Who are the cleared advisors that have access to secret ACTA documents?

The negotiating text of ACTA and many other documents, including even the lists of participants in the negotiations, are secret. The White House claims the secrecy is required as a matter of national security. But that does not mean the documents are off limits to everyone outside of the government. Hundreds of advisors, many of them corporate lobbyists, are considered “cleared advisors.” They have access to the ACTA documents.

Continue Reading

Uncategorized

PhRMA Special 301 submission on Thailand

The following discusses the 2009 PhRMA submission for the USTR Special 301 list on Thailand. Thailand is one of three Asian countries (China, Philippines and Thailand) that were singled out by PhRMA for the harshest treatment. The submission on Thailand covers several topics, including these:

Continue Reading

WTO Director General Pascal Lamy’s response to joint NGO letter about seizures of medicines in trasit to developing countries

On 18 February 2009, sixteen NGOs sent a letter to the head of the World Trade Organization regarding a series of seizures by the Dutch custom authorities of generic medicines in transit to developing countries. The letter is available at

https://www.keionline.org/misc-docs/seizures/WTO_seizures_18feb.pdf

Today, Director General Pascal Lamy responded to the letter which is available at

Continue Reading

Uncategorized

Statement by Brazil at TRIPS Council: Public Health dimension of TRIPS Agreement

On 3 March 2009, the following intervention was delivered by Ambassador Roberto Azevêdo, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the WTO and other economic organizations in Geneva.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

TRIPS Council
Agenda item ‘M’ – OTHER BUSINESS – Public Health dimension of TRIPS Agreement

Statement by Brazil

Mr. Chairman,

Continue Reading

Uncategorized

Check your Bookshelf 2 (at home)

Over the weekend, I looked at a small section of one of my bookshelf at home.

As in my previous blog, I wrote down the titles and author names for all of the books, and then checked on Bookshare.org to find out what is actually available for reading disabled persons. For purposes of this survey, I considered all books on Bookshare of “fair or above quality” (the lowest of 4 categories that include publisher’s quality, excellent and good), as “being available.”

Continue Reading

Uncategorized

Press Advisory: NGO letters to WHO & WTO on Dutch seizures of generic medicines in-transit from India to Brazil, Colombia & Peru

February 19, 2009

Press Advisory on NGO letters to WHO and WTO on topic of Dutch seizures of generic medicines in-transit from India to Brazil, Colombia and Peru.

In response to news about four seizures of generic medicines manufactured in India and shipped through the Netherlands in route to Brazil, Colombia and Peru, sixteen public health, consumer and development NGOs have sent separate letters to the heads of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Continue Reading

Uncategorized