RSS-affiliate SJM seeks EU's 'unconditional support' to TRIPS waiver proposal for COVID-19 medical products
May 20, 2021
New Delhi [India], May 20 : Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) affiliate, Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) on Wednesday wrote to European Union envoy to India Ugo Astuto to support a text-based negotiation of Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Waiver Proposal to suspend certain intellectual property (IP) for the COVID-19 medical products.
Drawing the Ambassador's attention to "the European Union's reluctance to support a text-based negotiation of TRIPS Waiver proposal to suspend certain intellectual property (IP) for the COVID19 medical products," the SJM said India along with South Africa has proposed in October 2020 in WTO and urged WTO to grant a waiver for limited years (which will be negotiated by the TRIPS Council), from the implementation, application and enforcement of specific provisions of the TRIPS agreement for the prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19.
"After the announcement of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on May 5 to support the text-based negotiations on the waiver proposal many countries came forward to support the negotiation. However, the announcement of the EU is not clear in its support to the text-based negotiation. Further, the EU attempted to limit it to the scope of the TRIPS Waiver to only to the vaccine patents," the letter read also alleging,
"EU proposed COVID-19 Vaccine Patent Pool is a diversionary tactic. The patent is not the only barrier, access to trade secret is critical to scale up the production of vaccines, diagnostics."
Reminding that the international human rights obligation also includes an obligation to desist from taking measures that result in the infringement of human rights in other countries, the SJM said, " We would like to state that the best option before us is to scale up the production of various COVID19 medical products by removing the legal barrier against the freedom of operation."
The SJM said that the approach of charity lead to the continuation of monopoly by a few companies over COVID-19 medical products caused shortages and unaffordable treatment accentuating miseries of the world.
"We request you to unconditionally support the TRIPS Waiver Proposal and constructively engage in the text-based negotiation to conclude the negotiation at the earliest without compromising the purposes and objectives behind the proposal," it added.
