[Ip-health] Open Letter to EB of WHO from an EWG member Cecilia Lopez

Sun Jan 17 03:12:01 2010

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Bogot=C3=A1. Colombia. January 15th 2010.=0D
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Dear members of the Executive Board:=0D
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I am Cecilia L=C3=B3pez Monta=C3=B1o, senator of the Colombian Congress and=
 member of the Expert Working Group on Research and Development Financing o=
f the World Health Organization, in representation of the point of view of =
developing countries, I assume.=0D
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Shortly before the end of 2009 I participated in the last of the three meet=
ings held at the WHO in Geneva, in which the group's final report was appro=
ved. The report will be submitted to you next week.=0D
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I am writing to request you that the report doesn=E2=80=99t get the approva=
l, and also to ask WHO and the EWG to resume the job they were responsible =
for and complete it within strict procedures to ensure transparency.=0D
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I make this request based on two reasons.=0D
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First, I must say I feel that I was utilized to legitimize a process in whi=
ch neither I nor the majority of the members of the group participated in a=
 full manner. Not only because we received very poor information from the W=
HO, but because we are talking about key reports in which some subjects wer=
e selected while others were left behind without our opinions on the matter=
. The documents were sent to us with a minimum time for analysis and the me=
etings were held in a rush without the proper time for debate. The secretar=
y of the WHO as well as the president of the group did whatever they please=
d.=0D
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In the two meetings I assisted (one of them was reduced to a =E2=80=98one d=
ay meeting=E2=80=99) I asked on more than one occasion that we must focus i=
n subjects related to intellectual property, understanding that it was one =
of the critical points that the EWG needed to discuss. To my surprise, I no=
ticed a great interest to avoid the discussion of such issues, with mixed a=
rguments about the true mandate of the group and others even more confusing=
 arguments. After recognizing the impossibility to discuss such issues I de=
cided to leave the room since I considered it was a waste of time to talk a=
bout other issues that were not the main objectives of the group.=0D
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Since the beginning of the discussions, civil society organizations, which =
have played a key role in these debates, pointed out the lack of transparen=
cy, the absence of terms of reference and other problems regarding the whol=
e process of the EWG. Those concerns were ignored by the secretariat of the=
 WHO.=0D
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Due to the collaboration of the NGOs, we could organize some debates on the=
 subjects under study by the EWG, but, unfortunately, we did not have any s=
upport from the global office or from the regional office of the WHO.=0D
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On the other hand, I was aware, as I hope you too, of the leak of the repor=
t to interest groups even before we received it and was very disappointed w=
ith the fact that, regarding the criteria of the pharmaceutical industry, t=
he group was under control and would behave according to its interests.=0D
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As a Colombian and also knowing the important role of Dr. Germ=C3=A1n Vel=
=C3=A1squez (who is also a Colombian) in this process, I wanted to consult =
him permanently. However I noticed very surprisingly, that he was sidelined=
 from the elaboration of the report and did not assist to the final meeting=
, as it happened with some other members of the EWG.=0D
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The report itself contains a contradiction to all key elements of the GSPOA=
 questioning the suitability of the intellectual property scheme to stimula=
te innovation and also to propositions regarding complementary and alternat=
ive mechanisms. Knowing that the WHO has led a long process to debate the r=
elations between intellectual property and public health, I find this turn,=
 at least, worrying. I also find worrying the omission of any reference to =
the proposal of a treaty about Innovation, Intellectual Property and Public=
 Health, which the WHO was removed from as an actor in the 62nd world assem=
bly under unclear circumstances.=0D
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For all these reasons I insist you to not approve the mentioned report, as =
well as to take the measures needed so that the EWG can not be manipulated =
again and can function with transparency guided by the spirit of the 61.21 =
resolution that aims for us to reach alternative solutions so that the inte=
llectual property scheme will not be the only incentive for R&D of medicine=
s for the majority of the world=E2=80=99s population that lives in developi=
ng countries.=0D
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Sincerely=0D
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Cecilia L=C3=B3pez Monta=C3=B1o=0D
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Senator.=0D
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To the executive board Members.=0D
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BAHAMAS=0D
Dr M. Dahl-Regis=0D
Chief Medical Officer=0D
Ministry of Health=0D
Nassau New Providence=0D
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BANGLADESH=0D
Professor A.F.M.R. Haque=0D
Minister of Health and Family Welfare=0D
Dhaka=0D
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BRAZIL=0D
Dr P.M. Buss=0D
President, Fundac=C3=A3o Oswaldo Cruz=0D
Manguinhos=0D
Rio De Janeiro=0D
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BRUNEI DARUSSALAM=0D
Mr P.D.S. Osman=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Bandar Seri Bagwan=0D
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BURUNDI=0D
Dr N. Birintanya=0D
Directeur g=C3=A9n=C3=A9ral de la Sant=C3=A9 publique=0D
Minist=C3=A8re de la Sant=C3=A9=0D
Bujumbura=0D
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CANADA=0D
Dr K. Dodds=0D
Assistant Deputy Minister=0D
Health Policy Branch=0D
Health Canada=0D
Ottawa=0D
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CHILE=0D
Dr F. Mu=C3=B1oz=0D
Attach=C3=A9, Permanent Representative=0D
Geneva=0D
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ESTONIA=0D
Dr M. Jesse=0D
Director, National Institute for Health Development=0D
Tallinn=0D
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FRANCE=0D
M. D. Houssin=0D
Directeur g=C3=A9n=C3=A9ral de la Sant=C3=A9=0D
Minist=C3=A8re de la Sant=C3=A9 et des Sports=0D
Paris=0D
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GERMANY=0D
Dr E. Seeba=0D
Head, Central Directorate General=0D
European and International Policy Issues=0D
Bundesministerium f=C3=BCr Gesundheit=0D
Berlin=0D
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HUNGARY=0D
Dr M. K=C3=B6k=C3=A9ny=0D
President of the Health Committee of the National Assembly=0D
Budapest=0D
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INDIA=0D
Ms K. Sujatha Rao=0D
Secretary, Health and Family Welfare=0D
New Delhi=0D
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INDONESIA=0D
Dr E.R. Sedyaningsih=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Jakarta=0D
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JAPAN=0D
Dr S. Omi=0D
Professor, Jichi Medical University=0D
Tochigi=0D
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MALAWI=0D
Dr S. Kabuluzi=0D
Director of Preventive Health Services=0D
Ministry of Health=0D
Lilongwe=0D
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MAURITANIA=0D
Dr C.E.M. Ould Horma=0D
Ministre de la Sant=C3=A9=0D
Nouakchott=0D
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MAURITIUS=0D
Dr N. Gopee=0D
Chief Medical Officer=0D
Ministry of Health and Quality of Life=0D
Port Louis=0D
=0D
NEW ZEALAND=0D
Mr T. Ryall=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Wellington=0D
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NIGER=0D
Dr A. Djibo=0D
Directeur G=C3=A9n=C3=A9ral de la Sant=C3=A9 publique=0D
Minist=C3=A8re de la Sant=C3=A9 publique=0D
Niamey=0D
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OMAN=0D
Dr A.J. Mohamed=0D
Advisor, Health Affairs=0D
Ministry of Health=0D
Muscat=0D
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PARAGUAY=0D
Dr E. Gim=C3=A9nez Caballero=0D
Viceministro de Salud P=C3=BAblica y Bienestar Social=0D
Asunci=C3=B3n=0D
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PERU=0D
Sr. C. Vallejos=0D
Ministro de Salud=0D
Lima=0D
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REPUBLIC OF KOREA=0D
Professor Sohn Myongsei=0D
Vice-President, Korean Academy of Medical Sciences=0D
Seoul=0D
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REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA=0D
Dr I. Ababii=0D
Rector, Moldova Medical University=0D
Chisinau=0D
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RUSSIAN FEDERATION=0D
Dr V. I. Starodubov=0D
Director, Central Research Institute of Health Management and Information S=
ystems=0D
Ministry of Health and Social Development=0D
Moscow=0D
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SAMOA=0D
Mrs G.A. Gidlow=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Apia=0D
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SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE=0D
Dr J.A.N. dos Ramos=0D
Directrice du Cabinet du Ministre de la Sant=C3=A9=0D
Minist=C3=A8re de la Sant=C3=A9=0D
Sao Tom=C3=A9=0D
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SERBIA=0D
Dr T. Milosavljevi=C4=87=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Belgrade=0D
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SOMALIA=0D
To be designated=0D
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SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC=0D
Dr R. Said=0D
Minister of Health=0D
Damascus=0D
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TUNISIA=0D
Dr H. Abdesselem=0D
Directeur g=C3=A9n=C3=A9ral, Unit=C3=A9 de la Coop=C3=A9ration technique=0D
Minist=C3=A8re de la Sant=C3=A9 publique=0D
Tunis=0D
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UGANDA=0D
Dr S. Zaramba=0D
Director-General, Health Services=0D
Ministry of Health=0D
Entebbe=0D
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UNITED ARAB EMIRATES=0D
Dr S. Al Darmaki=0D
Director-General, Ministry of Health=0D
Abu Dhabi=0D
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UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND=0D
Sir Liam Donaldson=0D
Chief Medical Officer=0D
Department of Health=0D
London=0D
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Copies:=0D
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Members of the EWG.=0D
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--=0D
FUNDACI=C3=93N IFARMA=0D
Cra 13 32 51 Torre III  Of.11 16=0D
Tel: 3381490 Fax: 3231472=0D
www.ifarma.org=0D
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