German pharmaceutical company Schwabe has announced the withdrawal of five pelargonium patents.
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The African Centre for Biosafety (ACB), the Berne Declaration (BD) and the Church Development Service (EED) have welcomed the announcement by German pharmaceutical company Schwabe that it will not pursue five pelargonium related patents granted to it by the European Patent Office (EPO). Mariam Mayet of the African Centre for Biosafety (ACB) says: “Nevertheless, we regret that such action comes only after such patents have been challenged by us.”
Among these five patents are all four that have been challenged, including the one that already has been revoked by the European Patent Office. However, Schwabe continues to hold on to two pelargonium patents pending before the EPO.
Mayet announced that the battle by the Alice community in the Eastern Cape will continue for appropriate relief as a result of Schwabe's unlawful use of the community's traditional knowledge for the production of Umckaloabo.
“The Alice Community has a real and meaningful stake in the future conservation and sustainable use of the Pelargonium species in South Africa and the protection of its traditional knowledge. The status quo will have to change including power relationships and ownership issues,” Mayet concluded.
“The next step will be to fight bio-piracy beyond the patent system,” says Francois Meienberg of the Swiss-based Berne Declaration. “Bio-piracy is about unlawful use, not only about patents. Users of biological resources and traditional knowledge must comply with the provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity, especially those relating to Prior Informed Consent on Mutually Agreed Terms, including in relation to Benefit Sharing.” Charity is not what is needed. For as long as real benefits are not transferred on mutually agreed terms by users and providers, the problem of bio-piracy will not be solved.
“The fact that Schwabe will not pursue the pelargonium patents is a major breakthrough in our fight against bio-piracy,” says Michael Frein of Church Development Service (EED). “Schwabe's pelargonium patent on extraction methods was successfully challenged. But it is impossible to follow every case of bio-piracy with the same efforts. The pelargonium case highlights the need for a strong legally binding international agreement that is able to prevent bio-piracy and provides comprehensive legal certainty for the victims of bio-piracy.”
For further information contact:
- Mariam Mayet. Tel: 011 646 0699. Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
- Francois Meienberg, Berne Declaration. Tel: + 41 79 796 76 12. Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
- Michael Frein, Church Development Service (EED). Tel: +49 173 535 9992. Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
- Visit www.biosafetyafrica.org.za
