Commons:Deletion requests/File:Flag of South Africa.svg

 I withdraw my nomination All contents on the government site are copyrighted,[1] and South Africa's copyright law grants copyright to "every work which is eligible for copyright", "irrespective of the artistic quality". It lasts for "the life of the author and fifty years from the end of the year in which the author dies" or "continue to subsist for a period of fifty years from the end of the year" it was published (corporate or unknown authorship). Since the flag was designed in 1992 by Frederick Brownell, who is still alive, what disqualifies this flag design from copyright protection? And yes, flags are considered works of art eligible for copyright.[2] For all intent, if the community decide to ignore the laws or that this flag is somehow ineligible for copyright protection, then let us make it clear by this discussion. Jappalang (talk) 03:22, 28 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

To my surprise, the SA Copyright Act does not exempt legal code from copyright protection. If that was the case, the text of the national flag is at http://www.info.gov.za/view/DownloadFileAction?id=65778, which is the Government Gazette 22356, Notice 510 of 8 June 2001. To quote the act:

Design of the National Flag 1. The design of the National Flag is described in the Schedule to Proclamation no. 70, 1994 as published in Government Gazette no. 15663 of 20 April 1994. The National Flag shall be rectangular in the proportion of two in the width to three in the length; per pall from the hoist, the upper band chilli red and the lower band blue, with a black triangle at the hoist, over the partition lines a green pall one fifth the width of the flag, fimbriated white against the chilli red and blue, and gold against the black triangle at the hoist; the width of the pall and its fimbriations is one third the width of the flag.

I am not sure what other options we have, since there is also a unauthorized use of symbols act, the previous anthem of SA was placed under copyright protection. We just may have to delete this one. User:Zscout370 ^{(Return fire)} 04:18, 28 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

 Keep This image qualifies for {{PD-South-Africa-exempt}}. On page 19 of http://www.cipro.co.za/legislation%20forms/Copyright/Copyright%20Act.pdf there is a quote from Article 12 (8)(a)No copyright shall subsist in official texts of a legislative, administrative or legal nature, or in official translations of such texts, or in speeches of a political nature or in speeches delivered in the course of legal proceedings, or in news of the day that are mere items of press information.

With the quote from the Government Gazette, which is quoting different laws and regulations, I believe the issue is settled. User:Zscout370 ^{(Return fire)} 06:45, 28 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

 Keep Whatever the copyright status of the text of the law, the flag itself is clearly ineligible as being simple geometry. (Template:PD-shape). And if there's a South African law against misuse of national symbols, then our "option" is to put Template:Insignia on the flag image's description page. AnonMoos (talk) 04:59, 28 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Withdraw nomination  Keep: per pointing out of Article 12 (8) (a) by Zscout370 and the flag's design laid down in the country's Constitution at http://www.info.gov.za/documents/constitution/1996/96conssec1.htm. Jappalang (talk) 07:07, 28 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Kept. Withdrawn by nominator. Jafeluv (talk) 08:38, 29 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]