Socialist legacy leaves Vietnam battling over copyright piracy
Vietnam last month joined the international copyright convention, but after decades of touting the socialist ideology that cultural works are common property it faces an uphill struggle to meet its commitments. From the capital Hanoi to the southern economic hub Ho Chi Minh City, pirated foreign music CDs and DVDs of the latest Hollywood blockbuster are easily available. Pirated novels are also on sale.
Since becoming the 156th member of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works on October 26, Vietnam is wondering how to actually implement its international commitments. The habit of copying, Vietnamese experts say, is deeply rooted in the local culture.
"We follow the socialist ideology, that says that cultural, artistic and scientific works are the property of the people," said Tran Thi Truong, vice director of the Vietnam Literary Copyright center. Violaters even argue that pirated copies contribute to improving the knowledge of the people.
"Despite having no official copyrights, we are proud to say that we have brought the quintessence of the world to Vietnamese people by publishing the translated works of famous international authors," said Nguyen Phan Hach, director of the Writer's Association Publishing House. Over the past few years, the phrase "violation of copyright" has frequently cropped up in local mass media but in reality, few people are actually aware what it means.
"Many people even don't know they violate copyrights in one way or another every day," Doan Tu Huyen, director of Dong Tay Center of Linguistic Culture told AFP, accusing government agencies of being passive over the issue. According to the International Intellectual Property Alliance, Vietnam lost around US$12 million last year due to copyright piracy. Only recently has the necessity to follow international intellectual property laws been acknowledged by the authorities, with Vietnam aiming to join the World Trade Organization by the end of 2005. According to the Berne Convention signed last month, Vietnam will grant copyright protection in literature, arts and science to citizens of all member countries. Vietnamese authors will also be protected in these markets.
But there is a long way to go between signing the convention and putting it into practice, with many people directly concerned unaware of the contents of the agreement and what it means. And there's no authorized agency in Vietnam where the text can be consulted. "After a lot of effort, I recently received a copy of the convention thanks to private contacts. But I really need to consult on some articles I don't understand," Huyen said."I don't know who I should talk to," he added. "Vietnamese publishers are currently in the middle of nowhere."
Since 1999, Vietnam has translated between 500 and 700 foreign books a year, including re-publications, according to Ministry of Culture and Information statistics. This is expected to fall now the country is a signatory to the Berne convention, but it currently takes a lot of effort, time and money to track down a foreign author and pay him royalties to receive a copyright certificate. While many have doubts about how well enforced the Berne Convention will be, they agree it is a step Vietnam has to take. "At first, it will be extremely difficult," Quyen said. "But we don't want to be left behind."
However, until significant progress is made, Vietnamese consumers will continue to buy copies of the latest Hollywood box office hits for just 20,000 dong (US$1.3) each.
By Tran Minh Ha - Agence France Presse - November 11, 2004
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