Category Human Rights

Rise Of Knowledge Societies Leads To New Social Conflicts, Book Says

The rise of knowledge societies leads to the emergence of new conflicts initiated by stakeholders who do not come from the closed world of intellectual property, but rather from the general civil society. This reflects the growing importance of IP in the international economy, says a recent book.

European Patent Office Staff Calls Strike; President Battistelli Reacts

European Patent Office (EPO) employees on 13 March approved seven office-wide strike days, starting on 21 March. The move follows an increasingly tense stand-off between the Staff Union of the European Patent Office (SUEPO) and President Benoît Battistelli over, as a union document put it, timely access to justice, freedom of speech and freedom of association. The deteriorating relationship between employees and office officials prompted one French lawmaker to ask government ministers to rethink their country's support for Battistelli's reappointment. If unresolved, the labour issues could end up subjecting the EPO to closer scrutiny as it prepares to administer the EU unitary patent, one source close to the situation said.

Interview With Hans Hogerzeil: Recognising Good Practices Of Pharma

The issue of medicines access for low-income people in developing countries has been of major concern to global health policymakers for years. A key issue is the inability of northern pharmaceutical producers to develop and distribute affordable medicines and recover their research and development costs.

As part of the effort to address this, a non-governmental group was formed in coordination with industry and other stakeholders to develop an index to rate companies’ efforts to ameliorate the situation.

Julia Fraser for Intellectual Property Watch recently sat down with Hans Hogerzeil, a former senior World Health Organization official and a top strategist for the Access to Medicine Index, to discuss the index’s impact, independence and the future.

Innovating To Help African Students Learn With Legal, Affordable Textbooks

An innovative South African start-up is offering local university students a way around buying cheap pirated books with a legal print-on-demand service that slashes the price of expensive academic textbooks.

EU Parliament Passes Call Against Surveillance And For Digital “New Deal”; TTIP Can Proceed

A huge majority of the European Parliament today called for a stop to mass surveillance and a digital "New Deal" to enpower European citizens and companies following a six-month inquiry into the US National Security Agency (NSA) and other intelligence service surveillance programmes by the Parliamen's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs.

“Shame On You” – EU Parliament Pressured On Vote Over Surveillance

On the eve of European Parliament's final decision on consequences from revelations of mass surveillance directed against citizens, several members of the Parliament heavily criticised EU governments for the lack of action.

Final UN Report On Right To Food Calls For Redesign Of World Food System

In a final report before the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) today, the UN special rapporteur on the right to food called for a redesigned world food system to ensure the human right to adequate food and freedom from hunger. This includes some changes to the way intellectual property rights apply to food and agriculture.

Intergovernmental South Centre Issues Statement On “US Attacks On Indian IP Policy”

The South Centre, the Geneva-based intergovernmental organisation of developing countries, yesterday issued a statement calling on World Trade Organization members to oppose United States pressure against developing countries, and India in particular, over their intellectual property laws.