Dutch govt in patent row, seeks clarity on EU rules

NEW DELHI: The Dutch government has asked the European Commission (EU) for a review of the EU Customs regulations, based on which a consignment
of high blood pressure drugs from India being exported to Brazil, was seized and sent back, while transiting through the Dutch ports. It had been challenged by Merck Dupont which claimed that the medicine was being imported despite the company having a patent on it.

Visiting Dutch minister of foreign trade Frank Heemskerk has said his country wanted to “avoid” such incidents in future and had written to the European Commission seeking clarity on how the EU Customs regulations could be brought in sync with the international Trips regulations which gave concessions to poor countries on the ground of public health. “My country is very much in favour of providing generic medicines, especially to the very poor,” Mr Heemskerk said in an interview to ET.

While the Netherlands is on the backfoot on the issue of seizure of drugs as the move is seen as going against the international Trips agreement, India, which recently placed a six-month ban on import of toys from China, maintained that its decision was consistent with World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and it had taken the decision on health grounds. Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, commerce and industry minister Kamal Nath said it was open to any discussions with China on the matter. “Till the government is satisfied, the ban will not be lifted,” the minister said.

Elaborating on what led to the seizure of consignments at the Rotterdam airport, Mr Heemskerk said the Customs officials had acted on complaints of violation of intellectual property by a company not based on domestic policies, but based on European regulations. “We have asked the EU to look into the interaction between the Trips agreement, which the Netherlands fully supports, on one hand, and the European Customs regulations on the other hand. We should try to avoid these incidents,” Mr Heemskerk said.

The Dutch government has taken up this damage control exercise after developing countries strongly criticised the seizure of consignments of Losartan, a high blood pressure generic or off-patent drug manufactured by Dr Reddy's Laboratory, late last year in Rotterdam which was sent back to India.

India and Brazil criticised the incident heavily at the World Trade Organisation last week stating that the incident showed that the developed countries were circumventing global trade rules and trying to force their own tough intellectual property rules on developing countries. The Trips regulations, which are mandatory for all the 150-member countries of the WTO including the European ones, allow developing countries to source generic drugs from third countries (non-patent holding countries) on the ground of public health. Mr Heemskerk is heading a 40-member Dutch business delegation to India which will visit Delhi, Mumbai and Pune.