TUNISIA READIES NEW IPR LEGISLATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TUNIS 000992 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/MAG (HARRIS) AND EB/IPE STATE PASS USTR (BUNTIN) AND USAID (MCCLOUD) USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/ONE (NATHAN MASON),ADVOCACY CTR (JAMES), AND CLDP (TEJTEL AND MCMANUS) USDOC PASS USPTO (ADAMS, BROWN AND MARSHALL) CASABLANCA FOR FCS (ORTIZ) EGYPT FOR FCS (MOEZIE) LONDON AND PARIS FOR NEA WATCHER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR TS SUBJECT: TUNISIA READIES NEW IPR LEGISLATION REF: A. 06 TUNIS 2963 ¶B. 06 TUNIS 2771 -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) In a July 24 meeting with EconOff, Director General of Tunisian Copyright Protection Organization (OTPDA), Mohamed Kheireddine Abdel Ali, spoke optimistically and enthusiastically about Tunisia's progress on intellectual property rights protection and an increased GOT commitment to the issue. Abdel Ali outlined upcoming draft legislation on IPR, which will bring Tunisia's legislative framework into compliance with existing international obligations and improve GOT enforcement capabilities. End Summary. -------------- Commitment at the Highest Level -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Abdel Ali spoke optimistically and enthusiastically about Tunisia's progress on IPR protection, noting that "things are moving." According to Abdel Ali, the movement is due to the political will -- of President Ben Ali himself -- to improve IPR protection. Abdel Ali referenced the President's National Culture Day speech, that stressed the importance of intellectual property rights and adapting the Tunisian legislative framework to international developments. On 2006's Culture Day, Abdel Ali received a Cultural Order of Merit award from Ben Ali, which according to Abdel Ali demonstrated the importance the President attaches to his work. Abdel Ali stated that when he took the helm of OTPDA he was "like an orphan", but now "everyone -- the Ministers of Commerce, Justice, Development, and Communications" is talking about the importance of intellectual property rights. -------------- Enforcement Steps Up -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Abdel Ali noted that since the end of 2006 there have been over 700 inspections, leading to the closure of 100 stores and the issuance of 300 tickets. EconOff emphasized that the Embassy was happy to see Carrefour remove pirated optical discs from its store (Ref B),but noted that another store in the Carrefour shopping center had since begun selling pirated discs. Abdel Ali told EconOff he would ask a contact on the enforcement task force to look into that particular example, but added that this example highlighted the difficulty of enforcement. He remarked that while it would be impossible to eliminate counterfeiting, the goal is to reduce counterfeiting to the lowest level tolerable. He acknowledged, however, that piracy in Tunisia is currently at "an intolerable level." -------------- New Legislation -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Abdel Ali outlined the new legislation on IPR protection and enforcement that is currently being drafted. He emphasized that the changes would bring Tunisia's legislative framework in compliance with international obligations, such as the Convention of Rome. Currently there are several areas where Tunisian law contradicts international treaty obligations. For example, Tunisian law grants 25 years of protection on software, while the WTO requires 50 years. While in the judicial system treaty obligations supersede Tunisian law, the new law will remove these contradictions. The law also aims to improve TUNIS 00000992 002 OF 002 enforcement by giving OTPDA enforcement capabilities and by easing the procedural burdens required to seize counterfeit goods. According to Abdel Ali, customs inspectors and enforcement agents will be authorized to seize counterfeit goods without prior authorization from the Ministry of Justice. The legislation will also align the sanctions for neighboring rights and authors' rights, while increasing the penalties for infringement of both. Fines will be raised and range from 5,000 to 50,000 Tunisian dinars, with a possibility of doubling the fines for repeat offenders. The draft also proposes allowing prison sentences of up to one year. Abdel Ali drafted significant portions of the legislation himself but noted that the legislation is still under review. He speculated that it would be passed before December. -------------- Future Cooperation -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Abdel Ali expressed eagerness to continue cooperation with the USG on IPR issues. He noted his interest in learning from the US experience in dealing with Internet-based piracy, such as peer-to-peer file sharing. Abdel Ali also welcomed any assistance the USG could provide in terms of software for registering copyrights and calculating royalty payments. He noted that OTPDA had not been able to find a program that matched its needs and complained of the time wasted by keeping manual records. OTPDA also looks forward the proposed MEPI-funded USPTO seminar on copyright enforcement. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶6. (SBU) As Abdel Ali noted himself, the current level of piracy in Tunisia remains high and unacceptable. While more must be done, the new legislation is welcome and demonstrates a commitment to improving Tunisia's IPR protection regime. Yet, it is often in the enforcement and application of IPR laws where Tunisia falls short. The GOT can claim Carrefour as a success, but the continued sale of pirated optical discs in most major retail stores and complexes reveals that enforcement remains lax. Whether the new law will bring the promised improvements in enforcement remains to be seen. END COMMENT. GODEC