This dissertation investigates whether the needs of persons with sensory disabilities are
accommodated in South African copyright law. Of the approximately 44,8 million people
in South Africa counted in Census 2001, 2,3 million were reported as disabled. Of
these, 577 000 (1,3 per cent) had a visual disability, 314 000 (0,7 per cent) a hearing
disability, whilst others had physical, intellectual and communication disabilities, some
with multiple disabilities too. Persons with sensory disabilities, such as visual, hearing
and related impairments, experience barriers to accessing information on a daily basis.
The dissertation explores barriers in the copyright law and seeks ways to remedy the
situation so as to facilitate access to information, particularly for educational, personal
and other purposes. To contextualise this research, international and regional copyright
trends are explored to establish whether intellectual property agreements allow
copyright limitations and exceptions for persons with sensory disabilities in national
laws. In addition, the copyright laws of a large number of countries that have already
adopted appropriate limitations and exceptions nationally are reviewed. The
dissertation highlights the lack of attention that the access needs of persons with
sensory disabilities have been afforded in the Copyright Act 98 of 1978, as well as
related inadequacies in the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of
2002. South Africa’s non-compliance with certain international and national obligations
relating to human rights and access to information is also highlighted within the context
of copyright law. International human rights conventions, the South African Constitution
and domestic anti-discriminatory laws all provide the framework for protecting the rights
of persons with disabilities, yet their rights to access to knowledge have been neglected
by government and the legislature. Some recommendations for further research and
possible amendments to the copyright law are provided
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/12525 |
| Date | 18 March 2013 |
| Creators | Nicholson, Denise Rosemary |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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