Topic: International Intellectual Property Protection
Country: Tajikistan
Delegate Name: Matt Catchick
School: Royal Oak High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Tajikistan position papers GLIMUN 2017 committees
All around the world, businesses and countries are affected by Property Rights. Intellectual Property Rights can be extremely beneficial, but spanning across different countries one will see a wide variety of protections and violations. Intellectual Property is a rapidly changing area. Intellectual property can be extremely valuable, thus the need for protection and enforcement. Patents and copyrights can be very profitable, and influence economies. Countries with a strong economy can grow even stronger, and, weaker economies can be made stronger. Intellectual Property is a very important and constantly developing area across the world. Tajikistan joined World International Property Organization (WIPO) in 1991. The nation of Tajikistan is in favor of increasing security and harsher punishment for those who violate the laws established therein. Tajikistan would like to further IP rights, as they are beneficial to the economy, but need to be regulated and amended to be more strict and specific. In developing countries, the enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is much more difficult. The nation of Tajikistan recognizes this fact, and submits that this must be addressed in order to effectively protect intellectual property. Developing countries lack resources to enforce strict Property Rights. This is a considerable problem, as many developing countries face violations of these rights, usually in the form of large amounts of counterfeit products and piracy. The benefits of having a stricter set of rules is that they can terminate, with proper execution, many of the piracies and counterfeits of movies, TV shows, and other media products. The Tajik government is currently working on developing an implementation work plan and attempting to attract technical assistance in removing such violations. The Tajik government has also adopted a 2014-2020 National Strategy for the Development of Intellectual Property in early 2016. Tajikistan also possesses the Department on Disclosing and Seizing of Counterfeit Products within the Customs Service of Tajikistan. Tajikistan also has a branch of Law on Quality and Safety of Products, which requires IPR violators to pay all expenses for storage, transportation, and destruction of counterfeit goods. These programs are a well-founded start to a bigger, stricter enforcement on IP violations, but requires further examination, execution, and funding. The big flaw of this act is that Tajikistan, along with many other countries, lack proper funding as well as resources to both promote and protect intellectual property. With the proper funding, resources, and time, a successful program can encourage technological and creative advancement, while preserving rights and economic gain.
