Copyright Office In Need of More Teeth

Nepal Copyright Registrar's Office(NCRO) needs more power in order to check copyright violation in the country, claims Registrar Bir Bahadur Rai. Rai, the chief of NCRO , says a proposal will be soon forwarded to the government highlighting the need to transform NCRO into a quasi-judicial body. "only after getting the right to decide on cases of copyright violations as a quasi-judicial body, will the office be able to properly protect the copyright of the creator. we plan to forward a proposal to the government within the third quarter of the current fiscal year," Rai told The Corporate.

Established six years ago, NCRO is a Department-level government body to ensure the finincial(royalty) and ethical rights of creators in literature, music,art, among others. However , the role of NCRO ha been limited to registering copyrights and standing witness to copyright violation cases in courts.The office can , however, hear cases of royalty dispute and give its decesion. "the copyright agencies in other countries enjoy more power. Even in India, the Copyright Board is a quasi-judicial body,"Rai explains.

To get copyright violation case addressed, the Aggrieved party has to first file a complaint with local police, not with NCRO. Then based on the recomendation of the government attorney, the case goes to the district court. "All that our office does in such cases is to play the role of a witness during court proceedings. And again, it is not even compulsory to register one's creation with the NCRO," says Rai.

The copyright office also lacks branches in other parts of the country. "It's been six years since NCRO came into being. But it doesn't have any branch office. It makes our job very difficult," he says. The office has been conducting several public awareness programmes on copyright and the consequences of it's violation, he informed.

Is that only reason to reoccur instances of copyright violations? "There is still lack of awareness. At the times , the creators themselves don't want to take the trouble of filing a case. Due top weak implementation of the laws, Violators don't fear punishment. That's why we want a quasi-judicial rights, the NCRO with more resources," Rai says.