Gospel Musicians Protest to Ellen

Members of the Liberia Association of Gospel Music Artists (LAGMA) were on Tuesday February 26, 2013 seen in a mass demonstration before President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s Foreign Ministry Office, demanding the government to enforce the copyright laws of Liberia.

Speaking to this paper, the President of the Liberia Association of Gospel Music Artists (LAGMA) Zarweay Gaye said, copyright has caused them to lose over US$1m. He said Liberian musicians paid huge amount of money to record an album, but they are not receiving returns from their efforts.

Zarweay said the association is calling on President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to add her voice to their voices to help halt the copyright violation. He said R&K is no longer buying their music due to the copyright problem so they will not rest until the President intervenes.

“We have tried through legal process to stop those who are found in copyright business, but we were stopped by some lawmakers”, he note.

Zarweay observed that some of the lawmakers do not even know the copyright law, which is why they are against arresting those who are involved copyright law violation. He said the LAGMA has in its position a copy of the copyright law, and was ready to call for the arrest any person caught in the illegal act.