South Africa's parliament must go back to the drawing board and begin a fresh process that results in a better amendment of the country's Copyright Act than the bill recently sent back by President Cyril Ramaphosa, an industry coalition said on Tuesday.

Ramaphosa referred the contentious Copyright Amendment Bill back to parliament for review in June, citing concerns it might deprive authors of copyright to their work, lessen royalties, violate freedom of trade and profession and breach World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) provisions.

The Copyright Coalition of South Africa has long campaigned against the bill, which parliament passed last year despite criticism that it would effectively allow the free use of copyrighted content, infringing on intellectual property rights.

Parliament's portfolio committee on trade and industry was due to meet on Tuesday to discuss the way forward on the bill.

"As this process gets underway, the Copyright Coalition of South Africa calls on parliament to begin a fresh process to draft a better bill amending the Copyright Act," the grouping's spokesperson Chola Makgamathe said in a statement.

"The bill as it stands is incapable of correction. It must be considered afresh to ensure that the final product achieves the objective of adapting the Copyright Act of 1979 for the internet age. But it must also comply with the Constitution and with international treaties to which South Africa has acceded or has resolved to accede."

She noted that concerns over the bill had left South Africa facing the real danger of losing duty-free access to United States markets and investment from the European Union.

Earlier this year, EU ambassador Riina Kionka sent a letter to the Presidency warning that copyright holders in her region were concerned about the bill and that the EU’s film, music and publishing industries were reconsidering investment plans in South Africa.

On Tuesday Makgamathe said parliament must now conduct proper consultations -- which she said was a deficiency of the previous process  -- in order to find the right balance between the competing interests involved. 

"The portfolio committee must also take an evidence-based approach to the bill and demand that the department of (competition), trade and industry justify its proposals for the revised intellectual property regime," Makgamathe said.

"Most importantly, this includes a sector-specific socio-economic impact assessment addressing the impact of the new bill on the rights and remuneration of creators, on employment in the sector, and on investor confidence in the sector. This is all the more pressing as the industry reels from the devastating impact of Covid-19."

She said parliament must also consider fast-tracking certain aspects of the legislation, such as provisions related to the Marrakech Treaty and the rights of print and visually impaired South Africans.

Earlier this month the coalition said it had written to Ramaphosa asking that the government accede to the Treaty, which is administered by WIPO and makes the production and international transfer of specially-adapted books for people with blindness or visual impairments easier by establishing a set of limitations and exceptions to traditional copyright law.

South Africa’s government has previously said it would ratifying the treaty, which was adopted in Marrakesh in 2013 and came into force in September 2016, as soon as the Copyright Amendment Bill was enacted.

Makgamathe said the Copyright Coalition was eager to cooperate with the portfolio committee and the competition, trade and industry department to offer constructive solutions.

"Together, we can finish the work of effecting the legislative reforms the industry so desperately needs," she added.