China Destroys 16.4 Million Copies of Pirated CDsChina destroyed 16.4 million copies of pirated compact disks (CD) in Zhuhai this week in a show of its determination to protect intellectual property rights.The CDs were crushed to dust by 15 road rollers at Zhuhai Stadium while senior officials of central government departments looked on. Witnessing the destruction at the stadium, Shi Zongyuan, director of the General Administration of Press and Publication and the National Copyright Administration, said the move, the largest ever in the country, has shown once again China's unwavering attitude toward protection of intellectual property rights. Pirated compact disks have been one of the targets of the ongoing national campaign launched by the Chinese government against illegal publications and smuggling. China has seized a total of 29.89 million copies of pirated compact disks smuggled into the Chinese mainland during the first eight months of this year, compared with 54 million copies during the 1998-2000 period by Chinese customs. Liu Wenjie, deputy commissioner of the General Administration of Customs, said the administration will continue to crack down on pirated compact disk smuggling. Among those present at the stadium were senior officials representing the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Culture, and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, and local government officials. |
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