Protection of traditional knowledge: A perspective on Intellectual Property Law in Indonesia

• Autores: Candra Irawan
• Localización: Journal of world intellectual property, ISSN 1422-2213, Vol. 20, Nº 1-2, 2017, págs. 57-67
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Traditional knowledge (TK) has historical, cultural, scientific and economic value. Its community ownership characteristics differ from law dealing with traditional intellectual property (e.g. the TRIPS Agreement), which is characterized as individualistic, materialistic and exploitative. Such differences leave the TK possessed by developing countries, including Indonesia, unprotected. TK is often exploited by companies in developed countries to obtain an economic benefit and recognition of the knowledge as an intellectual property right (IPR) (in particular, through patents and copyright), without respect for the original community owner or considering it as within the public domain. Indonesia must protect its wealth of TK in two ways, namely: (i) starting with non-legal protection through activities tracking, preserving, promoting, documenting and digitizing TK in a manner that is easily accessible, both nationally and internationally, and establishing cooperation with the intellectual property offices of developed countries so that the documentation and digitization of Indonesian TK can become one of the comparators in examining patent and other intellectual property petitions and (ii) legal protection of such intellectual property through new sui generis regulations (currently being discussed in the draft law on Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions).