The Sunday Mail
Schools have become the latest perpetrators of organised book piracy, compromising the quality of education as well as hampering growth of the publishing industry, it has emerged.
Book publishers and authors have in recent years battled cut-throat competition from illegal printers and vendors who reproduce and sell photocopied material on the cheap.
With schools now reportedly participating in text book piracy, intellectual property owners say their situation has been worsened as educational institutions were their biggest customers.
According to publishing companies and authors, schools — many of which charge textbook levies — now buy a few original copies which they then reproduce and distribute/sell to pupils.
Schools with inadequate photocopying equipment allegedly buy pirated books. Investigations show that school heads and other administrators get some of the money from the ventures.
Mr Masimba Guzha, the man tasked by the Zimbabwe International Book Fair to fight such piracy, said while investigations are yet to be made at all schools, Ellis Robins Boys High School, Daramombe Mission and Chitangazuva in Marondera have been found wanting.
“We have not visited many schools yet, but our investigations revealed that a lot of them are engaging in book piracy. So far we have caught Ellis Robins, Daramombe Mission and Chitangazuva in position of counterfeits,” he said.
“Ellis Robins and Chitangazuva have already gone to court while Daramombe’s case is different because the books they had were brought in by students as replacements of the lost ones.
“What we have found is that schools charge various amounts of book levies, but they do not go on to buy those books; instead they buy a few original books and photocopy them or they outsource.”
Mr Guzha said the development meant book publishers may end up closing shop.
Many publishing houses, including major players such as College Press and Longman, have either downsized or closed due to piracy.
This also has an impact on Government as it means lost tax revenue. While pirated books are cheaper, they can come at the cost of the learner’s education.
Educationist and director for Education Coalition Zimbabwe, Mr Maxwell Rafomoyo, said pirated books often lose their authenticity and quality during reproduction.
“The obvious disadvantage which is there is the issue of authenticity . . . you are not guaranteed that the contents of the book are as the same as those in the original,” he said.
“Then there is the issue of quality. The text may lose its quality or get distorted during the reproduction process and that compromises the quality of education a student is getting.
It has been established that some pages are omitted or mixed up during the mass assemblage of counterfeits.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister Dr Lazarus Dokora said although most schools were pirating learning material with the honest motive to cut costs, their participation in piracy was not condoned and would be punished.
“We encourage our schools to follow our procurement procedures and buy books and the rest of their learning material from legitimate organisations. But the few who are playing truancy by buying material from pirates will surely end up in courts.
“I have personally travelled to Marondera to deal with such a matter and it is now before the courts.”
A survey by The Sunday Mail Extra of major bookshops in Harare last week showed that key books for O-Level subjects cost an average of US$15 per copy.
Step Ahead English sells for US$12, while Denhe Reruzivo costs US$12 and New General Mathematics costs US$18. Step Ahead Geography is US$19 and Step Ahead History costs US$14.
Parents, guardians and pupils view the prices as exorbitant, especially when pirated books sell for US$3.
“Life is tough my brother,” said one parent who was comparing book prices at an illegal vendor’s stand on Harare’s pavements last week.
“As a parent you have the responsibility to make sure that the child is provided with books but at the same time the money is not enough so you have to save. Therefore, these guys have helped us a lot because we do not afford the original books.
“Personally, I do not see the difference (between counterfeits and originals), the content is the same and that’s what matters.”
What further riles booksellers is that illegal vendors sell their texts right in front of their shops.
Harare Informal Traders Association president Mr Onisimo Gore castigated illegal vendors saying, “We do not support anything done outside the law, we do not want to benefit from the work of others so we discourage all our members, vendors included, to desist from selling pirated books.”
The book piracy dilemma has precipitated calls to review Copyright and Neighbouring laws as the current ones are deemed ineffective in fighting piracy. Penalties given to those found infringing copyright laws are mild.
“We have about 19 cases that have gone to court and 18 of the offenders have been convicted,” said Mr Guzha.
“Unfortunately, most of them got away with community service and others were fined a few dollars. We are saying this is not enough to fight piracy because the penalties are not punitive enough. If someone convicted of stealing a cow is sentenced to, say, nine years, we wonder why those found guilty of piracy should not face the same punishment, if not worse.”
Mr Guzha also complained that council authorities and the police were not co-operating in terms of stopping book piracy rackets.
According to Section 59 of the Copyright Act (Chapter 26) a person should be charged according to each article (book) which attracts a minimal fine of about US$700.
If this is effected, vendors found guilty of selling counterfeits may have to fork out thousands in fines.
Efforts to obtain a comment from police were not fruitful.
