10 Feb 2019

Sejelo Station Commander, Superintendent Mogomotsi Matlapeng says they have made notable strides in combating piracy.

He said they were committed to cracking down and taking stern action against piracy of CDs and DVDs.

Supt Matlapeng said this during an anti-piracy raid conducted by the Criminal Justice Association in conjunction with the police.

The team visited businesses selling CDs and DVDs at commercial malls.

“The high level of piracy bedeviling the country characterised mainly by CD burning, importing of pirated CDs, DVDs and cassettes and photocopying of books without any remuneration to the composers and authors seems to have gone down in our area,” he said.

This was the second raid, as the first was done last year December.

Supt Matlapeng said no one was detained, noting that it could be that they were successful in the previous raid, and businesses were now aware of the implications.

He, however, indicated that the raid was more focused on sensitising and creating awareness about the impact and consequences of piracy.

“We held our first raid last year December where we managed to cease 501 CDs and fined four people P6 000,” he said.

He said the reason they were not able to confiscate any CDs and DVDs was an indication that businesses were now aware of risks associated with selling unpatented disks.

“We stand committed to continually visit businesses to ensure that they adhere to copyright laws,” he said.

Supt Matlapeng said he was pleased with the level of cooperation from Botswana Criminal Justice Association (BOCRIJA), whom have since engaged in dealing with copyright contraveners.

“I would like to therefore warn those who are still selling such CDs to discontinue doing so,” he said.

Supt Matlapeng noted that it was important eliminate piracy since it weakened the creative arts industry.

“Artistes spend a lot of time and money on their projects only to be exploited through piracy. This is a huge setback to the industry. It also defeats government’s efforts in ensuring that all sectors contribute to the country’s Gross Domestic Product,” he said.

For his part, BOCRIJA vice president, Mr Onangone Samakata was thankful for the support they received from law enforcement agencies.

He indicated that there were notable improvements.

Mr Samakata said there were indications that the community was now aware that buying unpatented disks was illegal.

“This is due to the assistance we received while working with the police, bye-law officers, immigration department and prisons,” he said.

Mr Samakata noted that they have partnered with Companies and Intellectual Property Authority (CIPA) to conduct anti-piracy workshops geared towards protecting intellectual property in six districts.

“These workshops bring together district law enforcement committees and local creative industry players to empower them with skills and knowledge related to piracy. We have since established three district anti-piracy committees that report to the District Law Enforcement Committee on a monthly basis and Kanye has been instrumental in implementing such skills,” he said.

He said judging from the results of the last raid, there were indications that businesses have rid their shelves of unpatented disks and were now aware of the consequences of selling such.

He, however, noted that the challenge remained with the street hawkers as they were mostly expatriates with no regard for the law and only the goal to make profit.

“It is difficult to contain such people, but we will not tire. I would like to send a strong message to them that we are on the lookout for them,” he said.

Mr Samakata said they had a programme called Mopagami Bua in which they were in partnership with the Department of Roads, Transport and Safety (DRTS), the idea being to work with passengers and motivate them to speak up on various road crimes.

“This is largely informed by the alarming rate of fatalities recorded that show that the majority of the deaths are passengers,” he said.

BOCRIJA was officially registered with the Register of Societies in 2014 with the mandate of fighting all injustices and criminal activities in the country.

Its objectives are to mobilise the community and stakeholders in reducing the escalating criminal behaviour and injustices in all sectors, to inform policy making processes regarding crime and injustice and to partner with stakeholders to instil change. ENDS