National 5 (Spotlight Weekly)

Protecting Creativity

A leading American authority on Intellectual Property Rights is here to highlight the significance of enforcing the system for countries like Nepal

By SANJAYA DHAKAL

Just as the Nepalese government passed the new Copyright Protection Act and is in the process of formulating the regulations, a leading American authority on the protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is here to underscore the economic and social significance of enforcing the system for a developing country like Nepal.

Professor James P. Chandler, president of the National Intellectual Property Law Institute, USA, said that IPR protection is designed to encourage and contribute to the creativity of the peoples of the world. "It is important for a country like Nepal to establish world-class protection system for the IPR if it wants to successfully compete in the global market," said Professor Chandler. "The protection of IPR is the first step toward creating wealth as Nepal is apparently very rich in its cultural heritage," he added.

Professor Chandler was addressing a press meet on the eve of the two-day conference on IPR in Nepal sponsored by the American Center, Kathmandu and organized by the Statute Law Revision Society Nepal (SLRSN) in partnership with Tribhuvan University, Faculty of Law, and Copyright Protection Society of Nepal (CPSN).

"The conference will discuss the present situation of IPR in the country. A total of 12 papers will be presented on various aspects of IPR during the conference. We expect this conference will sensitize our policy-makers about the necessity of respecting IPR," said Pravakar Adhikary, convener of the SLRSN.

IPR consists of copyright protection as well as the protection of patent, trademarks and allied rights. "Although Nepal has copyright protection acts that are compatible with the Trade Relation Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), it still does not have updated laws on protecting industrial property like patents and designs," said Santosh Sharma, general secretary of CPSN.

Responding to the attitude of ordinary people in developing countries who prefer to buy counterfeit goods as they are cheaper, Professor Chandler said it is the duty of society to convince people about the negative aspects of encouraging counterfeits. "People must realize that buying counterfeit goods will eventually ruin not only the national and global economy but also hurt them personally. Often, counterfeit goods are low in quality and they could prove costly in the long run. Besides, it is surely unfair to reap benefits taking advantage of genuine producers," he said.

"It makes a lot of sense for Nepal to ensure the protection of IPR. It has rich tradition and culture which deserve protection. When IPR protection is ensured it will allow for the movement of Nepalese intellectual property to the outside world and vice versa, which in turn will help the economy here," said Victor R. Stockinger, president of SLRS, London.

Professor Chandler said that Nepalese people can identify with the vast store-house of its intellectual property collected over thousands of years. "It can be marketable to the world and treasures returned home if IP is protected," he said.

As Nepal is preparing to enter the World Trade Organization, it is necessary for the country to have effective IPR laws in place. "As TRIPS will be applicable in 2006, there is no way we can move forward without protecting IPR," said Sharma.

Like Professor Chandler said, it was the people that came to USA and had their intellectual property protected who became wealthiest ones in the subsequent years. It is important for Nepal to lead by example by implementing progressive laws on IPR for the benefit of posterity.

Authorities admit that tens of millions of rupees every year is lost in revenues due to the non-enforcement of IPR in the country. Besides, by not taking proper action against plagiarists and counterfeiters, the government is committing a crime. After all, such inaction encourages smugglers and all kinds of scoundrels who not only loot society but also deny ordinary people quality goods and services, trample creativity and bleed the economy in the long run.