Yahoo! May 24, 2001
Human Rights Award Will Be Awarded to Cuban Internal Opposition Activist
Thursday May 24, 6:02 am Eastern Time. Press Release.
SOURCE: Cuban Democratic. Revolutionary Directorate (Directorio)
Eastern European NGOs Will Present the 'Pedro Luis Boitel' Freedom Award To
Opposition Activist in Cuba; This Unprecedented Event Will Take Place On Friday,
May 25
BUCHAREST, Romania, and MIAMI, May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 25, the
internal Cuban opposition support network, Pedro Luis Boitel, will announce the
recipient of the Pedro Luis Boitel Freedom Award, to be granted for the first
time to a distinguished opposition activist inside Cuba.
Information about this initiative was made public from the Romanian capital
of Bucharest, by Gabriel Andreescu, prize organizer and a widely recognized
Romanian dissident and intellectual.
"Six Eastern European countries, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Hungary,
Poland and the Czech Republic, have joined in this effort to grant this award to
those who struggle in defense of human rights in Cuba, with whom we feel a great
affinity due to the past struggle in our own countries in defense of those same
human rights,'' explained Andreescu to Directorio president Javier de Cespedes,
who will be present in Budapest, Hungary at the award ceremony.
In Miami, the Directorio will organize a Press Conference, where there will
be a simulcast between Budapest and Cuba to announce the award winner. At the
same time, a chronology of the Boitel Campaign activities inside and outside
Cuba will be made public.
Place: 10250 SW 56 St., Suite 203-C, Miami, Fla.
Time: 11:00 AM
Date: Friday, May 25
Contact: Janisset Rivero of the Directorio,
305-279-4416.
SOURCE: Cuban Democratic Revolutionary Directorate (Directorio)
Alexis de Tocqueville, a Washington Think Tank, Urges Repeal of
Controversial Intellectual Property Provision
Thursday May 24, 11:10 am Eastern Time. Press Release.
SOURCE: eNewsRelease.com
ARLINGTON, Va., May 24, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Alexis de Tocqueville
Institution today called on the United States Congress to repeal a controversial
provision that violates U.S. agreements with the World Trade Organization (WTO)
and severely diminishes the credibility that the U.S. has amassed in the area of
intellectual property rights.
Section 211 of the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 1999 nullified any U.S.
trademarks acquired by the Cuban government without the consent of anyone who
claimed prior ownership, trademarked or not, of the intellectual property. This
provision is in violation of an intellectual property agreement reached by the
WTO and supported by the United States, known as Trade Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property, or TRIPs agreements.
"Section 211 was never discussed anywhere. It was never considered in
legislative committee, in conference committee or on the floor of either House
of Congress,'' said Kenneth Brown, President of the Alexis de Tocqueville
Institution. "This seemingly minor provision in what was an enormous,
all-purpose spending bill threatens to damage the United State's reputation as a
champion of intellectual property rights. This is not the impression we should
be giving to emerging democracies around the world.''
Bacardi, a major donor to U.S. political campaigns and campaign committees,
claims to have acquired the U.S. trademark to "Havana Club'' rum products
from the Arechabala family (formerly of Cuba and one-time producers of Havana
Club rum). The Arechabalas fled the island in 1960, however, and their U.S.
trademark rights expired shortly thereafter. A Cuban company applied for the
trademark in 1974 and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) approved the
application in 1976.
"At the very least, the appearance has been given that some members of
Congress usurped the rights of the judiciary in order to satisfy their special
interest contributors,'' said Brown. "If the Congress doesn't clean its own
house and repeal this ill-advised provision, then we can hardly expect other
countries to honor these agreements.''
At the request of the European Union, the WTO has formed an arbitration
panel to study the case. A final ruling is expected later this summer.
Brown said: "The United States is the global champion of freedom and
property rights, and our government should live up to that reputation.''
CONTACT: Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, Arlington
Dino
Michalopulos
(703) 351-4696 | 