We Have a Treaty! Now What? | Peer to Peer Review

"Having written a column a couple of weeks ago expressing skepticism, even cynicism, about the prospect of the international diplomatic conference sponsored in Marrakesh by the World Intellectual Property Organization actually producing a treaty on copyright exceptions for the blind and visually impaired, I was both pleased and surprised to hear that such a treaty was agreed to by the delegates in the wee hours of June 25. This is an important milestone in the history of international copyright agreements, as well as for the over 300 million persons who live with these disabilities, 90 percent of whom are from the developing world. But, as chief U.S. negotiator Justin Hughes said at the closing session of the conference, this agreement is the beginning of a process, more than the end of one. So it is worthwhile simultaneously to celebrate this progress, attempt to understand what has been accomplished, and think ahead about next steps. Like most WIPO treaties, the new 'Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities' is not 'self-executing.' Nothing changes in any country simply because the treaty text has been agreed upon. There was a signing ceremony, but all that did was send the treaty text to WIPO for the process of implementation. Over the next few years, at least 20 of the 186 nations that are members of WIPO must ratify the treaty, at which point it will 'enter into force.' Once in force, member states of WIPO will be obligated to adopt provisions in their individual national laws to implement the provisions of the treaty. The degree to which they actually do this, however, varies a good deal. Some countries that do not like provisions in a treaty will assert that their national laws already accomplish the stated goal (the U.S. has taken this approach to moral rights) or they may simply drag their feet and ignore the obligation. There are few enforcement mechanisms to make a country comply with a treaty obligation. The vagaries of the implementation process, however, should not prevent us from recognizing how important this treaty is. For one thing, it brings to the forefront of international concern a very disturbing problem—the 'book famine' that afflicts millions of blind and print-disabled people. Figures from the World Blind Union suggest that only about 5 percent of the books published each year worldwide are available in accessible formats to this large segment of the population. Under the agreed treaty text, member states will now be obligated to adopt limitations and exceptions to the exclusive rights of copyright holders that permit the making and distribution of copies of printed works in accessible formats for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired, or print-disabled. Currently only about a third of the WIPO member nations have such provisions in their law ..."