MIRI: There is a rising number of publications done in Sarawak by talented and creative authors, publishers and producers nowadays.
Thus, Pustaka Negeri Sarawak is urging them to utilize the Legal Deposit services made available by the library.
“Legal Deposit is a statutory provision, which obliges publishers to deposit copies of their publications in libraries in the country in which they are published,” Pustaka Negeri Sarawak said in a statement today.
It said under Section 15 (1) of the Sarawak State Library Ordinance, 1999, it is required that the author or publisher of every printed library resource published in Sarawak to deposit five (5) copies of print and two (2) copies of non-print publication.
“Printed publications include books, serials, maps, charts and even posters whilst non-print publications are cinematograph films, microfilms, phono-records, video and audio recordings as well as other electronic media.”
The objectives of legal deposit are to preserve the country’s literary heritage and make them accessible for present and future generations. It is also to create standard bibliographic records of materials that are published in Sarawak as well as maintaining statistical records of material published in the state.
Legal deposit ensures a creator’s work is not lost for posterity and it is available for future research. It also accommodates the needs of worldwide researchers in gaining access in the present and in the future, regardless of the publication medium.
Records of Legal Deposit publications form the basis of Sarawak Bibliographic Database and can be accessed online via the library’s official website at www.pustaka-sarawak.com/our_services
Last year, only fifteen items were received by Pustaka Miri for Legal Deposit.
Those who want to make a Legal Deposit need to complete Form LD/F1/2011 which can be downloaded from Pustaka’s website and send it to the library together with the publication copies.
For printed material, one has to send them within one month of publication whereas serials need to be sent within one week from the date of publication and non-printed within one year of publication.
For further information, one may contact Librarians Lilian Baun Pulo or Affendi Iezara at tel. 085-422525 or email lilianbp@sarawak.gov.my / affeniez@sarawak.gov.my
