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Yesterday, the Assemblies of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) began their annual two week session to map out the organisation's upcoming programme of work. This year's meeting is different from previous ones, however. WIPO has come under public pressure from activists, academics and some of its own member states to change its course. Argentina and Brazil, supported by several other developing country governments, are calling for the UN agency to introduce a 'development agenda' into its mandate. (See BIO-IPR of 8 September 2004.) Development NGOs are preparing a statement of support for the proposal. Consumers organisations and academics are also organising to back Argentina and Brazil, while demanding a broader revamp of WIPO's directions.

In the meantime, the World Trade Organisation's Council for TRIPS met last week over a proposal from developing countries on how to curb biopiracy under the WTO's intellectual property rules. Brazil, India, Pakistan, Peru, Thailand and Venezuela made a submission on how the TRIPS Agreement can be amended to require patent applicants to disclose the origin of biological materials or traditional knowledge involved in patent applications.

Below are some links to find out more about both of these developments.

WIPO

WIPO, "WIPO Assemblies Open", press release, WIPO/PR/2004/391, Geneva, 27 September 2004.
http://www.wipo.int/edocs/prdocs/en/2004/wipo_pr_2004_391.h tml

Consumer Project on Technology, "Geneva Declaration on the Future of the World Intellectual Property Organization", Washington DC, September 2004.
http://www.cptech.org/ip/wipo/genevadeclaration.html

Centre for International Environmental Law and others, "NGO statement supporting the establishment of a development agenda for the World Intellectual Property Organization", Geneva, September 2004.
http://lists.essential.org/pipermail/ip-health/2004-Septemb er/006957.html

Florent Latrive, "Propriété intellectuelle: les pays du Sud se rebellent", Libération, Paris, 20 septembre 2004.
http://www.liberation.fr/page.php?Article=239766

Dugie Standeford, "Consumer groups press WIPO to shift focus from IP rights to human rights", Washington Internet Daily, 14 September 2004.
http://lists.essential.org/pipermail/random-bits/2004-Septe mber/001214.html

"Patentes: especialistas y Premio Nobel avalan a la Argentina - Académicos de varios países respaldaron hoy la propuesta en favor de promover más el interés público de las patentes y de los derechos de propiedad intelectual", EFE, 14 de septiembre 2004
http://www.infobae.com/notas/nota.php?Idx=139284&IdxSeccion =100443

Trans Atlantic Consumer Dialogue, "The Future Of WIPO", conference agenda, 13-14 September 2004, Geneva.
http://www.tacd.org/cgi-bin/db.cgi?page=view&config=admin/d ocs.cfg&id=259

WTO

"Países en desarrollo proponen en la OMC prevenir 'biopiratería'", EFE, Ginebra, 22 septiembre 2004.
http://www.aol.com.mx/canales/noticias/internacional/conten edor.adp?id=2004/9/22/efe7015573

International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, "TRIPS Council: Key developing countries seek to move debate forward on disclosure issues", BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest, Geneva, 22 September 2004.
http://www.ictsd.org/weekly/04-09-22/story1.htm

Brazil, India, Pakistan, Peru, Thailand, and Venezuela, "Elements of the obligation to disclose the source and country of origin of biological resource and/or traditional knowledge used in an invention", submission to the Council for TRIPS, World Trade Organisation, Geneva, IP/C/W/429, 21 September 2004.
http://www.grain.org/rights/tripsreview.cfm?id=62

Pressure mounting at WIPO and WTO