Asia Pacific Peoples' Alliance to Combat HIV and AIDS (APPACHA)

Government of India must withdraw the patents ordinance of 26th
December 2004

Resolution on the Indian Patent Law Changes

"We request the GOI to withdraw the ordinance issued on December 26th
2004, that will come up for discussion in the present session of the
Indian parliament. The GOI may prepare a new bill taking into account
the TRIPS flexibilities and in tune with the spirit of the DOHA
declaration and also the recommendations of the Fourth Peoples
Commission on Patent Laws".

The Regional Coordination Committee meeting of Asia Pacific Peoples'
Alliance to Combat HIV and AIDS (APPACHA) held in Bangkok Thailand
from Feb 28- March 1st, 2005, notes with concern that because of the
Patent Law changes that have been introduced recently by the
Government of India (GOI), generic antiretroviral drugs from India may
no longer be available both to India and to many less and least
developed countries.

We understand that the patent law changes were brought in by the GOI
so as to comply with the TRIPS Agreement which has been imposed on all
Governments by WTO. However, we feel that the GOI has not fully taken
into consideration of the provisions of the TRIPS flexibilities that
"empower WTO member countries to protect public health and to promote
access to medicines for all." The provisions within the new Indian
Patent Law like denial of pre-grant opposition to patent application,
permission to grant patent to new use of old drugs, cumbersome
procedures to get compulsory licensing, and rules that put curbs on
parallel importing of drugs from India etc are against the spirit of
WTO Ministerial Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health
adopted in DOHA in 2001.

As India is a leader in the global supply of affordable anti
retroviral drugs and other essential medicines, we hope that the
Indian government will withdraw the present ordinance and will take
necessary steps to continue to account for the needs of the poorest
nations that urgently need access to antiretroviral. We also
understand that similar views were expressed by World Health
Organization in their letter (dated 17th December, 2004) to the Health
Minister of India.

We request the GOI to withdraw the ordinance issued on December 26th
that will come up for discussion in the present session of the Indian
parliament. The GOI may prepare a new bill taking into account the
TRIPS flexibilities and in tune with the spirit of the DOHA
declaration and also the recommendations of the Fourth Peoples
Commission on Patent Laws.

March 1st, Bangkok, Thailand

Asia Pacific Peoples' Alliance to Combat HIV and AIDS (APPACHA)
E-mail: appacha@... (Tel: +61 407345061)