January 30-31, 2007
World Congress on Fighting Against Counterfeiting and Piracy

In Geneva, in the World Intellectual Property Organization, on January 30-31, a Third World Congress on Fighting Against Counterfeiting and Piracy was held (http://www.ccapcongress.net). The session of the assembly was opened by the Director General of the WIPO, Dr. Kamil Idris, and apart from the 700 other delegates, there participated Ronald K. Noble, Secterary General of Interpole, Michel Danet, Secretary General of the World Customs Organization, as well as the representatives of the Association of Global Industry Against Counterfeiting (GBLAAC), International Trademark Association (INTA), International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and International Security Management Association (ISMA). The representative of the Republic of Serbia was Ms. Branka Totić, Acting Director of the Intellectual Property Office.

Dr. Kamil Idris underlined that “the counterfeiters and pirates hinder the economic development and endanger health and security. Their methods are perfected, their sway is wide and their crimes look for victims every day. The misfortune of counterfeiting and piracy has reached the dimensions of the epidemics. It is a global phenomenon which requires global action”. The representative of OECD presented a study on the negative consequences of counterfeiting for the world economy, pointing out that in certain countries even 30% of the medical drugs are counterfeited.

The Congress proposed four basic measures for the fighting against piracy and counterfeiting:

1. Legislation development
2. Strengthening the institutions of public prosecutors, courts and Customs…
3. The necessity of close cooperation of state and private sector in the organized conducting of actions for the prevention and fighting against piracy and counterfeiting
4. The necessity of widening programs of raising awareness on the detrimental consequences of buying counterfeited products.

Once more, it has been pointed out that there exists connection between piracy and organized crime, and the fact that almost one third of the profit from piracy is flowing down into the criminal activities. Guy Sebban, the Secretary General of the ICC thus said: “pirates are organized. This Congress is the necessary invitation to the economy and the governments to unite in order to answer that.”