His tune became a hit around the world as The Lion Sleeps Tonight, but he slept on a dirt floor, died penniless and was buried without a headstone. It was more than 40 years later that the family of Solomon Linda, an illiterate Zulu who grew up herding cattle, won compensation from Disney for the song that helped make it millions in The Lion King.
This infamous case is just the tip of the iceberg, according to politicians in South Africa, who are debating legislation to protect “traditional knowledge” — everything from beadwork and dolls to folk songs and plants with medicinal properties — from commercial exploitation.
“South Africa, like many countries, has a history of intellectual property misappropriation by both individuals and organizations,” South African Minister of Science and Technology Derek Hanekom said in June.
“With a few notable exceptions, it is unfortunate that many big corporations continue to ignore their moral and legal obligations to seek prior informed consent and to share benefits that result from their use of the knowledge and genetic resources of indigenous communities,” he added.
The governing African National Congress (ANC) has proposed an amendment to current intellectual property laws.
However, the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) says these do not go far enough, and in April introduced the protection of traditional knowledge bill.
“It is necessary to protect the intellectual property of South African communities, such as the Ndebele patterns and traditional songs, from theft,” said Wilmot James, the DA’s shadow minister of trade and industry.
However, this week, ANC members of a parliamentary committee voted down the DA’s bill, underlining how slow progress on the issue has been since the end of apartheid nearly 20 years ago.
The most recent high-profile case of property misappropriation revolved around Hoodia, a plant used by the indigenous Khoisan people for thousands of years to suppress hunger and thirst.
Scientists isolated its active ingredient and licensed its use to a UK-based pharmaceutical company to produce a weight loss drug. However, following objections, an agreement to share benefits was reached.
However, experts warn that traditional culture is still often seen as up for grabs.
This can include lullabies that find their way into the music of local and international artists or the Ndebele tribe’s distinctive dolls now being made in China.
Yet Nomboniso Gasa, a researcher and analyst of cultural issues, said that politicians could be blundering into a legal minefield.
Gasa defended artists, such as Miriam Makeba and Paul Simon, who have been inspired by traditional material.
“A law might limit and suffocate artists in their particular creative genre,” she said. “We need a much richer conversation.”
FRUSTRATIONS: One in seven youths in China and Indonesia are unemployed, and many in the region are stuck in low-productivity jobs, the World Bank said Young people across Asia are struggling to find good jobs, with many stuck in low-productivity work that the World Bank said could strain social stability as frustrations fuel a global wave of youth-led protests. The bank highlighted a persistent gap between younger and more experienced workers across several Asian economies in a regional economic update released yesterday, noting that one in seven young people in China and Indonesia are unemployed. The share of people now vulnerable to falling into poverty is now larger than the middle class in most countries, it said. “The employment rate is generally high, but the young struggle to
ENERGY SHIFT: A report by Ember suggests it is possible for the world to wean off polluting sources of power, such as coal and gas, even as demand for electricity surges Worldwide solar and wind power generation has outpaced electricity demand this year, and for the first time on record, renewable energies combined generated more power than coal, a new analysis said. Global solar generation grew by a record 31 percent in the first half of the year, while wind generation grew 7.7 percent, according to the report by the energy think tank Ember, which was released after midnight yesterday. Solar and wind generation combined grew by more than 400 terawatt hours, which was more than the increase in overall global demand during the same period, it said. The findings suggest it is
IN THE AIR: With no compromise on the budget in sight, more air traffic controllers are calling in sick, which has led to an estimated 13,000 flight delays, the FAA said Concerns over flight delays and missed paychecks due to the US government shutdown escalated on Wednesday, as senators rejected yet another bid to end the standoff. Democrats voted for a sixth time to block a Republican stopgap funding measure to reopen government departments, keeping much of the federal workforce home or working without pay. With the shutdown in its eighth day, lines at airports were expected to grow amid increased absenteeism among security and safety staff at some of the country’s busiest hubs. Air traffic controllers — seen as “essential” public servants — are kept at work during government shutdowns, but higher numbers
Elvis Nghobo tried to get into four different professional schools in Cameroon, but could not make it. Frustrated, the 34-year-old turned to selling food at a market in Yaounde, the country’s seat of power. Nghobo blames his woes on what he calls a corrupt education system that favors children of the elite. As the central African country prepares for Sunday’s presidential election, he said he would not be heading out to vote. He called the results a foregone conclusion for 92-year-old Paul Biya, the world’s oldest president, who has ruled for Nghobo’s entire life. “He is already too old to govern, and it’s boring
RSS