Intellectual property breaches persist

US deplores lack of legislative action

The United States Trade Department said it has kept Lebanon on its Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) watch list in 2013, in its Special 301 report. The country has been on the US watch list for over a decade.

The 2013 Special 301 report has listed 29 other countries, including Columbia, Egypt, Ecuador, and Mexico.

“No progress has been reported on any of the pending IPR legislative reforms, including amendments to the copyright laws,” the report said. However, it said, some action was made on the level of IPR training and awareness-raising programs in 2011. “Rights holders report good cooperation from the Cybercrime and IP Unit at the Internal Security Forces (ISF) on enforcement efforts, including a notable action against a manufacturer of counterfeit medicines,” it said.

Rana Boutros, IP Specialist at Saba & Co Intellectual Property, said the country will remain on the watch list as long as IP laws are not adopted and well-implemented. “Lebanon suffers from nepotism due to the corrupted political regime which influences law enforcement,” said Boutros.

The report said the country has not completed its accession to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Internet Treaties, despite the ratification of these treaties by Parliament in 2010. Several IPR treaties that have been approved by the Cabinet still await the Parliament’s approval, including the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks, and the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

The manufacture and sale of counterfeit drugs remains a concern, the report said. The lack of transparency in the pharmaceutical registration process has reportedly enabled the registration of counterfeit products.

“Counterfeit goods and the violation of Internet rights remain the top two local obstacles which prevent the country’s improvement on the international IP protection scale,” said Boutros.

She said the activation of the Intellectual Property Protection Bureau will hopefully improve the IP situation, especially with people becoming more aware about the subject.