Sri Lankan Nominee for the USPTO's February

UNCLAS COLOMBO 000021 SIPDIS E.O 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR CE OEXC ECONOMICS SUBJECT: Sri Lankan Nominee for the USPTO's February 2006 Academy on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Ref: State 226581 ¶1. Post welcomes the opportunity to nominate candidates for the USPTO training programs and is pleased to nominate Wasantha Navaratna Bandara, Senior State Counsel in the Attorney General's office, for the program scheduled from February 21-24, 2006. ¶2. Mr. Bandara has worked in the Attorney General's office for the past 20 years. He has led the prosecution of several leading commercial fraud cases. Mr. Bandara has two specialized masters degrees in law, one of which is on computer crimes and commercial fraud. A detailed bio will be sent to USPTO directly. ¶3. This training will be helpful to Mr. Bandara as Sri Lanka continues to enforce its new IPR law. Further, Sri Lanka has also detected internet based IPR fraud, a new threat that will require even greater familiarity with the issues involved. ¶4. Mr. Bandara's nomination is strongly supported by the Government of Sri Lanka's Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA),the leading government agency promoting IT services in Sri Lanka. ICTA has agreed to meet Mr. Bandara's travel and per diem expenses. ICTA would appreciate USPTO funding for Mr. Bandara's lodging expenses. ¶5. POINT OF CONTACT: RICHARD C MERRIN, ECONOMIC OFFICER, AMERICAN EMBASSY COLOMBO. EMAIL MERRINRC@STATE.GOV, PH: 94-11-2448007 FAX: 94-11- 2437345 LUNSTEAD