The civil society asks PM to reject WTO agreement

New Delhi, March 17, 2022: 

Civil society groups wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, arguing the seriousness of fighting Covid using the simplifications of the global economic agreement, and demanding India rejects the proposed statement and opposes the “unreasonable demands of the EU and US”.

The letter – whose participants included Mumbai’s Forum for Medical Ethics Society, National Working Group on Patent Laws and WTO, and Karnataka’s Drug Action Forum – asked the Prime Minister “to refer to the Commerce Minister Will not decide on a waiver plan without consulting its technical staff/negotiators “.

Members of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, AIDAN, assistant professor of National Law University (Delhi) Sophy K Joseph, health researcher Sarojini N and Campaign for Access to Medicines, Diagnostics and Devices (CAMD) India is the other symbol.

The agreement, dubbed the “outcome of quadrilateral negotiations,” came after talks between a group of WTO countries, including India, South Africa, the US and the EU, and was negotiated. in the World Trade Organization (WTO).

“We would like to express your view that the settlement is not intended to be a waiver but a licensing mechanism with principles that go beyond the requirements of the TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) pact,” he said. and the letter.

In 2020, India and South Africa have requested a full waiver of certain elements of copyrights, technology, patents and privacy protections not covered by the TRIPS agreement for the availability of Covid-19 medicine, technology and vaccines to help countries fight the disease. The move is supported by 65 WTO members.

They called on the PM to “teach” trade and industry to “reject the so -called consensus text on TRIPS waiver that came out of non -negotiable talks between the EU, US, South Africa and and India “. The result is intended to create a condition to list all patents that use the claim license and require countries to inform the TRIPS court with all the details of the claim license as per the name of company, size, place of release and length of permit. “These conditions are making a positive impact on the actual publicity of the intended outcome,” the letter sent by community groups said. ET HealthWorld