VZCZCXRO5158
RR RUEHLMC
DE RUEHLM #0128 0230313
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 230313Z JAN 07
FM AMEMBASSY COLOMBO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5210
INFO RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0524
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 9816
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 6758
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 4819
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 2133
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 7327
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1729
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP

UNCLAS COLOMBO 000128 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS TO USTR 
 
STATE FOR SCA/INS AND EB/TPP/IPE 
 
MCC FOR D NASSIRY AND E BURKE 
 
GENEVA PASS USTR 
 
E.O 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR EAID CE
SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: IPR RAID SEIZES 17,000 FAKE "POLO" BRAND SHIRTS 
 
¶1.  Summary: Sri Lankan police on January 11 raided a Sri Lankan 
factory manufacturing and supplying counterfeit "Polo" brand 
garments.  The raid was the largest intellectual property rights 
(IPR) enforcement bust since Sri Lanka began to enforce its 2003 IPR 
law in 2004.   End Summary. 
 
¶2.  On January 11, 2007 the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) 
of the Sri Lanka police raided Jinesha Garments (PVT) Ltd, located 
in a Colombo suburb.  The raid was conducted on a search warrant 
obtained from the local magistrate court on an application made by 
the lawyers representing Polo/Lauren Co LLP.  In the raid, police 
seized over 17,000 counterfeit Polo brand T-shirts from the 
premises.  The managing director of Jinesha Garments told police 
that the company had been producing fake "Polo" products for over 
three years on orders placed by several local businessmen who export 
the fakes mainly to the United States. 
 
¶3.  According to Sudath Perera Associates, lawyers for Polo/Lauren, 
Jinesha Garments contacted the firm following the raid to reach a 
settlement.  A settlement would typically involve compensation and 
an undertaking to refrain from engaging in counterfeit apparel 
trade.  If a settlement cannot be reached, the next step would be to 
institute court action. 
 
¶4.  Sudath Perera Associates represents several international 
apparel brands and has an in-house investigation division, which 
identified Jinesha as a producer of fake "Polo" garments.  According 
to the firm, the local magistrate and police were both cooperative 
in issuing a search warrant and organizing the raid. 
 
¶5.  This was the biggest seizure of a foreign apparel brand in Sri 
Lanka.  Previously, police has raided several shops for selling or 
exporting counterfeit "Victoria's Secret" and "Polo" products. 
Counterfeit garments of international brands are widely available in 
Sri Lanka.  Recognizing the problem and possible damage to Sri 
Lanka's garment export industry, legitimate apparel producers have 
begun to more actively safeguard their brands.  For example, MAS 
group, Sri Lanka's largest apparel group and one of the largest 
suppliers for Victoria's Secret, has created a separate Brand 
Protection Unit. 
 
¶6.  Comment: The cooperation that Polo/Lauren Co received from the 
courts and police in getting its complaint acted on is a good sign 
that local and national officials in Sri Lanka are taking IPR 
enforcement more seriously.  Post will commend the relevant 
authorities involved in this case and continue to urge more frequent 
enforcement activities in Sri Lanka. 
 
Blake