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Taiwan to remain on `Special 301' list

"There's no doubt it's too late at this point to prevent Taiwan's listing under Special 301 for this year on the watch list." Grant Aldonas, US under secretary of commerce PHOTO: AP

The US will again brand Taiwan as one of the world's worst offenders in terms of intellectual property rights (IPR) infringements in its annual Special 301 Priority Watch List, despite what the government claims were its best efforts to combat piracy.

US Under Secretary of Commerce Grant Aldonas told reporters in Taipei yesterday that Taiwan's laws designed to protect intellectual property were not compliant with international norms and that enforcement remained weak.

"There's no doubt it's too late at this point to prevent Taiwan's listing under Special 301 for this year on the watch list," Aldonas said.

The annual IPR review by the US trade representative examines in detail the effectiveness of intellectual property rights protection in more than 70 countries.

Those named on the Special 301 list, which is due for official release at the end of the month, could face possible trade sanctions.

Taiwan has been put on the watch list for the past four years, though the US has yet to take action against Taiwan's exporters.

Aldonas said that the Copyright Law was not in compliance with the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) and that enforcement of the Optical Media Law was weak.

"We need to see the closure of plants engaged in these illegal activities," Aldonas said.

"Given the nature of the problem and proliferation of media piracy I think we are going to have to see a strong and sustained effort to be able to eliminate the ... problem," he added.

The announcement of Taiwan's placement on the list was slammed by Taiwan's authorities, who claimed that it was unfair.

"No other country pays as much attention to protecting intellectual property as the Republic of China," said Jack Lu (盧文祥), deputy director-general of the Intellectual Property Office under the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

Lu said Aldonas misunderstood Taiwan's level of compliance with TRIPS, saying that the country satisfied the minimum requirements and rejected the US under secretary's assertion that the scope of the Copyright Law was too limited.

"Taiwan did its best to enforce IPR-related laws -- including the Optical Media Law, Copyright Law and Trademark Patent Law," Lu said, adding that the government had confiscated a total of NT$8 billion in pirated goods last year.

A further NT$2.9 billion worth of goods was seized between Jan. 28 and March, reflecting the best efforts of all related government agencies and the police, he said.

But according to Richard Henson, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, consistency is the key.

"Taiwan has the opportunity to truly make a difference -- not just a short-term series of events to promote IP, but rather a deep commitment to truly solving the problem," Henson said.

"Especially rigid, strict enforcement of existing IP laws. We feel enforcement has been lacking for a long, long time," Henson said.

Another senior foreign executive, who requested anonymity, said that the government's annual efforts early in the year prior to the 301 list's release were simply a public relations exercise.

"It's like tapping the hammer on the knee at the doctor's office; pressure is applied and it kicks," the executive said.

"There's not even a recognition in the government that there's a problem," the executive added.

In his meeting with reporters, Aldonas also poured cold water on President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) idea Wednesday of forming a trade pact between the US, Japan and Taiwan.

"We're still somewhere short of compliance with WTO and as with all our trading partners, that forms the platform for your trading relationship," Aldonas said.

"It's sort of a practical, first-things-first approach. Our focus at the outset is to ensure that we have full compliance with WTO commitments," Aldonas said.
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