The launch of the Guyana Annual Magazine for 2018 has been postponed on account of plagiarism and other violations in respect to the content of its literary pieces.
This was revealed by National Library Chairman Petamber Persaud, during a conference held this week in celebration of World Book and Copyright Day.
“The launch of the 2018 issue of the Guyana Annual Magazine was pushed back to way down in May due mainly to two factors – plagiarism and unacknowledged sources of information. These surfaced from two competitions: the oil and gas essay [competition] and the journalism competition. Plagiarism and unacknowledged sources also showed up in poetry and short story,” he stated.
Persaud further stated that there was the need for the Magazine, which has been in existence for more than a century, to be precise before it is revealed to the public.
“We, the custodians of that magazine, couldn’t go ahead and publish this Guyanese tradition, which is over 100 years old, because of the harm it may do to the consumer of that product,” he indicated.
The Chairman also gave a brief insight into the importance of World Copyright Day and the significant role it played in appreciating reading and encouraging creativity in the minds of both readers and writers.
“The main aim of World Intellectual Property Day is to raise awareness in how patents, trademarks, copyright, etcetera, affect the daily lives and how it helps to promote creativity and innovation,” Persaud said.
Meanwhile, the lecture featured three presenters who gave their contributions so as to better understanding the term ‘copyright’. However, the main focus was placed on plagiarism, a common practice by most students when obtaining information.
Head of the Readers’ Services Division at the University of Guyana (UG), Clyden Harris, during her remarks, highlighted the ways in which plagiarism could occur and stressed that writers must establish originality and acknowledge their sources of information.
“You must make sure you do not create the misleading impression that the paraphrase wording or sequence of ideas are entirely your own,” she said to the audience.
“Question and evaluate the ideas of other authors. You also provide credibility for your work,” Harris added.
Additionally, Attorney-at-Law Teni Housty briefed the audience of primarily students on the determination which they should have within to produce original pieces, rather than to plagiarise works available on the Internet or by any author.
“There must be some sufficiency of application of skill and labour on your (the students’) part to produce a work that is recognised by copyright,” Housty stated.
Meanwhile, UG lecturer Mark Tumbridge, while recognising the ways in which information could be obtained, explained that the Internet was one of the main distractions in today’s world since it was seen as the source of most copyright violations.
