European Commission (Almost) Does the Right Thing on Marrakesh
22 September 2016
Last week, on Wednesday 14 September, the European Commission released copyright proposals that include:
- a proposal for a Directive for the making and sharing of accessible copies of works within the EU, and
- a proposal for a Regulation for working with countries outside of the EU.
The Marrakesh Treaty, signed in September 2013, aims to end the book famine created by rules in many countries that prevent people with visual impairments from accessing books and other materials.
This Treaty was agreed after years of negotiations and is a milestone in the recognition of rights for People with visual impairments.
With this statement, EBLIDA and IFLA acknowledge the good work the EU Commission has already achieved with the proposed Directive and Regulation, but remind policy-makers, MEPs and Member-States of the need to respect the spirit of Marrakesh and to avoid the inclusion of clauses that are not part of the Treaty when discussing the Directive and Regulation.
This statement is a call to ensure a correct ratification of the Treaty with proper implementing instruments respecting the spirit of the text.
Read the full statement (PDF)
For further information, please also read the IFLA statement on Marrakesh implementation of September 1st.
For further comment or any questions please contact:
EBLIDA: Vincent.bonnet@eblida.org
IFLA: stephen.wyber@ifla.org
