[Ip-health] Delegate and NGO quotes on WIPO Development Agenda outcome for PCDA 3

[Thiru Balasubramaniam]

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[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]

(Indian Delegation)

=93As a delegation we feel it is a very significant forward movement. The
meeting concluded in a spirit of compromise and consensus. This augers
well for future deliberation which may lead to the finalization of a
development agenda for WIPO. It is imperative that the member states
maintain this spirit in the next meeting of the PCDA.=94

(Nigerian Delegate)

=93It has been a very long and tortuous route but we have at last come
out of the tunnel into the brilliant prospects of implementing the
Development Agenda in WIPO.=94

Teresa Hackett (EIFL.NET)

=93The Chairman was breath of fresh air.  After two years, it feels like
things are moving forward.  The public domain received unexpected
attention, but it gave us the opportunity to talk about why WIPO should
care about a rich and accessible public domain.=94

Miriam M. Nisbet (American Library Association)

=93Despite some confusing and conflicting statements about the public
domain, it has been gratifying to hear lively debates by the WIPO
delegates that reinforce the importance of the topic.=94=A0


Ren Buchholz (Electronic Frontier Foundation)

"WIPO made a refreshing amount of progress this week.  The excellent
Chair kept things moving and Member States seemed happy to be hard at
work.  However, it's critical that the spirit of this session is
present at the June meeting.  If certain countries obstruct fair
consideration of the rest of the proposals -- and there are many -- we
should not be surprised if this week's success suffers."

David Tannenbaum (Yale Information Society Project)

"It is disorienting to see such a breathtakingly good outcome come out
of a process that was largely closed. The language is very general and
it will be important to use these principles to guide current and
future treaty negotiations."

Cliffor Guimares (Brazilian Copyright Office)

=93The final results of the discussions of the Annex A are positive.
Group B showed some flexibility in order to reach an agreement. . The
African Group devoted a lot of effort to reaching agreement on
technical assistance matters.  Of course, Annex A comprises only part
of the negotiation.  Brazil hopes that the spirit of cooperation and
goodwill displayed in PCDA3 is extended to PCDA4.=94

Iryna Kuchma (eIFL)

=93It was my first participation at PCDA and it was a pleasure for me to
see the progress in the Development agenda. As an Eastern European the
only pity I have is that other East European countries don=92t realize
that Development agenda will be as beneficial for them as for the
Friends of Development.=94

Malini Aisola (Knowledge Ecology International)

"After many days of negotiations, I am glad that WIPO Member States
were able to reach decisions on Annex A proposals. This is surely a
favorable first result in the development agenda process. In order for
the process to be completed, it is crucial that member states rise to
the challenging task of reaching consensus on the remaining proposals
in the June meeting. Witnessing the cooperation and collaboration of
the nations at the PCDA has been a valuable experience for me."

Eddan Katz (Yale Information Society Project)

"This is an important moment for the recognition of the role of human
development in innovation. agreement on these principles will help us
move forward in promoting access to knowledge as a commitment for the
whole world."

(Senior member of the US delegation)

=93We sensed a different atmosphere on both sides this time=94.


Vera Franz

"With this week's meeting we are a step closer to making WIPO fit for
the 21st century. Back in 2003 WIPO had argued that a meeting on open
collaborative knowledge projects would fall outside the agency's
mandate. With today WIPO has put these issues firmly on its agenda,
acknowledging that in a healthy and competitive knowledge economy more
IP is not always better. What is next? These changes will have to
impact future norm-setting at the agency."


Thiru Balasubramaniam (Knowledge Ecology International)

"The Chair, Ambassador Trevor Clarke of Barbados, steered the helm of
the Development Agenda process with judicious authority rejuvenating
hopes that WIPO can make mainstream public interest concerns into its
core mandate.  Kudos to Pakistan, Chile, India, Brazil, South Africa
and the United States for their spirit of cooperation and goodwill.  It
was refreshing to hear WIPO Member States laud the value of the public
domain.  Crunch time begins in June where proposals detailing an
elaboration of a Treaty on Access to Knowledge and a Medical R&D Treaty
will be discussed."

James Love, (Knowledge Ecology International)

Today the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) concluded the
first of a two-part review of proposals for a development agenda.=A0=A0 In
doing so, WIPO and its member states have done something very
positive.=A0 The agreement on dozens of WIPO reforms was broader and more
substantive than had been anticipated.=A0=A0 Some of the measures signal
important changes in this controversial UN body.=A0=A0 WIPO members agreed
to =93consider the preservation of the public domain within WIPO=92s
normative processes and deepen the analysis of the implication and
benefits of a rich and accessible public domain.=94=A0 WIPO agreed to
=93promote measures that will help countries deal with IP-related
anticompetitive practices.=94=A0=A0 WIPO also declared that =93Norm-setting
activities shall . . . take into account different levels of
development=94 and =93take into consideration a balance between costs and
benefits.=94=A0 WIPO adopted an expanded mandate to undertake studies to
assess the economic, social and cultural impact of intellectual
property practices and norm-setting activities.=A0=A0 All of this signals a
new tone and approach for WIPO.=A0 In a sense, WIPO is finally entering
the new century, and responding to the growing demand for reforms, and
a more balanced approach to intellectual property protection.=A0

In some areas, however, the agreement was quite limited.=A0 For example,
the cluster that included =93access to knowledge=94 was quite thin, for
example.

In June, WIPO will look at a much more ambitious set of proposals, most
of which were opposed by the United States or the European Commission
in 2005.=A0 The June meeting, which is expected to be much more
difficult, will look at topics such as a proposed treaty on access to
knowledge, a startling departure from WIPO=92s longstanding efforts to
focus largely on expanding the scope and enforcement of intellectual
property rights.

This week=92s negotiation went far better than almost anyone had
anticipated, and many share the credit for the excellent outcome.=A0 The
United States government had greatly moderated its positions and tone,
and was credited by many delegates for its constructive and open
approach to the negotiations on a topic for which the US is normally
considered a hard-liner.=A0 Several European States including, for
example, the UK, had worked hard to find ways to reach consensus with
key developing countries.=A0 India=92s persistent efforts to engage the US
and European negotiators were helpful and effective.=A0 Argentina and
Brazil, the two countries that had pushed the hardest for the reform
agenda, often championed efforts to get the most from the negotiation.=A0
The contributions from the Africa Group were excellent, including, for
example, very good leadership from countries like South Africa.=A0 Very
high marks were given to Trevor Clarke, the impressive Chair of the
meeting, who hails from Barbados.=A0

Many non-government organizations (NGOs) and experts have labored long
and hard on the development agenda negotiations (including those not
able to attend this meeting, which comes after seven WIPO meetings
where this topic has been discussed).=A0 =A0 The contributions of the
(north and south, east and west) development, consumer, free software,
library and public interest groups working on technology issues were
very important, and it has been a pleasure to work with all of them.

It is now time to turn our attentions to the negotiations on the next
group of proposals for the development agenda, which go much further
and present more controversy.=A0 It is also important to ensure that WIPO
implements the new reforms.=A0=A0 The first step is very important, but it
is long journey.=A0


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Thiru Balasubramaniam
Geneva Representative
Knowledge Ecology International (KEI)
voice +41.22.791.6727
fax +41.22.723.2988
mobile +41 76 508 0997
thiru@keionline.org
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