<html xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<meta name=ProgId content=Word.Document>
<meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 10">
<meta name=Originator content="Microsoft Word 10">
<link rel=File-List href="cid:filelist.xml@01C6151D.7D5364D0">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:DoNotRelyOnCSS/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Print</w:View>
<w:Zoom>128</w:Zoom>
<w:GrammarState>Clean</w:GrammarState>
<w:DoNotHyphenateCaps/>
<w:EnvelopeVis/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>6 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>6 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>3</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:UseMarginsForDrawingGridOrigin/>
<w:DoNotShadeFormData/>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:FootnoteLayoutLikeWW8/>
<w:ShapeLayoutLikeWW8/>
<w:AlignTablesRowByRow/>
<w:ForgetLastTabAlignment/>
<w:DoNotUseHTMLParagraphAutoSpacing/>
<w:LayoutRawTableWidth/>
<w:LayoutTableRowsApart/>
<w:UseWord97LineBreakingRules/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]-->
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
panose-1:0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;
mso-font-charset:77;
mso-generic-font-family:roman;
mso-font-format:other;
mso-font-pitch:auto;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
span.GramE
{mso-style-name:"";
mso-gram-e:yes;}
/* Page Definitions */
@page
{mso-page-border-surround-header:no;
mso-page-border-surround-footer:no;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;
mso-header-margin:.5in;
mso-footer-margin:.5in;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
-->
</style>
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang=EN-US style='tab-interval:.5in;text-justify-trim:punctuation'>
<div class=Section1>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;mso-pagination:none;
mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none'><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>International NGO Solidarity
Statement:<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>US-Thai Free Trade
Negotiations Threaten Access to Medicines; Activists Demand Suspension of
Negotiations and End to TRIPS-plus IP Provisions<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;mso-pagination:none;
mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none'><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Jan.
9, 2006.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>Thai AIDS activists and their
international allies are seeking suspension of scheduled trade talks that
threaten to undermine Thailand’s lawful ability to produce,
import/export, and market low-cost generic versions of life-saving medicines.
Today, in Chiang Mai, the United States and Thailand are scheduled to start the
Sixth Round of negotiations on a proposed Free Trade Agreement and for the
first time are holding discussions on a U.S. proposal to dramatically increase
intellectual property protections for pharmaceutical products.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>Simultaneously, ten thousand Thai activists,
half of them living with HIV, are protesting the scheduled talks and trying to
shut them down, promising to sleep overnight outside the meeting venue for
three nights and to block entry to the negotiations.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>The
U.S. government has consistently refused to release the draft text of its FTA
proposals and simultaneously extracts promises of secrecy from its negotiating
partners.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>This shroud of secrecy limits
democratic review and civil society participation in the negotiation
process.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>In particular, it denies voice
to the tens of thousands of Thais living with HIV/AIDS who need increased
access to affordable second-generation antiretroviral and opportunistic
infection medicines that are currently patent-protected and cost
prohibitive.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Instead
of allowing Thailand to use all existing flexibilities for accessing cheaper
medicines under international law as confirmed by the 2001 WTO Doha Declaration
on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health and by the UN Commission on Human
Rights, the U.S., based on past practice, will be seeking to heighten patent
and data protection in the following ways:<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol'>·<span style='mso-tab-count:
1'> </span></span></font><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Extending
patent terms beyond 20 years to compensate for administrative delays and easing
standards of patentability on new formulations and uses, thereby extending the
period of monopoly pricing;<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol'>·<span style='mso-tab-count:
1'> </span></span></font><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Restricting
rights to parallel import cheaper medicines by codifying patent-holders’
rights to contractually limit export/import of previously sold products;<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol'>·<span style='mso-tab-count:
1'> </span></span></font><span class=GramE><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Potentially</span></font></span><font
size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'> restricting the grounds for issuing
compulsory licenses;<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol'>·<span style='mso-tab-count:
1'> </span></span></font><span class=GramE><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Linking</span></font></span><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'> marketing approval to the absence of
claimed patent rights and imposing 5-10 year data-exclusivity provisions
(preventing reliance on proprietors’ clinical trial data to grant
marketing approval for generic products), thereby potentially restricting
compulsory licensing rights;<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><span class=GramE><font size=2 face=Symbol><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol'>·<span
style='mso-tab-count:1'> </span></span></font><font size=2
face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Imposing criminal penalties on companies
that intentionally or inadvertently violate patents.</span></font></span><font
size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;
mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>The
U.S. attempts to down-play the significance of these hard-text treaty terms
with an ambiguous and under-inclusive “side-letter” reaffirming
trade partners’ rights to prioritize access to medicines.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>Such side-letters make no binding
commitments, and the USTR has expressly declined to confirm the obligatory
effect of the letters when asked to do so in response to Congressional
inquiries.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Consistent
with human rights norms requiring access to essential medicines and in response
to Thai activist demands, Thailand has initiated a program of universal access
to government-subsidized antiretroviral drugs that now reaches 70,000 of
170,000 Thai people living with HIV/AIDS.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>
</span>However, the future costs of expanded treatment with newer patented
medicines will be prohibitive if the U.S. succeeds in its objectives to
ratchet-up intellectual property protections.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>
</span><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;
text-autospace:none'><font size=2 face=TimesNewRomanMS><span style='font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanMS;mso-bidi-font-family:TimesNewRomanMS'>Therefore,
we join our Thai colleagues at Chiang Mai and throughout Thailand demanding
that the U.S. suspend negotiations on intellectual property rights and that it
drop all intellectual property provisions affecting access to pharmaceutical
products, specifically all TRIPS-plus terms, in the Thai FTA and in other FTAs
as well.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>In addition, we demand that
the U.S. publish its proposed text for the entire FTA and that the Thai people
have had a chance to hold public consultations on the proposed agreement.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>