IPR CUSTOMS TRAINING ADVANCES IN MANZANILLO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MEXICO 002847 SENSITIVE, SIPDIS STATE FOR EB/TPP/MTA/IPE/HUGHES/URBAN STATE FOR WHA/MEX/BRAICH STATE PASS TO USTR FOR MELLE/MCCOY/SHIGETOMI STATE PASS TO JUSTICE FOR CCIPS/KOUAME AND OPDAT/TRUEBELL STATE PASS TO COMMERCE FOR ITA/MAC/ONAFTA/WORD STATE PASS TO ITA/MAC/IPR/WILSON COMMERCE PASS TO USPTO FOR RODRIGUEZ/BERDUT/MORALES E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KIPR ECON SNAR MX SUBJECT: IPR CUSTOMS TRAINING ADVANCES IN MANZANILLO Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) The Embassy, together with the Department of Justice and the Mexican Customs Administration (Aduanas), held a four-day training seminar on criminal enforcement and detecting, detaining, and deterring the importation of pirated and counterfeit goods for Mexican customs and law enforcement officials in Manzanillo from September 8- ¶11. Financed by DOJ grant money from State/INL, the program focused on promoting interagency cooperation and providing the participants with the necessary tools to maximize the Mexican government's efforts to counter IP violations. As in previous training programs, the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico coordinated a hands-on training with more than 40 famous brand right holders. The Mexican reaction to the course was very positive and the level of cooperation extended by Aduanas was unprecedented. The Embassy plans to capitalize on the success of this event and hold additional IPR training as part of our cooperative efforts to strengthen IP protection and enforcement in Mexico. End summary. Students and Instructors -------------- ¶2. (U) The September 8-11 program was attended by 50 Aduanas officers from across Mexico, as well as 9 law enforcement officials from the Office of Attorney General of the Republic (PGR - or the Mexican Department of Justice),the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI - counterpart to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office),and the National Copyright Institute (INDAUTOR). Roughly half of the customs officials participated in the prior training program held in Monterrey on February 4-6, ¶2009. Our intent was to invite the same 56 Aduanas officers trained in Monterrey to receive additional training in Manzanillo as part of building a nationwide core team of IP experts within customs. Our Aduanas counterparts attempted to accommodate this request; however, they hit some internal obstacles which resulted in only half of the customs officials being able to return for additional training. ¶3. (U) DOJ funded the participation of Christophe Zimmermann, Chief Technical Officer of the World Customs Organization's Anti-Counterfeit and Piracy Unit. Thanks to his vast experience in IPR issues, his excellent ability to communicate this knowledge, and his fluency in Spanish, Mr. Zimmermann ensured the success of this seminar. He was ably assisted by Beverly Buick of the Enforcement Directorate of the World Customs Organization. Marie-Flore Kouame of the Department of Justice's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section also attended. (Note: Embassy DHS/CBP and DHS/ICE were invited to participate, but were unable to attend. End note.) What We Did -------------- ¶4. (U) Day One of the seminar was dedicated to presentations on the importance of IPR and the tools available to increase criminal enforcement and combat IP violations. Mr. Zimmermann shared with the participants fresh insights and valuable techniques to increase criminal deterrence at the border, and drove them to reexamine their role in countering IP violations. He walked the customs and law enforcement officials through several sample manifests and bills of lading, pointing out various indicators that should render the shipment suspect. ¶5. (U) On Day 2, through the cooperation of the American Chamber of Commerce in Mexico, more than 40 clothing, pharmaceuticals, cell phones, movies and music, software, and electronic devices companies, set up 22 expo stands MEXICO 00002847 002 OF 003 to build a stronger rapport and share intelligence with the various customs and law enforcement officials. Small groups of 3-4 participants rotated through all of the expo stands, spending about 25 minutes at each. This gave them time to learn directly from the right holders how to distinguish real goods from counterfeits as well as understand the various techniques that counterfeiters use to avoid detection. According to the participants, this interactive "hands-on" mechanism was most useful, since when customs officials are inspecting shipments, or when law enforcement agencies are investigating these cases, they usually do not have original products readily available with which to compare and build a case. This public-private sector interaction was also useful in that officials developed relationships with right holders and now have a point of contact to call when a suspicious shipment is discovered. ¶6. (U) Days Three and Four were opportunities for the participants to utilize their newly acquired practical techniques. The Port of Manzanillo customs director and the Aduanas directorate of operations shared with the participants all the bills of lading for that week's containers received from China, India, and Dubai. This unprecedented level of cooperation allowed the participants, under the tutelage of Mr. Zimmmermann, to conduct their own risk analysis, identify suspect shipments, and then travel to the Port to open up the containers. In a few cases, the officials actually discovered deliveries of counterfeit bags and trademark- infringing toys with a street value in the thousands of dollars. Throughout the training, Mr. Zimmermann underscored the importance of interagency cooperation to gather evidence for use in building stronger criminal cases. Achievements, Revelations, and Next Steps -------------- ¶7. (U) Feedback from the Mexican attendees was very positive, particularly with respect to the development of their skill sets in risk analysis, targeting, selecting, and interdicting suspect shipments. The heavy focus on interagency cooperation also received high marks, as did the right holder's participation in instructing how to identify infringing goods. Participants also appreciated the personal connections made among the various Mexican agencies, which we hope will lead to increased coordination and cooperation in attacking cross-border flows of pirated and counterfeit products. ¶8. (SBU) We cannot overstate the level of cooperation we received from the Port of Manzanillo customs director and the Aduanas directorate of operations. As stated above, they gave us and the participants, including non-Aduanas Mexican government officials, complete and total access to the paperwork as well as to the port facility and the containers. While the containers themselves were opened by Manzanillo customs officials, it was the participants who directed which containers were to be opened and then opened the boxes within the containers. Mr. Zimmermann commented several times that in all his years of training throughout the world, he had never received such cooperation from the host customs administration. This level of cooperation and trust is testament to the considerable goodwill that has developed between the United States and Mexico in customs matters. ¶9. (SBU) Despite their enthusiasm for the program, many of the participating Mexican customs officials lacked fundamental skills that such officials should possess in order to assist with criminal enforcement, such as the basic understanding of shipping and transportation contract documents. The absence of these essential skills impedes their ability to detect suspicious activity that can then be referred to law enforcement officials for criminal investigation. This information MEXICO 00002847 003 OF 003 is also critical to building strong criminal evidence. For this reason, future USG capacity-building IP events will target the development of essential customs skills that will be most useful to Mexican Customs officials in their daily tasks and that do not necessitate the use of advanced technology or software. Additionally, we support the development of an Aduanas training academy in the hope that some of these fundamental skills would be addressed. ¶10. (SBU) The Mexican officials have asked for additional IPR training, and have expressed a strong desire for Mr. Zimmermann's continued participation. The Embassy plans to pursue these requests, and will continue to emphasize the development of essential customs techniques and practices, interagency cooperation, and collaboration with the private sector. Perhaps the next training program will be to organize a roundtable for all 49 Customs Directors together with some senior PGR officials throughout Mexico to sensitize them to the importance of intellectual property and gain their approval for their subordinates to practice heightened IP protection and enforcement efforts. We realize that such a meeting of all the Aduanas leadership in Mexico would present a unique opportunity for the USG to discuss activities in other areas of concern beyond the scope of IP enforcement. The Embassy will develop a plan on how to present all these concerns at such a roundtable. COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (SBU) COMMENT: While this program should be lauded as an unprecedented success, EconOff received some sobering feedback from some of the Aduanas officers that had participated in the prior training in Monterrey. One official stationed in a Mexican port reported that her use of the techniques acquired through our training had resulted in the successful detention of a shipment of two kilos of pseudoephedrine - a key ingredient of methamphetamine whose import is banned by Mexico. Several officials were arrested, including two of her colleagues. Unfortunately, she and her supervisor subsequently received several death threats, and both have been reassigned to other customs offices in Mexico's interior. Through our training, we are coaching these officials to ask questions in an environment that often discourages curiosity. Our training must be part of a broader, holistic USG approach to strengthen Aduanas, protect their personnel and encourage the inquisitive. END COMMENT. PASCUAL