Draft on Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)

• Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, being negotiated by 16 countries, in its current form could impact the many developing countries.
• The chapter on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is part of the RCEP agreement. This chapter contains proposals for patent extensions, restrictive rules on exceptions to copyright, and dozens of other anti-consumer measures.
• Japan and Korea are working to introduce some of the worst ideas from the ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement), the TPP and other trade agreements in the RCEP chapter on Intellectual Property.
• A proposal by Japan and Korea demanding patent term extension — from the current 20 years by an additional five years — in ASEAN countries that are not party to the TPP is not welcomed by other developing members of this agreement.

About Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership:

• The RCEP is among the proposed three mega FTAs in the world so far – the other two being the TPP (Trans Pacific Partnership, led by the US) and the TTIP (Trans -atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the US and the EU).
• The agreement (FTA) is proposed between the ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) and the six states with which ASEAN has existing FTAs (Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand).
• RCEP negotiations were formally launched in November 2012 at the ASEAN Summit in Cambodia.
• RCEP is viewed as an alternative to the TPP trade agreement, which includes the United States but excludes China.

Analysis:

• These proposals will compel governments to commit to newer Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights provisions like TRIPS plus — including the Patent Law Treaty (Geneva, 2000), which involve harmonisation in the examination of patent applications and requirements of patentability.
• There are proposals for patent extensions, restrictive rules on exceptions to copyright, and dozens of other anti-consumer measures, illustrating the power of rights-holder groups to use secret trade negotiations to influence democratic decisions that impact access to knowledge, the freedom to innovate and the right to health in negative ways
• Some TPP(Trans-Pacific Partnership) member who are also part of RCEP are trying to push TPP standards in RCEP.
• India is opposing this on the grounds of : a) Patent extensions.; b) Restrictive rules on copyright and Anti-consumer measures.
• LDCs(Least developed countries)were given an exemption under Trade-Related of Intellectual Property Rights(TRIPS) till 2033, like Myanmar, Cambodia, laos were exempted to implement IP laws, but in the draft it seems that the exemption has been withdrawn.

By: Vishal