South Centre in Media: More Balance Needed In IP And Trade; Disclosure May Not Be Enough

The current patent system has been seen as the primary enabling mechanism for biopiracy, the misappropriation of genetic resources, said panellist Xuan Li, Coordinator of the innovation and access to knowledge programme at the intergovernmental South Centre. The World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) also has allowed the misappropriation of genetic resources, she said.

Li made the remarks at a 24 January event organised by the South Centre and the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), held alongside a weeklong meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) working group on access and benefit sharing (ABS). A Chinese official on the panel also raised these concerns and said that TRIPS is sometimes unbalanced and privileges the holder of IP.

Source: IP-Watch, 29 January 2008. http://www.ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=898

Read the South FACE from the event at: http://www.southcentre.org/southface/South_Face_IAKP-CBD-Jan-2008.pdf and watch the Digital Videos at: http://southcentre.blip.tv/