[Ip-health] Medicines for poor countries: Socialist MEPs step up the pressure.

[Alexandra HEUMBER]

This is a multipart message in MIME format.
--
[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
MEPs decided today to postpone the vote of the ratification of the WTO
Protocol on August 2003 Decision since the replies from the European
Commission and the Council, given again today, are still unsatisfactory.
Here below the press release of the Socialist Group.
The debate will continue on September.

Regards,
Alexandra
Alexandra Heumber
EU Advocacy Liaison Officer
M=E9decins Sans Fronti=E8res
Access to Essential Medicines Campaign
Rue Dupr=E9, 94. 1090 Brussels
++32 (0) 2 474 75 09 (Dir off)
++ 32 (0) 479 514 900 (Mob)
++ 32 (0) 2 474 75 75 (Fax)

PSE press release
17/07/2007 - Medicines for poor countries: Socialist MEPs step up the
pressure.
Euro MPs today, 17 July 2007, stepped up a campaign to make cheap
medicines available to the world's poorest countries by delaying an
international agreement on intellectual property rights.
In a protest at the attitude of the European Commission and the EU
Council, the assembly's all-party international trade committee put off
ratification of a protocol to amend the TRIPS agreement.
Said Socialist spokesman on the issue Kader Arif, who led today's protest:
"We want a solemn undertaking by the Commission and Council guaranteeing
that Europe will be actively involved in finding new solutions. In line
with the public's wishes, the EU should aim to be a world leader in the
effort to make affordable medicines available throughout the world.
"This is about far more than simple ratification of an international
protocol. It's about a political and humanitarian problem on a huge scale,
the response to which requires real political will."
Mr Arif said that a solution put forward by the World Trade Organisation
in 2003 had not worked.
"We call upon the Commission to come forward with urgent alternative
measures aimed at helping developing countries to develop their own
production capacity for pharmaceutical products," he added.
Contact Tony Robinson + 32 475 25 74 10

Alexandra Heumber
EU Advocacy Liaison Officer
M=E9decins Sans Fronti=E8res
Access to Essential Medicines Campaign
Rue Dupr=E9, 94. 1090 Brussels
++32 (0) 2 474 75 09 (Dir off)
++ 32 (0) 479 514 900 (Mob)
++ 32 (0) 2 474 75 75 (Fax)