PHA-Exchange> FW: Access to medicines threatened in Thailand. EFTA states should respect the right to health

Mon Jun 20 04:20:59 PDT 2005

** Apologies for cross-postings**

Dear Colleagues,

Please find below a press release from a coalition of NGOs from EFTA
countries (EFTA includes Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland)
concerning a letter of request they submitted to the UN Special Rapporteur
on the Right to Health regarding the health risks raised by the
EFTA-Thailand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations (see docs attached).

These NGOs are concerned about the fact that intellectual property (IP)
rules being pushed by EFTA (Switzerland in particular) risk harming access
to affordable medicines and the right to health in Thailand. They also want
more transparency in FTA negotiations and consultation of public-interest
civil society.

Their letter follows another submission to the Special Rapporteur sent by
Thai NGOs on the 15 June 2005.

If you want more information, please contact Julien Reinhard from the Berne
Declaration, Switzerland:  <mailto:reinhard at ladb.ch> reinhard at ladb.ch

Tel: +41 21 620 03 06

Best regards, 

Davinia

Davinia Ovett

Programme Officer

3D -> Trade - Human Rights - Equitable Economy

15, Rue des Savoises

CH-1205 Genève

Switzerland

Tel: +41 22 320 21 21

Fax: +41 22 320 69 48

Email: dovett at 3dthree.org

Website: www.3dthree.org

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******************************************

Press Release, 20 June, 2005 

Access to medicines threatened in Thailand. EFTA states should respect the
right to health. 

17 NGOs from Switzerland, Norway and Liechtenstein submitted today a request
to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health*. They urge him to warn
the four member states of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA:
Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) not to restrict access to
affordable generic medicines in Thailand. 

Negotiations for an EFTA-Thailand free trade agreement will begin in
mid-September. There is a risk that EFTA member states seek to include in
that agreement intellectual property rules that undermine access to
affordable generic medicines in Thailand. Such provisions that are going
further than what is required under the WTO TRIPS agreement have been
already included in previous free trade agreements from EFTA with third
countries (e.g. FTAs with Chile in 2003, Lebanon in 2004 and Tunisia in
2004). Access to generic medicines, especially generic version of patented
medicines, is essential in Thailand, in particular since the country is
facing a serious HIV / AIDS epidemics. Today there are around 700'000 people
living with HIV in the country. The HIV prevalence rate among the adult
population is above 1%. According to WHO estimations 50'000 persons are
receiving antiretroviral treatment while 114'000 people need it. 

In their letter of 20th June 2005 to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right
to health, Mr. Paul Hunt, the NGOs urge him to send an urgent appeal to
ensure that EFTA member states take into account their human rights
obligations in the forthcoming negotiations. They should not impose through
the free trade agreement stricter intellectual property rules as these would
undermine Thailand's ability to provide affordable generic medicines for its
population. This would undermine the right to health of the Thai population
and would be contrary to the human rights obligations of EFTA member states.
Also, the NGOs urged the special rapporteur to remind EFTA member states of
their human rights obligation to ensure greater transparency and
consultation with public interest civil society throughout all negotiations
of free trade agreements which have an impact on human rights. At present
the content of trade negotiations is known to the public only after the
conclusion of the agreements. 

Last Wednesday 15th June, a coalition of Thai NGOs made a similar request to
the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health to send an urgent appeal to
the Thai government. They expressed their concerns about the human rights
impacts - especially in relation to access to affordable medicines - of the
trade agreements being negotiated by Thailand with several countries,
including EFTA states. 

For more information, please contact : 
Julien Reinhard, Déclaration de Berne / Berne Declaration (Switzerland), +41
21 620 03 06 

* The letter is available on http://www.evb.ch/index.cfm?page_id=3647 
The following organizations are endorsing the letter: 
Switzerland: Berne Declaration, Aids & Kind, Antenne Sida du Valais romand,
Bethlehem Mission Immensee, Fédération Suisse des Personnes Vivant Avec
(FSPVA), Groupe sida Genève, Médecins Sans Frontière (MSF) - Suisse, Medicus
Mundi Schweiz, SID'Action, SolidarMed, TearFund, terre des hommes schweiz,
World Vision Schweiz 
Liechtenstein: Liechtensteinische Gesellschaft für Umweltschutz LGU, Aktion:
Wir teilen. Das alternative Fastenopfer, Verein Welt und Heimat 
Norway: Leger Uten Grenser / Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) - Norway 

For more details on TRIPS-plus provisons in EFTA free trade agreements see
the report on medicines http://www.evb.ch/cm_data/Deprive_Doha.pdf . 

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