According to sources, members of the Independent Advisory Oversight Committee, an external member state body at the World Intellectual Property Organization, are meeting this week to discuss a possible investigation into allegations made involving the WIPO director general.
The committee will “consider how to consider” the possible investigation, one source said. The committee is external to WIPO activities, according to sources.
The suggestion of an investigation was raised at the recent extraordinary WIPO General Assembly. Korea and the United States have signalled a call for the investigation. It is unclear which other countries would be interested.
The allegations about DNA sampling and a business deal involving WIPO Director General Francis Gurry were raised by WIPO Deputy Director James Pooley.
Intellectual Property Watch reporting on the issue is available here.
[…] It did not appear to be mentioned in the meeting, but an underlying issue might be the investigation addressed by the IAOC involving accusations about the WIPO director general, who is originally from Australia, made earlier this year by a WIPO deputy director general from the US (IPW, WIPO, 19 May 2014). […]
[…] this year that authorities have been looking into (IPW, WIPO, 7 May 2014, IPW, WIPO, 9 May 2014, IPW, WIPO, 19 May 2014). Sources say the issue was sent back to the Internal Audit and Oversight Division (IAOD), and that […]
[…] made last year by a WIPO deputy director general about certain actions of the director general (IPW, WIPO, 19 May 2014). According to an informed source, the investigation went to UN investigative authorities. Its […]