Is it time to tame Iran's lawless publishing sector?
Iranians are debating whether to join the international Berne Convention on copyright, with advocates arguing that signing on will bring legitimacy to Iranian publishing and detractors fearing copyright enforcement will only benefit the corrupt and powerful.
Foreign authors objecting to their books being translated and published in Iran without their consent is nothing new. Even before Atiq Rahimi, authors such as John Barth, J. M. Coetzee, Gabriel García Márquez and even Sir Alex Ferguson had raised similar objections.
Common to these objections is an expressed hope for Iran to join the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. The convention was established in 1886 to guarantee copyright protection for artists and writers. Today, Iran is one of only 25 countries that have yet to sign on.
