[d at DCC] Asking Candidates questions, publishing their answers!

[Keith Rose]

On 8-Sep-08, at 10:30 AM, Russell McOrmond wrote:

>   We all have a few possibilities.

>   e) Something different?  All of the above?

Of the four lists you mentioned, CIPPIC's and Geist's are more broadly  
directed at "digital" or Internet issues generally.  They mention  
copyright, but not in any particular detail.  CIPPIC's list is  
(unsurprisingly) more technical.  It also seems to be designed to  
allow "yes/no" answers, but not consistently so.  Geist's questions  
are more open-ended (except to the extent that they are leading).

Of the two more Copyright-specific questionnaires, your questions are  
more interesting (to me) but probably a lot more esoteric-seeming for  
candidates who may not be even remotely familiar with the issues.   
That probably makes it somewhat intimidating.

Vancouver's questionnaire, on the other hand (noting of course that  
it's a work-in-progress) is perhaps too strongly organized around  
particulars of C-61.  From my own experience in talking with MPs and  
candidates, discussion of principle is more likely to be productive  
than discussion of legal details.  I think this will only be more  
evident during the election campaign.

So, I would tend to favour a shorter, simpler questionnaire -- five  
questions is a good number.  Mine might be:

1) Do you agree with the Supreme Court of Canada that "[i]n order to  
maintain the proper balance between the rights of a copyright owner  
and users’ interests, [fair dealing, among the other exceptions in the  
Act] must not be interpreted restrictively." [CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law  
Society of Upper Canada, [2004] 1 S.C.R. 339, 2004 SCC 13]?

2) Do you believe that Canada should implement and ratify the WIPO  
Internet treaties (the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances  
and Phonograms Treaty)?

3) If the answer to 2) is "yes", do you agree that the Article 11 WCT  
obligation (and similar obligation under Article 18 of the WPPT) can,  
and should, be satisfied without imposing a blanket prohibition on  
tools and/or technologies that may have both infringing and non- 
infringing uses?

4) Do you believe that the current private copying regime for audio  
recordings defined by Part VIII of the Copyright Act, including the  
associated levy and collective society is basically fair to both  
rights-holders and users of recordings?

5) Do you believe that a creator's right to control their creation  
includes the right to control or limit a consumer's private enjoyment  
of property?

As a set of questions, these aren't ideal: they're probably a little  
too technical, and could certainly be called "leading".  And they  
certainly don't cover all the issues.  But I think it gets at, or at  
least indicates, some of the important dividing lines.

In fact, having written that up, I think I'll just go ahead and send  
these off to the candidates here in Ottawa Centre, at least.   
Naturally, I'll report on any responses I may receive.

KR