TITLE: Bending big AUTHOR: D Ravi Kanth PUBLICATION: Deccan Herald (India) DATE: 29 May 2007 URL: http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/May292007/editpage20070 5284244.asp NOTE FROM GRAIN: Below is one perspective on the debate held at the World Health Organisation on 14-23 May 2007 over access and benefit sharing when it comes to the international exchange of bird flu virus samples -- a virus leading to all sorts of government clampdowns on small poultry producers and their diverse breeds, not only in Asia but in Africa and Europe as well. Other reports, especially from the West, stress that the agreement reached last week is only a temporary stopgap measure to cool tempers over who benefits from WHO's biased system. The parallels between this highly disturbing battle and the much older one over crop biodiversity are very strong. Yet not enough voices are being heard challenging the patenting of the virus itself, which WHO now says is "almost certain" to generate a global health crisis. The Deccan Herald | Geneva newsletter | 29 May 2007 BENDING BIG By D Ravi Kanth The lead taken by Indonesia at WHA is a step towards ending monopoly of the US. Never before did the World Health Assembly (WHA) witness such fierce battles as this year. It is the highest decision-making body to oversee global health. The 60th WHA session, which ended last Thursday would be remembered as a turning point when developing countries came voiced their concern about lack of proper institutional arrangements to share biological resources and addressing public health, innovation and intellectual property issues. Faced with stiff opposition from the United States, known for consistently opposing public health to prevail over the primacy attached for strong intellectual property rights (IPR), the developing countries notched some important gains. Until now, the WHA sessions were dominated by health issues over which the US would set the agenda. Given the predominant role played by the so-called research-based pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer, Merck, in influencing the health agenda in the US, Washington invariably turned a deaf ear to public health problems in poor countries. Despite a rising disease burden due to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in many developing countries, the US would always insist that nothing should be done to undermine the stranglehold of IPRs on access to affordable medicines. It always maintained that if IPRs are weakened, research-based companies would not plough billions of dollars to discover new medicines. What is the use if there are drugs to tackle the killer diseases but patients cannot get them on time -- is the argument advanced by health pressure groups world over. Unexpected moves Two things happened at the WHA last week, which were somewhat unprecedented. First, the developing countries got together -- notwithstanding some minor differences among them -- to shift the focus on IPRs to the World Health Organisation, where they matter. At present, the World Intellectual Property Rights and the World Trade Organisation directly influence the international rules in IPRs. Second, they actually succeeded in forcing a major change on sharing the benefits of research conducted on influenza viruses or biological resources originating in the countries, which had little say in the subsequent development of vaccines. At issue is the linkage between virus sharing and the sharing of vaccines and other health products including technology transfer to enable local vaccine production. The recent Avian Flu was caused by strains of an influenza virus that originated, reportedly, from a southeast Asian country. Reports suggest that Indonesia was the source. In fact, research laboratories in some rich countries have already started developing vaccines based on that virus. However, Indonesia was not even consulted and was unable to secure the vaccine developed by a foreign laboratory or company on a virus that originated from its land. Small wonder that Indonesia spearheaded the campaign at the WHA. Sharing the benefits In what is called "Pandemic Influenza Preparedness: sharing of influenza viruses and access to vaccines and other benefits", the developing countries led by Indonesia succeeded in setting out the processes for terms and conditions that would determine the sharing of viruses between the originating countries, WHO Collaborating Centres in Australia, Britain and other advanced countries, and finally the fair and equitable sharing of benefits. The US was not happy with the resolution since it provided "ownership" or "rights" to contributing countries over the viruses they shared. In effect, Indonesia along with other developing countries secured its sovereign right over biological resources, prior informed consent and benefit sharing. Brazil and Thailand stole the limelight in advancing the resolution on public health, innovation and intellectual property, when the US chose not to join the consensus. An Inter-governmental Working Group on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property will conduct more work. India, which all along championed for public health to take precedence over IPRs in global negotiations, chose to remain silent on this issue. Perhaps, New Delhi's priorities seem to have changed in favour of its robust pharmaceutical industry at the cost of tens of millions of patients afflicted with killer diseases. GOING FURTHER (compiled by GRAIN) "WHO official - flu pandemic 'almost certain'", Reuters, Paris, 31 May 2007 http://in.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worl dNews&storyID=2007-05-31T144153Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-30 0798-2.xml "Scientists pinpoint bird flu antibody", swissinfo, Bern, 29 May 2007 http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/front/detail/Scientists_pinpoi nt_bird_flu_antibody.html?siteSect=105&sid=7869251&cKey=1180 444582000 "Indonesia to share bird flu samples: minister", AFP News Brief, 26 May 2007 http://www.france24.com/france24Public/en/administration/af p-news.html?id=070526195918.jiencuxz&cat=null Lisa Schnirring, "China resumes sending human H5N1 samples", CIDRAP News, 25 May 2007. http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/panflu/n ews/may2507samples.html Frank Jordans, "Exceptions ok'd in bird flu sample sharing", Associated Press, 24 May 2007 http://www.montereyherald.com/health/ci_5974597 Alan Sipress, "IP in Thailand: who's the real pirate?", Washington Post, 23 May 2007. http://blog.washingtonpost.com/posttech/2007/05/ip_in_thail and_whos_the_real_p_1.html?nav=rss_blog "WHO adopts resolution on flu virus sharing", CIDRAP News, 23 May 2007. http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/panflu/n ews/may2307who.html "Pandemic influenza preparedness: sharing of influenza viruses and access to vaccines and other benefits", World Health Assembly Resolution 60.28 adopted on 23 May 2007. http://www.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA60/A60_R28-en.pdf Martin Khor, "WHO admits patents taken on avian flu virus", SUNS, Third World Network, Geneva, 21 May 2007. http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/health.info/twninfohealth0 90.htm Martin Khor and Sangeeta Shashikant, "Winners and losers in the sharing of avian flu viruses", SUNS, Third World Network, Geneva, 9 May 2007. http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/health.info/twninfohealth0 89.htm GRAIN, "Bird flu: a bonanza for 'big chicken'", Against the grain, March 2007. http://www.grain.org/articles/?id=22