The crackdown prevents users from accessing 59 illegal torrent and streaming sites including Demonoid, EZTV, YTS, RARBG, 1337x and Putlocker.

A total of 160 domains have been blocked in two orders, including alternative routes to the Pirate Bay.

The blockades were requested by film studio Village Roadshow and Australian broadcaster Foxtel.

Many pirate websites are already banned in Australia, with the two new court cases bringing the total number of domains blocked in the country to 340.

The country has wrestled with curbing citizens’ illegal downloading habits for some time.

In 2014, Attorney General George Brandis told reporters that Australia was the “worst nation for piracy on the planet”.

Individuals caught offering pirated material can face fines of up to A$117,000 (£72,000) – up to five times more for corporations – and may also receive a prison sentence, according to the Australian government website.

In 2016, the Hollywood studio behind the US film Dallas Buyers Club announced that it would not pursue a piracy case it launched against Australians accused of illegally downloading the film.

The studio said at the time that it had identified 4,726 unique IP addresses from which the film had been shared online using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing network.

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Source: BBC

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She said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government will in its first term get a division in the fast track high court to create the enforcement unit and also draft a new legislation to protect the intellectual property of persons in the creative arts industry.

Speaking before Parliament’s Appointments Committee during her vetting on Monday [February 6, 2017], she called on parliament to support the development of the legislation to ensure that the works of creative artistes are protected.

“Piracy is a real threat to the creative arts industry. The 1995 copyrights act is there; but needs to be beefed up to support the people in the creative arts industry. These are some of the well-intended thoughts and visions that we can start in our first term,” she said.

“Getting a division in the fast track court to create an enforcement unit for those who break the law by pirating the works and arts of our people are punished,” she added.

The former President of the Musicians Union of Ghana, Alhaji Sidiku Buari (MUSIGA) in an address in 2005 said the Union lost about GH¢2million the previous year through music piracy.

“If piracy is not checked, we would lose further billions of cedis to it because they do not pay taxes or royalties to the MUSIGA,” he said.

But Catherine Afeku said the ministry under her leadership will address the challenge.

She described as disappointing the phenomenon of foreigners illegally selling reproduced local programs and contents on CDs, pledging that the ministry will consider as urgent the development of the legislation for parliamentary approval to help punish the culprits.

‘We’ll create a fund for creative arts’

Catherine Afeku said she was ready to implement the NPP’s manifesto promise to create a fund to support actors in the industry to serve as a support mechanism for them.

‘Marketing Ghana’

She noted that, they will seriously consider the creation of a tourism bureau at the country’s  airport, to serve as the first port of call to foreigners visiting Ghana to get data and information about Ghana and the opportunities available in the country.

According to her, the ministry will tap into the opportunity of using Social media and foreign missions to also brand the country in a positive light.

She added that, Ghana had secured a slot with the American satellite television channel, CNN to be hosted for an interview as a way of promoting the country to gain worldwide attention.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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