Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-09-08-Speech-3-080"
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"en.20100908.5.3-080"2
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"Mr President, thank you for giving me, once more, the opportunity to address with you the issue of the ACTA negotiations.
Fourthly, we will make sure that ACTA does not hamper access to generic medicines. There is now clear language in the draft text ensuring that ACTA will not serve as a basis to interfere with the trade in generic medicines.
Furthermore, ACTA will be consistent with the Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health of 2001, whilst the obligations on border controls, which is the most sensitive issue as regards access to medicines, will not apply to patents.
As regards transparency, we have kept our word to debrief the European Parliament, through dedicated sessions, after each negotiation round, and we will continue to do so. And in line with our commitments under the Framework Agreement, we have, of course, shared the draft texts with the European Parliament.
I also take this opportunity to briefly report the results of the 10th round of ACTA negotiations that took place in Washington between 16 and 20 August 2010.
On the civil, customs and penal chapters, the Parties made some progress, but there was not yet sufficient flexibility by the Parties to address some of the more delicate issues. There was also extensive work on the general and horizontal chapters (preamble, general provisions, definitions, enforcement practices, international cooperation and institutional provisions) which are almost concluded.
But regrettably, in the last two rounds, it has been made increasingly clear that a consensus including all the current ACTA parties will only be reached on the basis of the lowest common denominator, given the variety of views and practices on this issue with the various ACTA participants. This will be at the expense of the level of ambition – and effectiveness – of the agreement.
On the digital environment (Internet), which is one of the most sensitive but also the most ‘innovative’ chapters of ACTA, there was a considerable step back in the last round, with the Parties unable to agree on a common liability exemption regime for Internet service providers.
This is also the case with the very important chapter on customs measures, where several Parties oppose carrying out checks on exports and transit of infringing goods, thus failing to react against the widespread international traffic in counterfeits.
Another area where discussions are disappointing for EU interests relates to which intellectual property rights will be covered by the agreement. The EU has a wide and diversified basis of right holders. A farmer producing products with geographical indications, or a textile company creating designs, are also victims of counterfeiting and also need to be covered by better enforcement rules. The problem is that several of our partners insist that only copyright and trademarks ‘deserve’ to be included in ACTA. We strongly disagree and will continue to firmly push for these offensive EU interests to be respected.
The next round will take place in Tokyo at the end of the month (from 23 September until 1 October 2010). It seems that we are approaching the end game and the Parties are committed to resolving remaining substantive issues at the Tokyo Round.
In this respect, let me recall the context of these negotiations: ACTA is an agreement which will be important to safeguard the EU’s competitiveness and jobs on the world market.
I remain firmly convinced of the importance of tackling the systematic and widespread abuse of European intellectual property around the world, and of the essential contribution that ACTA can make towards this goal. This is why I remain committed to the success of these negotiations.
However, if, at the end of the process, the EU is faced with a treaty without much concrete added value for our right holders, or with a treaty trying to establish that there are 1st and 2nd category intellectual property rights, we should be ready to reconsider our participation in the agreement.
Indeed, if we want to remain a competitive economy, we will have to rely on innovation, creativity and brand exclusivity. These are some of our main comparative advantages on the world market. So we need the tools to ensure that they are adequately protected in our main export markets.
And this is about issues of concern to EU citizens: not only jobs, but also consumer safety, security and health.
What we are aiming at is simply setting an international standard in IPR enforcement that is reasonable, balanced and effective, and thus goes beyond the current WTO rules on IPR: the TRIPS agreement. This is the ultimate objective, on which I am sure we all agree.
Last March, I came here to outline the key principles on which the Commission’s participation in these negotiations is based, and committed myself to enhance transparency vis-à-vis Parliament on these negotiations. As you can see from the draft texts resulting from the negotiations held since March, which we have shared with you, the Commission has kept its word and has consistently stuck to these principles. Let me recall to you these principles:
Firstly, the objective of ACTA is to address large-scale infringements of intellectual property rights which have a significant commercial impact, and it is not about checking on the content of travellers’ laptops or computers. It will not lead to limitation of civil liberties or harassment of consumers. If some of you have doubts on this, I would be very happy to hear your arguments.
Secondly, ACTA is only about enforcement of existing intellectual property rights. It will not include provisions modifying substantive intellectual property law. It should set minimum rules on how innovators can enforce their rights in courts, at the borders or over the Internet. For example, ACTA will ensure that European fashion designers, artists or automobile manufacturers can see their rights adequately safeguarded when confronted with counterfeiting of their creations outside Europe.
Thirdly, ACTA must remain in line with the EU acquis, including the current level of harmonisation of IPR enforcement, the E-Commerce Directive, the Regulatory Telecom Framework, and, last but not least, the applicable EU legislation on data protection and privacy. ACTA will not change any EU legislation through the back door. So what then, you will ask me, is the added value? The answer is that our legislation is one of the most effective, and that if other countries adopt it, it will help our innovators."@en1
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