IFLA and other library organisations express concern
about the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA)
Between July 2-10 in San Diego, United States, negotiators
from nine countries are meeting in to discuss the Trans-Pacific
Partnership Agreement (TPPA). The TPPA is a multilateral trade agreement
between Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States,
Australia, New Zealand, Peru and Singapore, covering all aspects of
commercial relations between the countries. Canada and Mexico have
recently been invited to join the negotiations.
IFLA, along with organisations representing the library
community in some of the countries participating in the TPPA, is
concerned that the TPPA's extensive intellectual property chapter does
not reflect the balance necessary to protect the public domain and the
ways in which society may access and use content. Presently, exceptions
to copyright protection are noticeably absent from leaked drafts of this
'gold standard' IP agreement for the 21st century.
As with the flawed Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement
(ACTA), which was today rejected by the European Parliament, library
groups have been concerned throughout the TPPA negotiations regarding
the lack of transparency related to its procedures, provisions, and
priorities. IFLA, alongside nine other library organisations, has today
issued a statement on the TPPA which outlines our concerns, and
reiterates the role libraries play in fostering equitable access to
information and cultural expression, while ensuring that the interests
of creators are respected and protected.
CLA is a signatory to this statement.
Read the full text of the statement
Related Files
IFLA July 4, 2012 (Adobe PDF File)
