[governance] [Fwd: [A2k] Stop secret treaty threatening generics (ACTA)]

Tue Aug 12 23:58:23 EDT 2008

All,

  As an FYI.  This is one reason why a specific text for 
a Internet "Bill of Rights" is needed.

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [A2k] Stop secret treaty threatening generics (ACTA)
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:35:04 -0400
From: Manon Ress <manon.ress at keionline.org>
To: a2k discuss list <a2k at lists.essential.org>,Enforce List
<enforce at eff.org>, ip at tacd.org
References: <48A33F56.6030407 at essentialinformation.org>

Dear Friends,

The United States, the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Canada,
Mexico, Australia and New Zealand are now negotiating a new treaty known
as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).

The text of what they are negotiating remains secret, but there's a
lot to be worried about. An over-reaching treaty in this field could
undermine access to low-cost generic medicines, require Internet
Service Providers (ISPs) to monitor all consumers' Internet
communications, and interfere with fair use of copyrighted material,
among many other dangers.

Does the proposed ACTA contain provisions that would result in these
harmful effects?

There's no way to know, because the treaty text remains secret. There
is no legitimate rationale for such secrecy, which denies people
around the world an opportunity to comment on and influence the
negotiations.

We are asking organizations and individuals from around the world to
sign on to a letter to ACTA negotiators, asking that they immediately
make public the draft text of the treaty. The text of the letter, with
initial signatories, is below.

If you would like to sign the letter, please send your name,
affiliation (if any), city/country and email address to Sarah
Rimmington of Essential Action at:
<srimmington at essentialinformation.org>. Please specify if you are
signing in your individual capacity or on behalf of an organization.
**Pleaase note: Our deadline for accepting signatures is Thursday,
August 21, 2008.**

---
For more on ACTA, see:

<http://www.keionline.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=187>

<http://www.publicknowledge.org/issues/acta>

<https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?JServSessionIdr009=m5722xgyi2.app2a&cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=383
 >

<http://ipjustice.org/wp/campaigns/acta/>

<http://www.michaelgeist.ca/tags/acta>

---

LETTER TO ANTI-COUNTERFEITING TRADE AGREEMENT NEGOTIATORS

Dear [Negotiator],

We are writing to urge the negotiators of the Anti-Counterfeiting
Trade Agreement to agree to publish immediately the draft text of the
agreement, as well as pre-draft discussion papers (especially for
portions for which no draft text yet exists), before continuing
further discussions over the treaty. We ask also that you publish the
agenda for negotiating sessions and treaty-related meetings in advance
of such meetings, and publish a list of participants in the
negotiations.

There is no legitimate rationale to keep the treaty text secret, and
manifold reasons for immediate publication.

The trade in products intended to deceive consumers as to who made
them poses important but complicated public policy issues. An
overbroad or poorly drafted international instrument on counterfeiting
could have very harmful consequences. Based on news reports and
published material from various business associations, we are deeply
concerned about matters such as whether the treaty will:

* Require Internet Service Providers to monitor all consumers'
Internet communications, terminate their customers' Internet
connections based on rights holders' repeat allegation of copyright
infringement, and divulge the identity of alleged copyright infringers
possibly without judicial process, threatening Internet users' due
process and privacy rights; and potentially make ISPs liable for their
end users' alleged infringing activity;

* Interfere with fair use of copyrighted materials;

* Criminalize peer-to-peer file sharing;

* Interfere with legitimate parallel trade in goods, including the
resale of brand-name pharmaceutical products;

* Impose liability on manufacturers of active pharmaceutical
ingredients (APIs), if those APIs are used to make counterfeits -- a
liability system that may make API manufacturers reluctant to sell to
legal generic drug makers, and thereby significantly damage the
functioning of the legal generic pharmaceutical industry;

* Improperly criminalize acts not done for commercial purpose and with
no public health consequences; and

* Improperly divert public resources into enforcement of private rights.

Because the text of the treaty and relevant discussion documents
remain secret, the public has no way of assessing whether and to what
extent these and related concerns are merited.

Equally, because the treaty text and relevant discussion documents
remain secret, treaty negotiators are denied the insights and
perspectives that public interest organizations and individuals could
offer. Public review of the texts and a meaningful ability to comment
would, among other benefits, help prevent unanticipated pernicious
problems arising from the treaty. Such unforeseen outcomes are not
unlikely, given the complexity of the issues involved.

The lack of transparency in negotiations of an agreement that will
affect the fundamental rights of citizens of the world is
fundamentally undemocratic. It is made worse by the public perception
that lobbyists from the music, film, software, video games, luxury
goods and pharmaceutical industries have had ready access to the ACTA
text and pre-text discussion documents through long-standing
communication channels.

The G8's recent Declaration on the World Economy implored negotiators
to include ACTA negotiations this year. The speed of the negotiations
makes
it imperative that relevant text and documents be made available to
the citizens of the world immediately.

We look forward to your response, and to working with you toward
resolution of our concerns.

Sincerely,

Consumers Union
Yonkers, NY, USA

Electronic Frontier Foundation
San Francisco, CA, USA

Essential Action
Washington, DC, USA

IP Justice
San Francisco, CA, USA

Knowledge Ecology International
Washington, DC, USA

Public Knowledge
Washington, DC, USA

[list in formation)

---

(Attachment to Sign-on Letter):

OPENNESS IN TRADE AND OTHER MULTILATERAL NEGOTIATIONS

Negotiating texts are commonly made public in multilateral trade
negotiation, although some trade negotiations are characterized by
secrecy.

Examples of negotiations where texts are or were made public include:

* The current Doha Round negotiations at the World Trade Organization;

http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dda_e/dda_e.htm

* The Free Trade Area of the Americas;

http://www.ftaa-alca.org/FTAADraft03/Index_e.asp

* The Multilateral Agreement on Investment (although initial texts were
not made public)

http://www.oecd.org/document/35/0,3343,en_2649_33783766_1894819_1_1_1_1,00.html

* Draft text at the World Health Organization, where resolutions are
published in advance of consideration and treaty or treaty-like
negotiations are handled openly, including this example of follow-on
negotiations for the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control:

http://www.who.int/gb/fctc/

* The World Intellectual Property Organization, including this example
of a draft Treaty on the Protection of Broadcasting Organizations:

http://www.wipo.int/meetings/en/doc_details.jsp?doc_id=57213

_____

--
Sarah Rimmington
Attorney
Essential Action, Access to Medicines Project
Washington, DC
Tel: (202) 387-8030
Cell: (202) 422-2687
www.essentialaction.org/access/

***************************************************************************
Manon Ress
manon.ress at keionline.org,

1621 Connecticut Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20009 USA
Tel.:  +1.202.332.2670, Fax: +1.202.332.2673

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