VZCZCXRO0392
RR RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHRB #0213 0701424
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 101424Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8242
INFO RUEHCL/AMCONSUL CASABLANCA 3946
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0398
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS 4710
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0602
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 2311
RUEHMK/AMEMBASSY MANAMA 1031
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS 9548
UNCLAS RABAT 000213
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG AND EEB/TPP/IPE
COMMERCE FOR USPTO CINDY HENDERSON AND KARIN FERRITER
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON KIPR MO
SUBJECT: MOROCCO SAYS YES TO REGIONAL IP CONFERENCE
REF: 02/28/08 - HENDERSON-KAAILAU E-MAIL
1. (U) The Director of the Moroccan Copyright Office, Abdallah
Ouadghiri, enthusiastically agreed to host and coordinate a
three-day regional intellectual property rights (IPR) conference in
Rabat, Morocco, June 10-12, 2008. Ouadghiri proposes a conference
of 60-80 total participants that would focus on copyright
enforcement, with national presentations and group workshops
supplementing USPTO training material.
2. (SBU) On March 6, Econoff met with Ouadghiri to discuss the
proposed IPR conference outlined in reference e-mail. Ouadghiri
embraced the idea and pledged to coordinate Moroccan participation
among the various Moroccan stakeholders: Ministry of Communication,
Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Interior, the Moroccan Office for
Industrial and Commercial Property (L'Office Marocain de la
Propriete Industrielle et Commerciale, OMPIC), and the Moroccan
Copyright Office (Bureau Marocain du Droit D'Auteur, BMDA). In
addition, Ouadghiri suggested opening the conference to his
counterparts from Algeria, Tunisia, Jordan, UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt.
In discussing international participation, Ouadghiri quipped that
he was positive he was not the only IPR director in the Middle East
struggling to implement and enforce IP responsibilities, "How are
Jordan and Bahrain doing it?"
3. (SBU) Ouadghiri asked that the conference focus on copyright
issues to meet the needs of his organization (BMDA). Although he
pledged to coordinate OMPIC (trademark) participation in the
conference, Ouadghiri made an impassioned plea for copyright
specific training for his staff. He pointed out that his Bureau has
no English speakers, which has prevented him from sending anyone to
USPTO sponsored training at the Global Intellectual Property Academy
(GIPA). He remarked that OMPIC, on the other hand, has been able to
take advantage of several trademark related courses.
4. (SBU) Ouadghiri proposed June 10-12, 2008 as the most convenient
dates for the conference and suggested it be held at the Tour Hassan
Hotel in Rabat. He said he was confident he could obtain access to
the main conference room for no cost in exchange for conference
participants staying there, and that simultaneous translation
English-Arabic was the most preferred. Note: The Tour Hassan is one
of Rabat's best known hotels, has a long history of cooperation with
Post, and charges within U.S. government per diem. Based on current
exchange rates, we can expect simultaneous translation to cost
approximately USD 1450 per day. End Note.
5. (U) Ouadghiri proposes a conference with three main activities:
USPTO presentations of copyright related course material, national
IP presentations by the participating nations, and workshops to
discuss enforcement issues of common (regional) relevance. He
pledged to obtain approximately 60 participants from the various
Moroccan stakeholders, the majority coming from BMDA. Including 2
participants from the other six countries, the conference would
total 70-75 participants.
RILEY
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED