S.F. Man Says Beheading Video Is a Hoax
Aljazeera vows to cover Iraq despite closure
Saturday 07 August 2004,
Iraqi officials announced the closure of Aljazeera's office
Aljazeera has vowed to continue its Iraq coverage despite the one-month closure of its Baghdad office announced by the Iraqi interim government on Saturday.
In a statement Aljazeera expressed regret for the unjustified move, and said it was contrary to pledges made by the Iraqi Government to start a new era of free speech and openness.Aljazeera made it clear in the statement they hold the Iraqi authorities responsible for the safety of Aljazeera staff in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq.Aljazeera's Baghdad office staff said the decision to close the office had been expected for some time.
They said they had been facing difficulties covering the news from Baghdad and that Iraqi officials had been reacting negatively to requests submitted by the channel.
Change the policy?
Iraqi police officers arrived in the early evening at the Aljazeera office in Baghdad to implement the closure decision without providing legal document from an Iraqi court. They carried an order from the interior ministry addressed "to whom it may concern", ordering the closure of the office.
Aljazeera lawyers in Baghdad said police officers did not carry an order from an Iraqi court as Iraqi law requires in such a case.Lawyers said they were given a document stating Aljazeera has to promise to change its policy in terms of covering Iraq, if they want the office to be re-opened after the one-month punishment.
Aljazeera lawyers in Baghdad refused to sign the document.
Under scrutiny
Aljazeera's staff in Baghdad said the closure order was expected
While Iraqi Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib announced the closure at a Baghdad news conference after an order from the national security committee, Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said, "We asked an independent commitee to monitor Aljazeera for the last four weeks ... to see what kind of violence they are advocating, inciting hatred and problems and racial tensions,"
"This is a decision taken by the national security committee to protect the people of Iraq, in the interests of the Iraqi people," he said.
Channels criticised
The development followed reports that US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had accused Aljazeera and the other main Arab news channel, Al-Arabiya, of harming the image of the US in the Arab world.Rumsfeld made the remarks at the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, Aljazeera said.Earlier this month, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hushyar Zibari criticised Aljazeera, the Saudi-funded Al-Arabiya and other Arab and Iranian stations for their coverage of Iraq, and threatened to close their Baghdad offices.
Zibari said Aljazeera, Al-Arabiya, the Lebanese Hizb Allah's Al-Manar television and Iran's Al-Alam were "channels of incitement working against the interests, security and stability of the Iraqi people".He said, "We will no longer tolerate this in the future.""It is a disappointing move. Aljazeera is the sincerest channel, although it does not report the whole truth."
Muhammad Bashar al-Faidhi, AMS's spokesman Aljazeera has frequently been accused by US and Iraqi authorities of inciting violence by screening "exclusive" videotapes from Iraqi resistance and alleged al-Qaida-linked groups.
Reactions
Muhammad Bashar al-Faidhi, a spokesman for the Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS), has criticised the closure, saying Iraqis are disappointed to learn that they are not experiencing freedom of speech yet."It is a disappointing move. Aljazeera is the sincerest channel, although it does not report the whole truth."There are a lot of tragedies that have gone unreported. We used to wonder why Aljazeera had not been reporting those facts, and we were annoyed at it, but when we learned about the American pressure on this channel, we understood," said al-Fadhi.
Saaid al-Burini, a candidate for the US Congress, said the US did not want an Arab source of news.
"The US is not happy with the idea that an Arab media organisation is on the ground and reporting independently," he said.
Kuwait Government bans Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11"
Reporters Without Borders today condemned the Kuwaiti Information ministry's decision on 1 August to ban screening of Michael Moore's documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" and urged the authorities to lift the interdiction.
"The Kuwaiti authorities are free to disagree with Michael Moore's political preferences but it is regrettable that they are using the weapon of censorship to deprive the Kuwaiti public of the Information and views contained in his film," the organisation said. "This ban is all the more damaging to Kuwait's image as, so far, it is the only country in the region to take such a decision."
The Information ministry's cinema and production supervisor, Abdel-Aziz Bou Dastour, said the film insulted the Saudi royal family. "We have a law that prohibits insulting friendly nations and ties between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are special," he said.
He also said Moore's film "criticised America's policy on invading Iraq and this was tantamount to criticising Kuwait for [what it did] to liberate Iraq ... [and] would have angered Kuwaitis."
A request for licensing "Fahrenheit 9/11" in Kuwait was filed with the Information ministry last month by the state-owned Kuwait National Cinema Company, which owns all of the country's cinemas.
The film has already been showing for several weeks in the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon, where it has been a success. It opened simultaneously on 3 August in Qatar, Bahrain and Oman and is due to open soon in Egypt. Pirate copies have also been circulating clandestinely in several of the region's countries.
Company to cooperate with government officials to catch culprits
August 7, 2004
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co (MEI), the parent company of
PANASONIC and NATIONAL, has announced a global campaign to take action against
fake and look-alike products being manufactured and sold under its PANASONIC
and NATIONAL brand names.The company launched a global brand unification campaign recently to
replace the NATIONAL brand name with PANASONIC for all home appliance products.
However, MEI still holds exclusive ownership of the NATIONAL brand name
and trademark in the GCC countries and both the NATIONAL and PANASONIC
brand names are duly and legally registered with MEI. Therefore, any
unauthorized production, sale or trade of goods or packaging in a manner identical
with or deceptively similar to the trademarks or copyrights is illegal.
In China, with the help of local law enforcement authorities, MEI has
already undertaken raids against illegal manufacturing facilities, warehouses
and retail outlets stocking look-alike or fake products. MEI has also
initiated discussions with the governments of several countries to explore ways
in which they can cooperate to tackle sales and production of counterfeit
electronic brands. MEI plans to issue warning letters to exporters,
importers, traders, distributors, wholesalers, retailers and manufacturers,
threatening legal prosecution and severe punishment to offenders in these
countries.
Commenting on the campaign, Masahisa Miyazaki, General Manager of
Panasonic Marketing Middle East FZE based in Dubai said, "The problem of pirated
products is a universal one, affecting nearly every industry and
country. These fakes are often of sub-standard quality. Our primary concern is
the damaging effect on the safety of consumers because they purchase these
fakes mistakenly assuming that it is a genuine PANASONIC or NATIONAL
product. Consumers end up being disappointed and disillusioned because they have
been cheated out of buying the genuine item.""Panasonic has launched this campaign primarily to protect consumers
from deceptive products being sold under our brand name. An assurance on
quality control is part of Panasonic's commitment to customers, and we wish to
educate customers on the pitfalls of not being aware while purchasing
imitation goods. On the other hand, distributors also have an ethical
responsibility to deal only in genuine goods and prevent customer from buying
counterfeit products," he added."With the close cooperation of government and law enforcement
authorities, we are currently undertaking a series of raids in several countries
where piracy is rampant. In the UAE, we are working closely with Dubai CID,
Customs and the Departments of Economic Development in Dubai and Sharjah, who
actively campaign against violators of anti-piracy laws, to take strong action
against the culprits." continued Miyazaki."If unchecked, trading in counterfeit goods can have a seriously
negative impact on business. Apart from affecting sales and profits, these fakes
damage the reputation of the company. It will also have an adverse
effect on the growth of regional industry as piracy hampers fair competition
between companies. By eliminating piracy we can help governments and their
industries progress towards a more prosperous economy," concluded Miyazaki.
Indian Hostages to be released Soon?
kuwait city, Aug - 3, (Agencies): the kuwaiti company which has seven truckers held hostage in Iraq said on Tuesday it expected the captives to be freed " very soon" but refused to reveal what it was prepared to do in return for their release
International Federation for of the Phonographic Industry's annual study reveals one in three of all music CDs sold world wide is a pirateLebanon, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait lead the pack in Middle East in terms of piracy according to study
IFPI says 1.1 billion Pirated CDs sold in 2003
August 7, 2004
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), revealed that pirated music CD's sales have reached a record 1.1 billion units in 2003. The findings were made available by the IFPI in its Commercial Piracy Report 2004. The music industry's global trade body issued a "wake up call" to governments in 10 priority countries around the world, where piracy is found to be endemic, to enact and enforce laws in an effort to curb this practice.
It is estimated that one in three CDs bought by customers worldwide, in 2003, was a pirate copy, with a street value of more than US$ 4.5 billion,
nearly 15 per cent worth of the global record market. Tackling music piracy has been severely hampered by corruption, apathy of law enforcement
agents and lack of political will.Growing piracy concerns in the Middle East
In the Middle East, political disinterest, combined with a lack of effective enforcement for intellectual rights, continues to result in ever-increasing
piracy levels.Cassettes remain the most popular pirate music carrier. However, optical discs piracy is clearly on the rise. Lebanon registered the highest
level of music piracy in the region with 70 per cent followed by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.The Lebanese situation remains grim despite several raids by the government. The lack of prosecutorial follow-up to such raids show copyright crime
in Lebanon is still not taken seriously. The Kuwaiti market is the worse hit in terms of retail piracy. With piracy figures hovering around 60
per cent and issues relating to intellectual property rights being given the lowest priority by the authorities, the problem remains rife in the
country. In Saudi Arabia, concerted government action led to the seizure of more than 600,000 pirate music carriers, but absence of deterrent penalties
for intellectual property violations and the complete lack of transparency in the judicial system prevent the actions from having any sustainable
impact.Stefan Krawczyk, IFPI Director Middle East & North Africa said: "Piracy is robbing countries of billions of dollars in investment and taxes. Combating
high levels of piracy in the Middle East region is a priority for the international
recording industry as the region's highly creative music culture is being decimated, especially with the advent of new technologies like the CD-R
that make piracy easier. We call on the governments in the region to resort to truly effective and sustained enforcement, enact deterrent sentences
against copyright thieves, assure effective regulation of optical disc manufacturing and, above all, demonstrate the political will to make
sure real change happens" said Stefan Krawczyk, IFPI Director Middle East & North Africa.
The music industry in the region is, moreover, is facing new threats. With consistently lower entry thresholds to acquiring technologies and
with faster Internet access speeds, Internet piracy is likely to begin to affect the Middle East. In January 2005, IFPI will be addressing the issues surrounding illegal file sharing with a report on the effects of
Internet piracy.Encouraging signs despite record levels in global piracyGlobal sales of illegal music discs rose by 4 per cent in 2003 and the
global average of piracy rate increased to a record 35 per cent. Encouragingly, music disc piracy in 2003 registered the slowest rate of growth in four
years, indicating that enforcement efforts by industry anti-piracy teams, and by some government enforcement agencies, are beginning to show an
impact. There were also record levels of seizures of discs, 53 million in 2003 as compared to
13 million in the previous year. More than 12,000 CD stampers were seized in 2003 - six times more than the ones in 2002.Jay Berman, IFPI Chairman and CEO said: "Despite an encouraging slowdown in growth in 2003, commercial music piracy dominates large segment of
the world's music markets. This illegal trade is funding organised crime and fuelling widespread corruption. The responsibility now is for governments
- and especially on the 10 priority countries our report names - to act decisively against the problem."IFPI Top Ten Priorities
The report has singled out ten priority countries Brazil, China, Mexico, Pakistan, Paraguay, Russia, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand and Ukraine where
wholesale anti-piracy offensives are most urgently needed. The report also outlines new evidence of suspected involvement in piracy by government,
judiciary and civil service employees.In terms of pirate sales value, the list is topped by China, with the largest pirate market (worth around US$ 600 million) and Russia, with a US$ 330
million market and a massive international exporter of pirate CDs to some 30 countries. Mexico and Brazil also feature prominently in the list as
countries that were until recently among the world's top 10 largest egitimate music markets but whose music industry, artists and workforce have been
decimated by CD-R piracy. Pakistan has entered the list for the first time after having evolved in last three years into one of the world's largest manufacturers and exporters of discs replacing Poland.