Intellectual Property Rights

CDC FOIA shows US, WHO opposed request to discuss UNSG’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines Report at EB

Posted on by Zack Struver

Email records and memoranda released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in response to a Knowledge Ecology International Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request show that representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States government opposed including India’s proposed agenda item on the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines for discussion at the 140th WHO Executive Board meeting.

The full set of documents, which was released to KEI without redaction, are available here:

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MEP Lola Sánchez questions the European Commission: EU’s position on the UN High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines at WIPO

Posted on by Thiru

On 2 February 2017, MEP Lola Sánchez Caldentey (Podemos, Spain) tabled a series of written questions to the European Commission on the positions taken by the European Union at the World Intellectual Property Organization on 14 December 2016 in relation to the United Nations High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines (UN HLP)

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Chilean Cámara de Diputados votes overwhelmingly to advance compulsory licensing of drug patents.

Posted on by Andrew Goldman

GiorgioJacksonChile.jpgThe Cámara de Diputados of the Chilean Congress voted on January 25, 2017 in favor of Resolution 798, calling on the government to implement compulsory licenses on drugs for cancer and other diseases. The vote was 67 yes, 0 no, and 32 abstentions. The resolution was put forward by Giorgio Jackson and six other members (V. Mirosevic, Miguel Alvarado, Karla Rubilar, Juan Luis Castro, Gabriel Boric, and Victor Torres). Continue Reading →

EB140: Statement of India on the Report of the United Nations High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines

Posted on by Thiru

On the morning of Monday, 23 January 2017, India delivered the following intervention at the 140th session of the World Health Organization’s Executive Board requesting the “explicit inclusion” of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel Report in the “provisional agenda of the EB140 as a separate agenda item under item 8.”

In making the case for the inclusion of the UN HLP in the WHO’s Executive Board deliberations, India articulate the following:

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SCP25: Closing Statement of the Republic of South Africa

Posted on by Thiru

On Thursday, 15 December 2016, South Africa delivered this poignant, closing statement at WIPO’s Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP). Negotiations broke down on the issue of future work, as the European Union and Group B refused to permit discussions of the Report of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines at future sessions of the SCP.

According to the WIPO website,

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PCB39: Address of Justice Michael Kirby – HIV/AIDS & Solidarity – 30 Years On

Posted on by Thiru

On 7 December 2016, Justice Michael Kirby delivered the following keynote speech at the 39th Meeting of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board during discussions on intellectual property and access to medicines. Justice Kirby served as a member of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines.

UNAIDS
PROGRAMME COORDINATING BOARD
39TH MEETING, WHO, GENEVA
AGENDA ITEM 6, 7 DECEMBER 2016

HIV/AIDS & SOLIDARITY – 30 YEARS ON*

Michael Kirby**

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SCP25: Statement of Asia Pacific Group on Patents and Health

Posted on by Thiru

On Tuesday, 13 December 2016, India delivered the following statement on behalf of the Asia and the Pacific Group during WIPO discussions on patents and health.

Statement by India on behalf of the Asia and the Pacific Group on the Agenda Item – Patents and Health – delivered by Dr. Sumit Seth, First Secretary (Economic Affairs) on 13 December 2016

Madam Chair,

India has the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Asia Pacific Group. The group would like to make 3 concrete points related to this agenda item

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SCP 25: Opening statement of Knowledge Ecology International

Posted on by Thiru

On Monday, 12 December 2016, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) delivered its opening statement to the 25th session of WIPO’s Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP).

KEI Opening Statement, for SCP 25
12 December 2016

KEI will discuss two topics. The first concerns government rights in patented inventions, when the government funds or partly funds the research.

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PCB39: Eight hour drafting session charts future course for UNAIDS work program on Intellectual Property and the UN HLP

Posted on by Thiru

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) held the 39th Meeting of its Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) from 6-8 December 2016 in Geneva Switzerland. In his opening speech on Tuesday, 6 December 2016, Michel Sidibé (Executive Director, UNAIDS) paid tribute to the life of Australian national Katie Kirk – who passed away on 20 October 2016 while on mission in Indonesia.

In his speech, Sidibé noted:

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PCB39: Statement of Knowledge Ecology International on Agenda item 6: UNAIDS synthesis report on IP

Posted on by Thiru

On Wednesday, 7 December 2016 Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) delivered the following statement at the 39th session of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) during discussions of agenda item 6 entitled, “Synthesis report of existing research and literature on intellectual property-related and other factors impacting the availability, affordability, and accessibility of treatment and diagnostics for HIV and co-infections in low and middle-income countries.”

KEI statement to UNAIDS – PCB 39 – 7 December 2016

Thank you Chair.

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