Extract

New modes of entertainment such as products and performances frequently involve uses of traditional knowledge. Examples of such products include where the Lego company used M_ori words to name their ‘Bionicle’ toys that were from the fictional Pacific Islands, including Metru Nui, and a Sony game, the Mark of Kri, that melted images from various Pacifica cultures into a ‘warrior-like’ player. Performances that are manifestations of traditional knowledge include the M_ori haka. The haka that begins with the line ‘Ka Mate Ka Mate’ has become known as ‘the haka’ and the All Blacks (New Zealand’s national rugby team) have used it around the world. Various other entities have adapted the haka (often to borrow its image of warrior style awe and strength) for commercial purposes, parody and many other reasons. These illustrative uses of traditional knowledge are representative of a considerable amount of unauthorized exploitation of indigenous peoples’ culture, which is justified on the basis that what is used is in the so-called public domain. The concept of the public domain has meant that ‘anything goes’ with traditional knowledge because there are no legally recognized restrictions on use of that knowledge. ‘The fact that there is no definitive agreement over the contours, or indeed the cultural norms, behind the public domain appears not to be a deterrent to those who assert that much traditional knowledge is or should be in the public domain.