00:00Mr. President, I am bold enough to say that I think we have the sweetest music in the world.
00:08Land and Legal Affairs Minister Saddam Hussein has he piloted a bill containing amendments to the Copyright Act in Trinidad and Tobago at a time when Calypso and Soka music dominate the airwaves.
00:20Clause 3 of the bill would amend Section 19 of the Copyright Act to extend copyright protection for authors from the current term of 50 years after the death of the author to 70 years.
00:34In the case of joint authorship, the term is calculated from the death of the last surviving author.
00:40A familiar example is where a lyricist and a composer collaborate to create a single song intended to be exploited as one musical work.
00:48Protection, therefore, endures until 70 years after the death of the last surviving author.
00:55Minister Hussein referred to what he said is the new global standard such as that in the European Union.
01:02Opposition Senator Paris Al-Rawi referred to his tenure as a past Attorney General.
01:07And I would wish to humbly recommend to the government that they consider carrying on a project which I started,
01:15which is looking to anchor the intellectual property office into an intellectual property authority,
01:24where the authority can have two forms of intervention, one in the regulatory and management side,
01:32but in the other equation where they can allow for the prosperity of the industry.
01:38Minister Hussein emphasized the government's position that it supports the prosperity of creatives,
01:44as he highlighted data regarding a particular aspect of the health of the society.
01:49According to the World Health Organization, official estimate updated the 2nd of August 2024.
01:55The life expectancy in Trinidad and Tobago is 71.7 years.
02:02And while there has been an increase in life expectancy since the creation of these rights under the international framework,
02:07the damarering rights protection term has not changed.
02:11This means that the producers of sound recordings and performers may not be able to benefit from their work during the entirety of their lifetime.
02:19Senator Al-Rawi suggested an amendment.
02:22This law is something that I think could include a retroactivity clause with a special majority inclusion,
02:29which will be supported by the opposition, I can say so now,
02:32to look at property rights with certain carve-outs being extended
02:37so that there can be an economic prosperity to the survivors of persons
02:42or persons who are in the winter of their years.
02:45We saw the experience of the mighty Sparrow going through his journey with diabetes,
02:49well-published, etc., where a little money makes a difference.
02:53In winding up the Senate's debate, Minister Hussein gave a direct response to Senator Al-Rawi.
02:59You see, it's very difficult to take legal advice from my friend,
03:04especially after his performance with the CPEP matter.
03:07So I can't take legal advice from him, Mr. President, at all.
03:10I'm afraid we may have to pay costs.
03:13So the World Intellectual Property Office would have advised our local IP office,
03:20do not let this thing operate retroactively.
03:22And I take that advice, Mr. President.
03:24The amendments to the Copyright Act were later passed by the Senate
03:28with no votes against it and no abstentions.
03:33Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
Comments