Biopiracy continues in the Amazon

Edited by Iain Mackenzie

Biopiracy means not only the smuggling of diverse forms of flora and fauna, but mainly the appropriation and monopolization of traditional population's knowledge and biological resources. Biopiracy causes the loss of control of traditional populations over their resources. In the Amazon region this is not a new phenomenon.

This joint knowledge must not be treated as a commodity that can be sold or bought.

In the last years, through the advance of biotechnology, the facilitating of registering international trademarks and patents as well as international agreements on intellectual property, such as TRIPs, the possibilities of such exploitation have multiplied.

TRIPS is an acronym for Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. The TRIPS agreement is described in the appendix 1C of the World Trade Organization Agreement from 1995. It permits virtually the globalization of patents and trademarks. It grants companies the right to protect their patents in all the WTO member countries -- currently at 142.

The treaty speaks of the commercial aspects of property rights. The Agreement will probably lead to the standardization of patent protection and will oblige all member states to stick to the rules. Of special interest is article 27, which concerns the patent laws and describes, which inventions are to be protected, and also the unethical and greed-driven possibility of patenting of animals and plants.

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