TWN Info Service on Intellectual Property Issues (Apr13/08)
27 April 2013
Third World Network

In a statement to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) LDC Watch, an alliance of CSOs, networks and movements based in the LDCs raised concern over developed countries' objection to the LDC extension as proposed by the LDCs to the TRIPS Council.

US and the EU are demanding concessions from LDCs i.e.that LDCs agree to a "no-roll-back" Clause that would prevent LDCs from changing their laws to provide reduced protection, once their laws move towards implementing the TRIPS provisions.

This condition is not found in Article 66.1 of the TRIPS agreement, which pertains to the LDC transition period.

The US and EU are also not agreeing to the extension time frame requested by LDCs.

With best wishes,
Sangeeta Shashikant
Third World Network

STATEMENT BY INTERNATIONAL CO-ORDINATOR DR. AJUN KARKI AT THE BIENNIAL REVIEW OF THE ISTANBUL PROGRAMME OF ACTION ESCAP 69th SESSION, SENIOR OFFICIALS SEGMENT, 25-27APRIL 2013

Mr. President, Under Secretary General and Secretary
General’s High Representative Mr. Gyan C Acharya, Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you very much for this opportunity tospeak on behalf of LDC Watch. I would like to bring on board LDC peoples’ perspectives to the biennial review of the Istanbul Programme of Action.

Two years, since the adoption of the IPoA, we believe that the implementation of the Programme has not made considerable progress. The overarching goal of the IPoA to overcome the structural challenges faced by the LDCs in order to enable, at least half of them, to graduate within the decade remains a far cry.

Excellencies,

We are particularly concerned about lack of implementation of actions committed by developed partners especially related to policy coherence for development.  In this context, I would like to highlight our current campaign and advocacy on the most urgent issue of TRIPS waiver granted to LDCs and whose extension period is expiring on the 1st of July. Although the WTO rules legally obliges the LDCs to be granted the extension period upon a duly motivated request by the LDCs which they have already made in November last year, this obligation is being contested by our partners. This very important issue of TRIPS waiver has a large bearing on improving the trade target of  the LDCs. We, therefore, would like to draw attention of members on this very critical and most urgent issue and further urge them to defend the interests of the LDCs with developed partners. The TRIPS waiver extension is a legal obligation which therefore, needs to be granted by developed partners without any conditionalities attached.

For the full statement see www.ldcwatch.org