10/05/1999
Treaty on Intellectual Property Rights is deemed one of the most dangerous agreements emerging from the “Uruguay” round. The intellectual property problem emerged as a result of the illegal imitation followed by some countries to make use of the renowned trademarks of foreign products to export the locally manufactured commodities to the global markets. So it was necessary to protect those who originated this (intellectual) product and enable them to invest the output of their intellectual and creative efforts. ( Available in Arabic )
The developing countries’ viewpoint tends to embrace the idea that the intellectual property is common property for all humans that should be made available for reasonable prices whether regarding its use or possession. They see the continued export of materials in cheap prices is unfair and is in the interest of those enjoying advanced technology who raise the value of these materials re-exported to the poor countries once again for high prices. As for the major industrialized countries topped by the US, they see it is necessary to work on investing the applied system of protecting the western technology by exploiting it for the longest possible period and prohibiting its use except under the conditions they specify. This has sparked a big clash of interests between them and the developing states. The industrialized states have put pressure on the developing countries to get them agree on the proposed framework of protection.