Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 8 • Number 20 • 14th November 2008

Coalition Continues to Press for Demands on Biodiversity and Geographical Indications

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The EU and many developing countries reaffirmed their support for a requirement to disclose the source of genetic resources in patent applications and for wider protection for geographical indications in WTO meetings on intellectual property held in Geneva earlier this month. But opponents continued to resist such proposals.

At the same time, the Council of Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and the Special Session of the TRIPS Council elected new Chairs. The Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago, Dennis Francis, was elected as the new Chair of the TRIPS Council.

The Ambassador of Barbados, Trevor Clarke, who is the Chair of the Committee on Development and Intellectual Property of WIPO, was also confirmed as the new Chair of the Special Session of the Council for TRIPS. Both Chairs are known for having played significant roles in various multilateral negotiations.

One of the primary sources of disagreement is whether some TRIPS issues should be part of the single undertaking in the WTO’s Doha Round negotiations on tariff-cutting deals on agricultural and industrial goods.

At issue are three topics on which talks have largely stalled in the TRIPS Council: extending to all products the strong protection currently accorded to geographical indications of wines and spirits (GI extension); making it mandatory for patent applicants to disclose the origin of any genetic resources and/or associated traditional knowledge involved in their inventions; and the establishment of a register for geographical indications (GIs) of wines and spirits.

Those who support the parallel consideration of the three TRIPS issues under the Doha negotiations continued to advance their case, making reference to the draft modalities that a coalition of more than one hundred countries put forward in July (TN/C/W/52) (see Bridges Weekly 16 July 2008, http://ictsd.net/i/news/bridgesweekly/12791/).

The EU confirmed its commitment to the common platform established under the draft modalities. Switzerland emphasised the importance it attaches to the parallel treatment of the three issues and the need for text based negotiations on the basis of the parameters determined in TN/C/W/52.

The EU further indicated that it supported a legally binding disclosure requirement regarding the country of origin or sources of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge to all international, regional and national patent applications, at the earliest possible time.

The EU demanded further discussion towards establishing a definition of ‘traditional knowledge’. According to the EU, the disclosure requirement might include a remedy that suspends the consideration of patent applications if the applying party either fails or refuses to disclose.

The countries that oppose this proposal – including Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan and the US – have not taken a common position. Some have argued only against the parallel treatment of the three issues, while others have rejected outright the mere consideration of issues related to the Convention on Biological Diversity in the TRIPS forum.

The US and Japan restated their position that there is no need to amend the TRIPS Agreement in order to introduce a disclosure requirement. Nevertheless, a proposal to do just that garnered the support of two-thirds of those present, including the addition of a new country, Sri Lanka which expressed its support for the TRIPS-CBD amendment.

During the Special Session, the EU, supported by several co-sponsors of the draft modalities for the TRIPS issues, said that the Special Session should focus on the three TRIPS negotiation issues in parallel and on equal footing.

There was no common African Group position, since some countries such as South Africa are not in favour of the parallel treatment of TRIPS issues that include register for GIs. But Nigeria, among others, supported the parallel consideration of the three TRIPS issues. It is unclear if the Special Session can consider the three TRIPS issues without further guidance from ministers.

ICTSD reporting.