Knowledge Ecology International

The WHO IGWG drafting group meeting in Salle XXIII of the Palais des Nations during this week’s World Health Assembly is charged with hammering out a consensus global strategy that would inter alia, secure

an enhanced and sustainable basis for needs-driven, essential health research and development relevant to diseases that disproportinately affect developing countries, proposing clear objectives and priorities for research and development, and estimating funding needs in in this area.

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On Tuesday, 20 May 2008, the United Arab Emirates, Nigeria, Ghana, Gambia and Tunisia introduced a draft resolution (A61/A/Conf. Paper No 1) on counterfeiting.

While counterfeiting medicines is an important public health problem, and as traditionally defined, is a criminal enterprise that should be subject to tough legal sanctions, the resolution is problematic.

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During the IGWG, BIO, the trade association, a group not yet in official relations with the WHO, was given the right to place four persons inside the closed drafting sessions. One of them was Jon Santamauro, who until recently was a US trade official on intellectual property issues.

“Mr. Santamauro has more than 15 years of experience handling intellectual property issues for the U.S. Government.”

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On April 15, 2008, WIPO released its long awaited Report on the International Patent System. Continue Reading →

One of the most important battles being waged both inside and outside of the IGWG concerns the nature of competition for the supply of inexpensive medicines and vaccines.

The large pharma companies with well-known brands and big marketing and distribution systems want to marginalize developing country generic suppliers, as actual or potential competitors. This plays out in various ways. For example:

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Since nobody really wants to work on the casters treaty (no matter what they say) today we’re talking about what should be on the table, the work program for the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights at WIPO.

To push back the excellent proposal on limitations and exceptions made by Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Nicaragua yesterday the EU is proposing to add:

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This text was handed at around 11 AM on Wednesday morning. Apologies for any typos. This was typed by 3 different people from the hard copy distributed by the International Bureau.

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STANDING COMMITTEE ON COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

Sixteenth Session, March 10 to 12, 2008-03-12

DRAFT CONCLUSIONS

Protection of audiovisual performances

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