Intellectual Property Protection, Jordan, The Arab World, The New World Order
04 Sep 1997Amman – September 4, 1997
On the evening of Wednesday September 17, 1997, the Rotary Clubs of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan hosted Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman of the Arab Society for Intellectual Property, who spoke about the issue of Intellectual Property protection in Jordan, the Arab world, and the new world order. The event was attended by the governor of the Rotary Club and a number of its branch representatives from throughout the kingdom, in addition to a significant number of its members, lawyers and businessmen who specialize in IP issues. Attendees also included a number of foreign guests led by Professor Eric Hoyzer, former head of the German patent office in Munich, and Monsieur Pon Sue from France.
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh began his speech by expressing his extreme appreciation for being given the opportunity to discuss one of the most important topics in the Arab world due to the profound effects the World Trade Organization (WTO) has on global economy which naturally extends to that of the Arab nations. He quoted Aristotle -when he mentioned Plato- saying:
“Plato is my friend, but the truth is more my friend”
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh said this when he expressed his desire to deal with the facts in his speech, no matter how difficult they may be. He further elaborated saying:
“I’ve recently returned from Switzerland, after participating in the WTO conference and having the privilege of reviewing an important document signed by the US President Mr. Bill Clinton and his Vice-President Mr. Al Gore on July 7, 1997. This paper detailed a plan to create a program titled Global information Infrastructure (GII), which involves an electronic trade system utilizing the internet, effectively making the whole world a part of one big market where services and products can be exchanged or traded without the need for conventional trade foundations. Further, committees were formed to establish the regulations and protective measures for this new trade system, and to address numerous items such as the financial and tax-related considerations, the legal aspects, the protection of IP elements and access to open markets along with information processing, as one could potentially complete all his/her transactions electronically including reimbursement procedures.
The program was a result of an effort headed by the US government, which spent enormous amounts of money on this project and was assisted by its allies and friends throughout the globe.
The program indicates that it would not allow other nations to exclude themselves from its protective procedures, and that they would have to abide by this new system which is expected to have investments of up to 20 billion dollars.
Our focus should be on the present and future, not the past, as we cannot afford to waste time discussing whether or not we should join the World Trade Organization (WTO), because becoming a member goes without say. No country can allow itself to stay away from the orientation and leanings of the rest of the world, especially considering that there are now 131 nations who are WTO members.”
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh added that –in the same spirit- while we used to observe American space programs, we would think that they were more in the realm of imagination and fantasy, but we soon realized the serious reality of the issue when we saw the rocks of the moon.
He further added: “Fifty years have elapsed since the signing of the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1944, which resulted in the creation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank), along with a plan to create the International Trade Organization, intended for the postwar recovery of Europe. The world still struggles in revising its laws and regulations and respecting Intellectual Property rights and their protection.
What prevented the actual establishment of the International Trade Organization in 1944 as opposed to the other two entities, was the American desire that the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) –which was formulated also per the American requested policy- represent the basis for IP rights preservation in the strict manner that it finds fit.
As for the role of the Arab nations during this time frame, they have not prepared for this, nor have they attended the GATT conferences.
What’s even worse is that at the present, we are still discussing whether or not we should join the Paris and Berne Conventions of 1883 and 1886 respectively. These conventions and many others, are still being debated by Arab nations as to whether they should join them or not.
The principle of legal protection is what stands behind fruitful inventions and what draws countless benefits for their innovators. For example, when we first learnt about the fax or computer, we realized that the nations which developed these technologies had spent millions of dollars on their discoveries, as is the case with the internet, whereas the USA expended about 25 years and countless millions not to be a means of recreation, but to be the means and basis for the American document I mentioned.
Our governmental bodies and parliamentary systems must search for a quick way to build a solid scheme aimed at effective protection (i.e. of IP property & rights).
And here in Jordan, we are able to conduct this special kind of work, on par with other nations. To indicate the importance of the next necessary step, I would say that if there are four seasons in a year, then I must adapt to every season calmly and be independent of useless debates.
The concern of politicians today isn’t politics per se, specifically after nations have realized that economy and information represent the world’s nervous system so to speak. Accordingly, we see that the work schedule of the US Secretary of State is constantly inundated with items related to IP protection and liberalization of trade.
It may be true that under the umbrella of the WTO, member nations will be permitted to practice their sovereignty over their respective territories, along with having a flag, national anthem and political border. They will not however be able to isolate themselves from the rest of the world, as they must open their borders to trade and internationalism, remove obstacles and customs’ restrictions, and cultivate the atmosphere for both investments and free movement of people and opportunities.”
In discussing global trade, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh said: “I head a committee for trade liberalization in the field of accounting services. In our work, we are struggling with some advanced countries and in particular the USA, which refuses what we do because it believes that our potential and the abilities of the developing countries are unlimited. A good example of this is when the German airline company Lufthansa outsourced its auditing and software activities to an Indian company. It outsourced for two major reasons: the talent and accuracy of the Indian workforce, in addition to the competitive labor rates.
Further, there are more than 155 sectors in the field of services where WTO research is still ongoing, since the GATT isn’t a closed convention, but rather an open-ended framework where research continues. It is like peace negotiations that you are familiar with. Accordingly the labor convention that has the characteristic of trade was established (last December in Singapore), so that workers’ rights can form a part of the world order that promotes justice for the costs system.”
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh also alluded to the fact that the new world order has made owning information a reason for fulfilling prosperity and strength simultaneously, with Bill Gates’s experience being a prime example. He added: “Despite the economic importance of oil, it is not equivalent to the power of information and new technologies, as the gross income for the entire Arab world is not equal to that of a single European nation such as Spain. Also the average yearly income of the Gulf Cooperation Council’s citizen is less than that of a Belgian citizen.”
He also pointed out that there are two principles established by the GATT with the first related to national treatment and the second related to the first country’s caretaking: “What these principles do, is equalize the responsibilities and rights of the citizens of member nations, under the umbrella of national regulations, which are not to be violated.
If a bilateral agreement is founded between two states that allows specific privileges for their citizens, then other member nations should be allowed to have those same privileges with their nationals.
The only exception that the Agreement allowed was on shared markets such as the European Common Market, which grants its residents special protection that is recognized by the WTO. It is because of this that I’ve called in the past and still do, for the completion of the procedures for achieving a common Arab market, despite the fact that it has become a somewhat weak tool in the midst of a civilization gap between our countries and advanced countries. This gap demands the transfer of technology and knowledge, especially considering that we live in a world of trade estimated at 5 trillion dollars annually, and two trillion in the field of services alone, as 80% of the American GNP is constituted by the services sector, with services undoubtedly contributing somewhat to the remaining 20% from other sectors as well.”
In his proposal to promoting issues of IP, Abu-Ghazaleh pointed out that a logo for a soft-drink company was worth 36 billion dollars and is alone the cause for generating 87% of that company’s profits:
“ 85 % of the world’s innovations are owned by the seven industrialized nations. Why? This is because it has a strong protective system that provides and doesn’t waste. We are not a deficient nation. On the contrary, we are one whose children excelled even back in the fourth century and innovated for all of humanity, as Europe’s slumber in the fourteenth century did not stop time as well, and we continued giving birth to inventors, their innovations and methods to protect them. Reasonable protection is not privy to foreigners and their service only, but also represents fertile soil for the growth of local innovators’ imaginations as well.”
In relation to pirating issues, Abu-Ghazaleh stated that this phenomenon exists in advanced countries, and that the world loses close to 700 million dollars as a result annually, with 20% of these losses emanating from the USA and 50% from Europe. In China the figure is closer to 98% and Russia at 94%, with the numbers for us as Arabs being close to these:
“When discussing pirating, I’m faced by numerous critics, especially in the field of medicines and pharmacology, because there are some regulations in Arab states that only protect the process and not the product. This is what the TRIPS (The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) –which is a part of the GATT- considered a legal shortcoming that needs rectification to protect both the process and product combined. In my view there is nothing wrong with this, because Jordanian companies then for example, that are dear to us and which we are proud of, will have two options. They could either follow the path of legal licensing and buy new technology outright, or on the other hand build R&D centers to develop new technologies themselves. I favor pursuing both options at the same time because we cannot stay isolated from the rest of the world, and the GATT concepts may imply that we must absorb the entire agreement as opposed to bits and pieces.”
Related to legal deficiency in Jordan, Abu-Ghazaleh referred to the US Trade Representative report, prepared by Charlene Barchevsky – the US Trade Representative for the US President- which was issued on April 30, 1997 and was related to Jordan. This report confirmed that protective legislation was lacking, and current regulations did not provide for adequate protection of IP elements such as innovations, trademarks and copyrights.
Finally, and in response to audience questions, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh reiterated his firm belief that the Arab nation is capable of unique and ambitious undertakings, in addition to innovating and inventing, if provided with the appropriate conditions. He emphasized numerous efforts carried out by the Arab Society for Intellectual Property (ASIP) including:
1. Translation of the GATT handbook to the Arabic language based on a special agreement concluded with the WTO, and expected to be released soon as it is currently being printed in Switzerland.
2. Establishment of seminars and conferences to research the GATT at the Arab national level and disseminate its concepts.
3. Suggesting protective regulations and systems for Arab nations (over 17 states), which the Society has provided legal advice to and set up training seminars for governmental employees.
4. Assistance of Arab countries in utilizing computers and particular software for organizing documents related to protection offices.
5. Coordination and cooperation with each of the WTO and the WIPO to obtain necessary information from them.
6. Preparation of a draft for an IP expert program, in light of the convention reached with the League of Arab States to host this educational event that aims at graduating Arab IP experts.
7. Completion of the IP dictionary project –currently going through print in Europe- to be an effective instrument for those working in this field.
8. Publication of an IP magazine to be a specialized professional document in the discipline and its distribution at the Arab national level to all those interested.
9. Beginning the compilation of all protective regulations throughout the Arab world to issue them in a single book, and compilation of court rulings issued on this topic to represent a legal reference for attorneys and judges.
In conclusion, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh thanked those who organized the event, and considered the Rotary Club’s step as being in the right direction towards understanding the world better. He also thanked all those who helped contribute to the extreme success of this event.
Follow us
