Finally, Mr. Speaker, this is a return to oral question asked by Mr. Barnabas on September 22, 1998 regarding an issue about northern carver copyright.
The federal government has a Copyright Act that protects artists from others copying their work without the artist's permission. This law applies to carvers and a variety of other creative art forms.
The Universal Copyright Convention provides for marking with a small "c" in a circle, the name of the copyright owner, who is the artist in this case, and the year the artwork was produced. This marking serves as a reminder to others of a copyright, as well as providing the name of the artist. This convention has been in use for many years. Any artist is protected under this act, whether they register their work or not.
The Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development is working with Aboriginal Business Canada and the Dene Cultural Institute on a "Business of Art" conference in Yellowknife this March. Part of this conference will deal with copyright law for artists and should provide a forum to discuss the extent of the problem and propose means to address it. A similar conference is planned for Nunavut in the near future, sponsored by the newly formed Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association in conjunction with Aboriginal Business Canada. Thank you.