VZCZCXRO1224
PP RUEHRG
DE RUEHRG #0037 1301313
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 101313Z MAY 07
FM AMCONSUL RECIFE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0606
INFO RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 0783
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO PRIORITY 0334
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO PRIORITY 0330
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY 0032
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 0837

C O N F I D E N T I A L RECIFE 000037 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EB/TPP/IPE, DEPT PLEASE PASS USTR FOR VICTORIA ESPINEL, 
CHRIS WILSON, SUE CRONIN AND JENNIFER CHOSE GROVES, USDOC FOR 
ITA/MAC/OIPR CASSIE PETERS; SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  5/10/2010 
TAGS: KIPR ETRD ECON PGOV BR
SUBJECT: SETBACK TO ANTI-PIRACY EFFORT IN BRAZIL'S NORTHEAST 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Diana Page, Principal Officer, AmConsulRecife, 
State. 
REASON: 1.4 (b) 
 
Classified by Principal Officer Diana Page, Reason 1.4 (b) 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary: The lawyer leading the fight for intellectual 
property rights (IPR) in the Northeast, Monica Lustosa, (PROTECT 
NO FORN) told consular officers that due to concern for her 
personal safety she will no longer publicly demand enforcement 
of anti-piracy laws. She was shaken to learn that state police 
personnel tasked with combating piracy were being reassigned --a 
sign that efforts to crack down on the producers of pirated 
goods were no longer going forward. The disarray in the local 
police was confirmed by sources known to the Consulate security 
officer, although Federal Police based in the Northeast remain 
commited to enforcement of IPR. End Summary 
 
¶2. (C) During a meeting at the Consulate April 13, Monica 
Lustosa, President of the Northeastern Brazil Intellectual 
Property Association (ANEPI) and coordinator of the American 
Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM)/Pernambuco Strategic Group on 
Intellectual Property told consular officers that she no longer 
would be publicizing her work combating piracy because she 
feared for her personal safety. She plans to continue working 
for the protection of intellectual property rights and 
technological innovation behind the scenes, but will avoid a 
high-profile media presence until she feels her personal safety 
can be guaranteed. 
 
¶3. (C) Her concerns arose after meetings in March with 
representatives of the local and state police in the city of 
Caruaru, Pernambuco's second largest city, an industrial and 
logistics center which is the principal source for pirated 
products in the Northeast.  During her meetings there, the 
Pernambuco civil policewoman in charge of IPR efforts repeatedly 
emphasized to each audience that Ms. Lustosa was spearheading 
the Northeast's fight against piracy. The policewoman would not 
talk to the press, but instead had Ms. Lustosa give a number of 
television interviews. The policewoman, who was instrumental in 
including piracy in a local telephone hotline to denouce crimes, 
privately told Lustosa later that she was requesting a transfer 
away from anti-piracy issues, implying threats had been made. 
 
¶4.  (C) Ms. Lustosa explained that the police hotline had 
originally been created to protect wealthy Caruaru business 
owners from kidnappings for ransom.  Once the hotline was 
expanded to include anti-piracy tips, the business community in 
Caruaru, in particular business owners with police connections, 
dropped support for it. Ms. Lustosa said she would consider 
continuing to publicize the need for IPR protection, but only if 
her personal security were protected and she were paid for her 
work. For the time being, she no longer wishes to appear in the 
media. 
 
¶5.  (U)  Lustosa was selected for the Embassy's International 
Visitor (IV) program to the U.S. in 2005, and she credits the IV 
program with giving her the inspiration to form the Pernambuco 
Strategic Group on Intellectual Property.  She has since become 
one of the leading anti-piracy voices in Recife and the State of 
Pernambuco. She is president of ANEPI, a non-profit founded in 
2005 to promote intellectual property rights and tp raise 
awareness of the economic and social damage caused by the piracy 
industry. Lustosa has been a prominent anti-piracy figure in 
Recife media and has been a featured anti-piracy speaker at 
numerous events. In 2005, at the urging of international and 
local recording industry officials, she successfully lobbied the 
state of Pernambuco to set up a specialized police unit to 
combat piracy - the Specialized Division for the Prevention and 
Repression of Brands and Products Falsification (NEPREFC). 
 
¶6.      (C)  Comment:  Post has independently confirmed 
Lustosa's claim that local authorities have been pressured by 
Pernambuco business interests to scale-back their anti-piracy 
efforts.  However, Federal Police units remain unaffected by 
local pressure and are still actively engaged in anti-piracy 
efforts.  Given Lustosa's expertise and previous successes, the 
fears that have curtailed her public efforts are a setback to 
IPR protection in this region.  End Comment. 
 
This cable was coordinated with Embassy Brasilia. 
 
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