./.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/GC/W/282
6 August 1999
(99-3343)
General Council Original:  Spanish
PREPARATIONS FOR THE 1999 MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Proposals Regarding the TRIPS Agreement
(Paragraph 9(a)(ii) of the Geneva Ministerial Declaration)
Communication from Venezuela
The following communication, dated 26 July 1999, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Venezuela.
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I. BUILT-IN AGENDA
The TRIPS Agreement establishes minimum standards on the trade-related aspects of
intellectual property.  The implementation of the Agreement involves substantial legislative changes
which the developing countries must have introduced into their national IP regimes by
1 January 2000.  There are also several aspects of the Uruguay Round negotiations which have still
not been completely implemented, for example, the multilateral registration of wines and spirits under
Article 23.4 and the application of so-called non-vi olation proceedings under Article XXIII.1(b) and
(c) of GATT 1994 to the TRIPS Agreement.  With respect to these two points Venezuela offers thefollowing comments:
1. A renewed effort should be made in  the Council for TRI PS with a view to
establishing, as quickly as possible, a simple, binding and predictable multilateral
system of registration of geographical indications for wines and spirits which enablessupporting funds to be raised for expanded technical cooperation with the developing
countries.
2. A recommendation should be made to the 1999 Ministerial Conference to the effect
that the five-year period of non-application of subparagraphs 1(b) and 1(c) ofArticle XXIII of GATT 1994 (non-violation complaints), mentioned in Articles 64.2
and 64.3 of the TRIPS Agreement, should be extended for at least another five years.
This request for an extension is based on the fact that the Council for TRIPS has not
yet been able to define either the scope or the modalities for non-violation
complaints, as required by Article 64.3.  Moreover, the history of the GATT and theWTO has produced very few precedents relating to proceedings of this type which
would enable them to be conducted safely in terms of law.  At the same time, we
consider that there is a total lack of experience concerning how inter-State non-
violation complaints could be applied to intellectual property rights, which are
essentially private in nature.WT/GC/W/282
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II. REVIEW OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT IN THE YEAR 2000
The TRIPS Agreement itself is delicately poised between rights and obligations in various
areas of intellectual property.  However, there are many aspects and areas of interest to the developing
and least-developed countries which are left unregulated by the final text of the Agreement.  In thisconnection, it is important to begin a full review and possible renegotiation of the TRIPS Agreement
from the development standpoint, taking into account the scope and interpretation which should be
given to special and differential treatment and the identification of the policy areas necessary for the
achievement of this objective.  Venezuela considers that, among other things, a review should involve
the following:
1. Include the principles of the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity in the TRIPS
Agreement, together with the Indian proposal (document WT/GC/W/225) to prohibit
the granting of patents to those inventions made with foreign genetic material that are
inconsistent with Article 15 of the CBD rela ting to the recognition of sovereignty and
access to genetic resources.
2. Establish on a mandatory basis within the TRIPS Agreement a system for the
protection of intellectual property, with an ethical and economic content, applicable
to the traditional knowledge of local and indigenous communities, together with
recognition of the need to define the rights of collective holders.
3. Extend the list of exceptions to patentability in Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPS
Agreement to include the list of essential drugs of the World Health Organization, in
order to develop the principles established in Article 8 of the Agreement.
4. Extend the incentives mentioned in Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement in favour of
developing country Members.  Review the objectives and principles set out in
Articles 7 and 8 of the TRIPS Agreement with the aim of making them effective and
operational.
5. Establish mechanisms of support for developing and least-developed countries
through electronic commerce which involve strengthening development strategies
and modifying the productive structures, as well as facilitating open technologytransfer on a reasonable commercial basis.
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