VZCZCXYZ0023
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAM #1024 1241059
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 041059Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5021
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0188
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS 4163
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC

UNCLAS AMMAN 001024 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ELA AND EEB/TPP/IPE 
STATE PLEASE PASS TO USTR (JGROVES, SFRANCESKI) 
COMMERCE FOR USPTO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR JO
SUBJECT: JORDAN PLEASED WITH SPECIAL 301 RESULTS FOR 2009 
 
REFS: A) STATE 42812 
      B) AMMAN 946 
      C) AMMAN 545 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary:  The Ambassador and Econoffs delivered ref A points 
separately to Minister of Industry and Trade Amer Hadidi and 
Director General of the National Library Mamoun Talhouni, noting 
that Jordan would not be listed in the Special 301 report and urging 
continued engagement with the USG on outstanding issues in 
intellectual property rights (IPR).  Both interlocutors welcomed the 
Special 301 results and agreed that more work needed to be done, 
particularly on strengthening enforcement and prosecution.  End 
Summary. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Econoffs, noting the embargo, informed Minister Hadidi of 
the Special 301 results in an April 29 meeting.  Hadidi welcomed the 
news and asserted that the Government of Jordan (GOJ) would continue 
to maintain a positive momentum on improving IPR protection in 
Jordan.  In particular, he noted that the GOJ would still like to 
establish an interagency commission to coordinate enforcement 
efforts, but the Parliament was not in favor of creating any 
parallel entities that might dilute the power and effectiveness of 
the central government.  Econoff also raised the concern that some 
apparel made in Jordan's Qualifying Industrial Zones, presumably 
rejects, appeared to be entering the local market without removal of 
the tags.  The Ministry of Industry and Trade had formed an 
interagency committee to look into the issue, and Hadidi assured 
that he would follow up with his staff on the committee's findings. 
EconCouns offered continued USG assistance and dialogue on IPR 
matters. 
 
¶3.  (U) The Ambassador delivered ref A points on April 30 to 
National Library Director General Talhouni, commending his 
organization's efforts to improve copyright enforcement despite 
limited capacity.  Pleased with the Special 301 results, Talhouni 
noted that his enforcement staff recently expanded to 14 inspectors 
who now compose four teams instead of the previous two.  The 
increase in personnel has allowed the National Library to extend its 
reach beyond Amman and conduct raids five days per week throughout 
the country. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) As a result, in just the first four months of 2009, the 
National Library referred 181 copyright cases to the courts, 
compared to 354 cases during the entire year of 2008, and requested 
the courts to close down 25 shops.  Talhouni also mentioned that a 
raid of just one shop during the week of April 19 led to the seizure 
of 31,000 pirated DVDs.  Increasing availability of illicit decoders 
has become another concern, and Talhouni has been working with the 
Telecommunications Regulatory Commission to disrupt illegal signals 
that cafes or other business establishments are using to broadcast 
sporting games or other shows (ref B).  Talhouni noted that pirated 
goods are not being made in Jordan, but rather are coming from Syria 
and the Far East, particularly China; he highlighted the importance 
of fighting IPR violations in the countries that are manufacturing 
such materials. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) An ongoing weak spot within Jordan is relatively lenient 
sentencing, according to Talhouni (ref B).  While he noted that 
USPTO training of judges and prosecutors has been essential for 
improving sentences for IPR crimes, he lamented that the courts do 
not use their authority to close shops that are selling pirated 
goods, which he believes would be one of the most effective 
deterrents.  Additionally, he said repeated IPR crimes do not seem 
to reap harsher sentences and the appeals courts tend to overturn 
decisions.  The Ambassador said he would address these matters with 
the Minister of Justice. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Regarding amendments to the copyright law, Talhouni said 
that the Prime Ministry's Legislative and Opinion Bureau still 
needed to review the proposed changes before it could move to the 
Cabinet and Parliament for approval.  Although Talhouni is not 
responsible for amending the Customs Law, he also confirmed the need 
to provide customs officials with ex officio authority to refer 
cases to the courts in the absence of a formal complaint by a 
rightholder.  The Ambassador responded that we shared his concerns 
and would take up these issues separately with Jordan's political 
leadership. 
 
Visit Amman's Classified Website at: 
http://www.state.gov.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ 
 
BEECROFT