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{
    "id": 956476,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/956476/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 323,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. David ole Sankok",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13166,
        "legal_name": "David Ole Sankok",
        "slug": "david-ole-sankok"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to support such an important Treaty. Let me start by commending the Committee for having done a thorough job. In the past, whenever Members of Parliament travelled for benchmarking, people only saw how much they spent out there, but they did not see the much they learnt and implemented in this House. Kenyans should be aware that we travel outside for their own good. Sometimes we travel to learn best practices just like the Beijing Treaty, which will assist our performers and artists to earn a living. For a long time, our artists have been the poorest yet they entertain us. They have talents, but they do not reap from them. It is those who pirate their music who reap where they have not sown. The Beijing Treaty on Audio-Visual Performance regulates copyright for audio-visual performance and expands the performance rights. This is very important for us. It acknowledges that the rights of performance in this field are totally unfair and it is an anomaly that the whole world did not address at first. It is being addressed now. I urge the House to support it so that we can move forward to protect our artists. The Beijing Treaty carries the recognition that all performers of literary and artistic works or expression of folklore deserve to be protected regardless of their nature thus setting the record straight at last and encouraging countries to amend this intellectual property provision accordingly. I know in this country, we have not implemented fully the Intellectual Property Protection Act, but if we ratify this Treaty, we will be domesticating it into our laws and it will be up to the implementing agencies to make sure that they have implemented it. I will reiterate that our artists are suffering. There are people who are reaping huge profits by pirating their music and art. Those with talent are let down. At times, the artists would have been role models. There are people who could have emulated them and developed more talent in this country, which would even be a foreign exchange earner, but because they are living in abject poverty, no parent will allow their children to pursue art. No child in high school will tell you that they want to be artists in future, but if we protect our artists and performers, parents will encourage their children to exploit their talents. We are aware that we all cannot become doctors, engineers, farmers or Members of Parliament. If we all become doctors, who will be treating who? If we all become farmers, who will be buying the farm produce? If all of us become legislators, who will be legislating for whom? The education curriculum is trying to exploit talents in the pupils. If we learn that some children are talented in art, we should protect that before they graduate. This education curriculum will bring out the various talents from our children, but if we do not protect these talents like musicians and performers, then we may be letting our new curriculum down. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}