Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2007. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Bangkok Post - February 3, 2007
Piyaporn Wongruang
Under the World Trade Organisation's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips), a member country can break drug patents without letting the firms involved know if the move was to produce or import the patented drugs for government use.
The compulsory licensing also covers non-Aids related drugs.
"Several developing countries have granted licensing, especially for anti-Aids drugs. Even the US government has benefited from the mechanism. Therefore, the Thai government's move is fully compatible with international law and practice," said Dr Correa.
He also played down concerns that compulsory licensing would discourage medical firms from investing in new drug development, saying the scheme would cause only a minor impact on the drug industry, which could still make massive profits from selling new products.
The academic was one of the representatives from leading international non-governmental organisations and academic institutes, which held a joint press conference in Bangkok yesterday to voice their support for the Public Health Ministry's decision to break the patents on the drugs.
The move came after the government's endorsement of compulsory licensing to produce generic versions of the anti-Aids drug Kaletra and the blood thinner Plavix came up against fierce resistance from pharmaceutical firms, which threatened to put drug investments in Thailand on hold.
WHO director-general Margaret Chan also cautioned Thailand over the move and urged the government to begin negotiations with drug firms to strike the right balance in accessing drugs both in terms of quality and quantity.
Martin Khor, director of the Malaysia-based Third World Network, said under Trips, a country is not required to negotiate with the patent owners if the compulsory licensing is for government or non-commercial uses.
Thailand's case was in accordance with this rule, he said.
The government should resist the pressure from the pharmaceutical industry and stand firm on its decision to produce cheap drugs for patients in need, said Mr Khor.
Health experts and activists taking part in the press conference also expressed disappointment with the WHO's view on the patent breaking.
Instead of raising concerns about the move, they said, the WHO should have praised Thailand for issuing the compulsory licences, which would allow Thais greater access to affordable drugs.
The groups, including Medecins Sans Frontieres and the Bangkok-based Aids Access Foundation, called on the world health body to revert to its role of serving the public interest, and support the move to apply compulsory licensing.
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