The 2014 International Law Enforcement Intellectual Property (IP) Crime
Conference is taking place in Hanoi from September 23-25 to seek closer
cooperation in the field.
Organised by the Ministry
of Public Security of Vietnam, the International Criminal Police
Organisation (Interpol), and the Underwriters Laboratories (UL), the
three-day event provides an opportunity for participants to share their
experiences in combatting IP crime, thus contributing to global peace,
stability and development.
Speaking at the opening
ceremony on September 23, Deputy Minister Senior Lieutenant General Le
Quy Vuong explained that trans-national IP crime not only harms
enterprises but also can directly impact on consumers’ health and
rights.
Therefore, the prevention of IP crime
required close and effective cooperation between law enforcement
agencies as well as the proactive involvement of businesses and
customers, not just at the national level, but at the regional and
global level, he said.
In Vietnam, the idea of IP
protection, mainly copyrights, was featured in the country’s first
Constitution in 1946. The National Assembly adopted the Law on
Intellectual Property in 2005, which came into force on July 1, 2006.
Over the past few years, the country has joined and signed a number of
international treaties on copyrights and other IP rights, the official
noted.
Head of the ministry’s Department of
Anti-Crime Police Lieutenant General Phan Van Vinh confirmed that the
Vietnamese police would closely work with Interpol and domestic and
foreign partners to fight international IP crime.
Deputy Minister Le Quy Vuong met with former President of Interpol and
Singapore ’s Deputy Secretary of Home Affairs Khoo Boon Hui on the
sidelines of the conference.
He called on the
Singaporean department to assist Vietnam in training personnel and
share its experience in crime prevention.
In a
meeting with UL President Keith Wiliams, Deputy Minister Le Quy Vuong
said the intellectual property issue is relatively new to Vietnam, and
that the country hopes to receive advice and assistance from the UL to
ensure product safety and protect consumers’ health.-VNA