This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 SAN SALVADOR 000464 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EB/IPE-CLaCrosse 
STATE PASS USTR-JChoe-Groves 
STATE PASS AID/LAC 
USDOC FOR 4332/ITA/MAC/MSIEGELMAN 
USDOC FOR 3134/ITA/USFCS/OIO/MKESHISHIAN/BARTHUR 
USDOC FOR JBOGER 
USDOC PASS USPTO-JUrban and LOC-STepp 
 
E.O.  12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIPR ETRD ECON ES CAFTA
SUBJECT: OPTIONAL 2006 SPECIAL 301 REPORT 
 
REF: STATE 14937 
 
¶1.  Summary:  On December 15, 2005, the Legislative 
Assembly passed a number of IPR-related reforms to meet 
CAFTA-DR obligations.  Enforcement remains weak, but 
the government appears willing to step-up efforts once 
CAFTA-DR is in force.  However, institutional 
weaknesses in law enforcement will remain an important 
constraint on the government's ability to enforce IPR 
laws.  Regular training and technical assistance would 
address some of these deficiencies.  End summary. 
 
TRIPS Compliance, FTA Implementation, and Other IP- 
Related Issues 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
¶2.  On December 15, 2005, the Legislative Assembly 
passed a number of IPR-related reforms to meet CAFTA-DR 
obligations.  President Saca signed these bills into 
law on January 9.  Revisions to the 1993 Intellectual 
Property Promotion and Protection Law aim to strengthen 
copyrights by improving the definition of audio-visual 
work; limiting the use of temporary copies of literary 
and artistic works, recordings, and performances; and 
extending the term for copyright protection from 50 to 
70 years. 
 
¶3.  The reforms extend IPR protection to satellite 
signals and the content they carry and specifically 
prohibit the importing, manufacturing, or distribution 
of any device primarily used to decode a codified 
satellite signal without authorization.  They also 
prohibit the reception and subsequent distribution of a 
signal that originated as a codified satellite signal. 
 
¶4.  Medicines, previously granted 15-year patents, are 
now eligible for 20-year protection, although in 
practice 20-year terms have been provided since 2000. 
Industrial designs are now protected for 10 years; the 
previous term was 5 years.  In addition, the reforms 
extended patent terms to compensate for unreasonable 
delays in granting the patent, as well as unreasonable 
curtailment of the effective patent term as a result of 
the marketing approval process for pharmaceutical 
products.  Patent holders also have exclusive 
distribution rights. 
 
¶5.  The amended law calls for patent linkage to prevent 
marketing approval for copies of patented medicines. 
Data exclusivity is extended to pharmaceuticals and 
agricultural chemicals by prohibiting copycat 
manufacturers from submitting another firm's test data 
to regulatory authorities.  The periods of protection 
are five years for pharmaceuticals and ten years for 
agricultural chemicals. 
 
¶6.  The Legislative Assembly also revised the 2002 
Trademarks and Other Distinctive Signs Law. 
Certification marks and sounds are now protected as 
trademarks.  Trademark or distinctive signs may not be 
registered if doing so would cause confusion with an 
already registered one.  The reforms set out 
transparent rules for the registration and use of marks 
and geographic indicators.  For example, the use of 
confusing geographic indicators in marketing a product 
or service is prohibited, and foreign appellations of 
origin may now be registered.  Clear rules for domain- 
name management, including a dispute resolution 
procedure to prevent trademark cyber-piracy, are also 
established. 
 
¶7.  Reforms to the Penal Code intend to strengthen law 
enforcement efforts to discipline IPR violations. 
Maximum and minimum jail terms for a variety of IPR 
crimes were increased under the new law, with the terms 
depending on the severity of the offense.  The 
punishment for most copyright infringement, including 
unauthorized reproduction, import, export, and 
wholesale distribution, is now two to four years in 
jail, with four to six years possible for more serious 
circumstances.  Illegally downloading satellite signals 
is also subject to a two to four year jail term, as are 
trademark violations.  The Penal Code was revised to 
authorize enforcement agencies to seize suspected 
pirated and counterfeit goods, the equipment used to 
make or transmit them, and documentary evidence.  The 
courts have the authority to order the forfeiture 
and/or destruction of such items.  Enforcement agencies 
can also take action at the border against pirated or 
counterfeit goods without waiting for a formal 
complaint. 
 
Use/Procurement of Government Software 
-------------------------------------- 
¶8.  In 2002, the Salvadoran Government, with the 
support of the Business Software Alliance (BSA), 
launched a voluntarily legalization campaign that BSA 
believes was successful in reducing the piracy rate for 
software used in government institutions to 25 percent; 
in some institutions, BSA reports that there is no 
piracy or only 5 percent piracy. However, the Ministry 
of Health, Electoral Supreme Court, National Civilian 
Police, Human Rights Office, and the Attorney General's 
Office have made few advances in their legalization 
processes, according to BSA.  BSA is planning to launch 
a new anti-piracy campaign after March elections and 
CAFTA-DR's entry into force. 
 
Enforcement 
----------- 
¶9.  Music and software piracy are the main forms of 
copyright violations in El Salvador.  Between January 
and October 2005, the Attorney General's office 
received 69 complaints of music copyright violations. 
During that period, the Attorney General's office 
carried out 425 raids, seizing 231,726 compact disks, 
36,016 cassette recordings, and 99,320 movies. 
Meanwhile, the Business Software Alliance (BSA) 
estimates the rate of software piracy at 80 percent. 
While music and software piracy are the main concerns, 
there has also been concern expressed about inadequate 
enforcement of cable broadcast rights and the 
competitive disadvantage it places on legitimate 
providers of this service.  Regarding trademark 
violations, there were 11 complaints for counterfeiting 
or illegal use of trademarks filed in 2005 with the 
Attorney General's office.  There were 12 raids to 
seize products with such trademarks. 
 
¶10.  McDonald's continues to be involved in a long-term 
trademark dispute with a former franchisee.  The 
dispute is still not fully resolved.  In June 2003, the 
Supreme Court ruled in favor of McDonald's and the 
company was allowed to remove infringing names and 
arches from the restaurants of the former franchisee. 
In December 2005, an appeals court ruled against 
McDonald's on a related contractual issue, awarding the 
former franchisee $24 million in compensation and 
damages.  McDonald's is appealing the ruling to the 
Supreme Court. 
 
¶11.  Although PhRMA did not name El Salvador in its 
2006 Special 301 submission, as it had in years past, 
El Salvador still does not provide TRIPS-compliant 
protection for test data for new pharmaceuticals.  The 
Superior Council for Public Health (CNSP), which is 
tasked with providing marketing approval for new drugs, 
continues to allow a copy-cat manufacturer to submit an 
innovator's test data in place of its own.  CNSP staff 
have told ECONOFF that with the implementation of CAFTA- 
related IPR reforms, this practice will no longer be 
acceptable, and the government will be obligated to 
protect test data for pharmaceuticals for a five-year 
term.  CNSP staff also recognize the need to establish 
an effective system of patent linkage with the National 
Registry Center, where patents are registered. 
 
¶12.  There is a widespread view that most Salvadoran 
judges lack adequate legal preparation to adjudicate 
IPR cases.  Currently, IPR violations are seen in 
mercantile and penal Courts.  David Gonzalo Cabezas, 
President of the National Judicial Counsel (CNJ), has 
suggested there should be "specialized judges 
exclusively dedicated to apply justice in intellectual 
property," but no plans exist to establish such 
specialized courts.  He stated that they have discussed 
and are trying to address the issue with the World 
Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and with the 
Supreme Court of Justice.  In 2004, the Attorney 
General's Office merged the independent Intellectual 
Property Crimes Unit with the larger Crimes Against 
Private Property Division, which handles fraud, theft, 
and robbery.  This unit is called the Private Property 
and Intellectual Property Unit.  The staff includes one 
unit chief and five prosecutors. 
 
¶13.  Anticipation of stricter enforcement of IPR laws 
under CAFTA-DR has evoked occasionally violent protests 
from vendors of illicit CDs and DVDs; they claim that 
60,000 people will see their livelihoods destroyed with 
CAFTA-DR implementation.  The Ministry of Economy, with 
Post's assistance, has been working with 
representatives of the U.S. recording industry to 
implement what executives from the Recording Industry 
Association of America  (RIAA) and International 
Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) describe 
as a conversion program, modeled after a similar 
program in Mexico.  Essentially, informal vendors now 
selling stolen music and video would have the 
opportunity to sell legitimate catalogue music at 
competitive prices through a distribution system backed 
by concessional financing. 
 
¶14.  Comment:  Post has impressed upon the Ministry of 
Economy the importance of zero-tolerance enforcement of 
the new IPR law if this conversion program is to 
succeed.  To prepare for that enforcement push, Post's 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Attache 
recently organized training for police, prosecutors, 
and judges on how to enforce the new IPR laws, 
especially the ex-oficio search and seizure provisions. 
The police, in consultation with the ICE Attache, are 
developing an aggressive enforcement plan that will 
first target large-scale distributors of stolen and 
video, cutting off the vendors supply.  Vendors will 
also be subject to enforcement activity under this 
plan.  End comment. 
 
Treaties 
-------- 
¶15.  The Legislative Assembly ratified the 1996 WIPO 
Copyright Treaty in March 6, 2002, and the WIPO 
Performance and Phonograms Treaty in May 20, 2002. 
Besides, in compliance with CAFTA provisions, El 
Salvador should ratify, within specified time frames, 
the International Convention for the Protection of New 
Varieties of Plants, the Trademark Law Treaty, the 
Brussels Convention Relating to the Distribution of 
Programme-Carrying Satellite Signals, and the Patent 
Cooperation Treaty. 
 
Training 
-------- 
¶16.  Implementing IPR laws consistent with CAFTA-DR 
will seriously test the capacity of the Salvadoran 
courts and law enforcement agencies.  We believe the 
executive branch is committed to accomplishing this 
task, although it is one of the most sensitive areas 
for CAFTA-DR implementation.  That political will, 
however, must be matched with the rule of law if IPR is 
to be protected in a manner consistent with El 
Salvador's trade obligations.  Law enforcement officers 
and prosecutors will require significant training in 
how to best use their new ex-oficio search and seizure 
powers.  Judges, too, must be educated.  Post's ICE 
Attache has taken a leading role in providing such 
training, and in January offered an introductory course 
to police officers, prosecutors, and judges. 
Salvadorans have also attended USPTO's two-part CAFTA- 
DR academy.  However, additional regular training on 
identifying pirated goods would be useful--industry 
experts could play a helpful role in this effort. 
Assistance will also be required to improve evidence 
collection, in terms of analyzing computer hardware and 
software, and to establish storage facilities for 
confiscated goods.  Training for judges, meanwhile 
could be coursed through the National Judicial Counsel 
(CNJ), the court system's training arm.  One 
potentially effective way to do so would be through the 
development of an IPR-law curriculum that could become 
a regular part of the CNJ's course offerings. 
Technical assistance would be useful in the area of 
data protection for pharmaceuticals--helping the 
Superior Council for Public Health design an 
information network with the National Intellectual 
Property Registry would be an effective means to 
ensuring that patent linkage is implemented. 
 
BUTLER