model of copyright law protected copyright owners’ translation rights was Sri Lanka’s membership to the Berne Convention and the adherence of the WIPO model of copyright law to the WIPO Model Law on Copyright for Developing Countries which, in turn, was based on the provisions of the Berne Convention.
The way in which the Berne Convention requires Member Countries to protect copyright owners’ translation rights is inimical to timely and affordable
1 The WIPO Model Law on Copyright for Developing Countries is also referred to as the Tunis Model Law on Copyright for Developing Countries.
translation in developing countries like Sri Lanka. This is because the balance which is struck in the Berne Convention between copyright owners’ translation rights and the users’ ability to access translations of copyright protected works is tilted in favour of the copyright owners.[1] Since developing countries mostly represent the interests of the users of copyright protected works, the Berne Convention is unsuitable for developing countries. The reason for this is that the Berne Convention is inherently an instrument that has been initiated and developed to advocate the interests of the copyright exporting developed countries in Europe such as France, Germany and Britain. This is evident from the history of the way in which protection of translation rights has evolved in the Berne Convention. Therefore, this chapter also traces the evolution of the protection of translation rights in the Berne Convention from its inception up to the present.
- [1] See Salah Basalamah, ‘Compulsory Licensing for Translation: An Instrument of Development?’ (2000) 40(4) IDEA: The Journal of Law and Technology 503, 504. 2 See Lionel Bendy, ‘Copyright, Translations, and Relations between Britain and India in the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries’ (2007) 82(3) Chicago-Kent Law Review 1181, 1240. 3 Sri Lanka, Parliamentary Debates, 25 May 1979, col 501; DM Karunaratna, An Introduction to the Law of Copyright and Related Rights in Sri Lanka (Sarvodaya Vishva Lekha Publication, 2006) 7. 4 Code of Intellectual Property Act No 52 of 1979 (Sri Lanka) s 187. 5 See Sri Lanka, Parliamentary Debates, 25 May 1979, cols 501-502. 6 Ibid., col 500.
