42 different groups and noted experts, including Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, NZ Council of Trade Unions, the New Zealand Public Service Association, Greenpeace Aotearoa and M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res New Zealand have signed a letter calling on Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to support a “people\u2019s vaccine” by supporting a waiver to WTO intellectual property rules for Covid-19 vaccines.<\/p>\n\n
“The present WTO rules on intellectual property will allow those who control the Covid vaccines\u2019 patents to control the global supply of vaccine doses. On our current path it will be 2024 before many of the world\u2019s poorest communities get access to vaccines,” said Ed Miller, spokesperson for It\u2019s Our Future. “This is utterly unacceptable.”<\/p>\n\n
“The perverse vaccine inequality created by these rules will result in millions of unnecessary deaths and exacerbate the global Covid-19 economic crisis, which has destroyed more than 100 million jobs and wiped US $3.7 trillion off global incomes in 2020 alone.”<\/p>\n\n
“New Zealand has already committed to supporting the COVAX mechanism for equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines. Supporting the WTO waiver for a people\u2019s vaccine will increase the global supply of vaccine doses, making COVAX a faster and more effective system overall.”<\/p>\n\n
The letter ends noting the Prime Minister\u2019s commitment that 2021 is to be the “year of the vaccine”:”<\/p>\n\n
“If 2021 is going to become the “year of the vaccine” then the international community must take serious action. The team of five million needs to join the team of seven billion. As the outgoing Chair of the WTO General Council, for Aotearoa New Zealand\u2019s leadership to support this temporary relaxation of patent rules relating to COVID could prove crucial to safeguarding global public health.”<\/p>\n\n
Open letter to the Prime Minister calling for a People\u2019s Vaccine<\/p>\n\n
29 January 2021<\/p>\n\n
Dear Prime Minister Ardern and Ministers Mahuta and O\u2019Connor<\/p>\n\n
The world has watched Aotearoa New Zealand\u2019s remarkable response to COVID-19. Our leaders struck a different path from many other countries, one informed by experts, and our team of five million pulled together to keep all New Zealanders safe. As the world continues watching, we can demonstrate our kindness and solidarity by supporting a People\u2019s Vaccine, so we can all get through this pandemic together.<\/p>\n\n
We, the undersigned 42 organisations and noted experts, request that Aotearoa New Zealand support a People\u2019s Vaccine and back India and South Africa\u2019s proposal for a temporary relaxation of intellectual property rules from certain provisions of the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Aspect of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for the prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n
The proposed waiver would last until widespread vaccination has occurred and the majority of the world is immune, and would be reviewed annually. If implemented, it will result in significantly expanded production of COVID-19 vaccines, lowering prices and widening availability, particularly for low-income developing countries. The market monopolies conferred under the WTO patent protection regime and the restrictive pricing structures set by the pharmaceutical industry are among the largest barriers for low income developing countries to access essential medicines.<\/p>\n\n
As it currently stands, experts are projecting that it will take until 2024 for low-income developing countries to be able to fully vaccinate their populations against COVID-19. On 18 January World Health Organisation Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that while 39 million doses had been administered in rich countries, a mere 25 doses had been administered in low income countries. Existing flexibilities under the TRIPS agreement are inadequate, relying on a cumbersome compulsory licensing mechanism and leaving the door open to delays via dispute resolution. Companies exercising their rights to contest how the flexibilities are used endangers lives and livelihoods, slowing the global economic recovery and impacting both the developed and developing world.<\/p>\n\n
Without further action we will fall far short of the Prime Minister’s call for “equal global access to a COVID-19 vaccine”. In July 2020, you, Prime Minister Ardern co-authored an op-ed in The Washington Post, with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and several other world leaders, saying “where you live should not determine whether you live”. Supporting South Africa and India\u2019s proposal at the WTO is about honouring that commitment. To date however, Aotearoa New Zealand has not taken a firm public position when this matter has been discussed at the WTO and said it needs more information. We consider this is not a matter on which Aotearoa New Zealand can, with integrity, sit on the fence.<\/p>\n\n
We have seen throughout 2020 how the pandemic has acted as a handbrake on human development and economic growth, sending economies into the severest depression in more than half a century, and leading to a sharp global increase in unemployment, not to mention the pandemic\u2019s severe health impacts that have already claimed more than two million lives globally. Backing the relaxation of rules in the face of this emergency is also consistent with a rules-based international order: the waiver is being pursued through the WTO, via the right process, for a temporary period and with annual monitoring.<\/p>\n\n
If 2021 is going to become the “year of the vaccine” then the international community must take serious action. The team of five million needs to join the team of seven billion. As the outgoing Chair of the WTO General Council, for Aotearoa New Zealand\u2019s leadership to support this temporary relaxation of patent rules relating to COVID could prove crucial to safeguarding global public health.<\/p>\n\n
Without this action 2021 may instead become referred to as the first year of vaccine apartheid, where poor countries have to wait their turn as their people die and economies collapse, and rich countries use their wealth to jump the queue. We call on you to uphold Aotearoa New Zealand\u2019s reputation as a good global citizen by championing a People\u2019s Vaccine.<\/p>\n\n
In unity,<\/p>\n\n
Action Station<\/p>\n\n
Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand<\/p>\n\n
Aotearoa Legal Workers Union (ALWU)<\/p>\n\n
Aotearoa Tech Union (ATU)<\/p>\n\n
Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS)<\/p>\n\n
Auckland Action Against Poverty (AAAP)<\/p>\n\n
Auckland Feminist Action<\/p>\n\n
Auckland Peace Action<\/p>\n\n
Auckland Philippine Solidarity (APS)<\/p>\n\n
Auckland Unitarian Church<\/p>\n\n
Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa (CAFCA)<\/p>\n\n
Child Fund<\/p>\n\n
Christian World Service<\/p>\n\n
Dairy Workers Union (DWU)<\/p>\n\n
Economic and Social Research Aotearoa (ESRA)<\/p>\n\n
E T\u00c5\u00ab Union<\/p>\n\n
FIRST Union<\/p>\n\n
Generation Zero<\/p>\n\n
Greenpeace Aotearoa<\/p>\n\n
Health Sector Workers Network of Aotearoa New Zealand<\/p>\n\n
Hospo Workers Union<\/p>\n\n
Indian Workers\u2019 Association<\/p>\n\n
It\u2019s Our Future<\/p>\n\n
Just Speak<\/p>\n\n
Professor Jane Kelsey, University of Auckland<\/p>\n\n
Cardinal John Dew, Archbishop of Wellington<\/p>\n\n
M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res New Zealand<\/p>\n\n
Migrante Aotearoa<\/p>\n\n
National Council of Women New Zealand<\/p>\n\n
New Zealand Alternative<\/p>\n\n
NZ Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi (NZCTU)<\/p>\n\n
New Zealand Education Initiative (NZEI)<\/p>\n\n
NZ Public Service Association (PSA)<\/p>\n\n
Oxfam NZ<\/p>\n\n
People Against Prisons Aotearoa (PAPA)<\/p>\n\n
Dr. Siouxsie Wiles<\/p>\n\n
Tearfund<\/p>\n\n
Union Network of Migrants (UNEMIG)<\/p>\n\n
UnionAID<\/p>\n\n
Unite Union<\/p>\n\n
Uyghur Solidarity Aotearoa NZ<\/p>\n\n
World Vision<\/p>\n\t\t\t Call on the NZ Govt to support the proposed temporary relaxation of WTO intellectual property rules on Covid-19 vaccines. <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t 42 different groups and noted experts, including Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, NZ Council of Trade Unions, the New Zealand Public Service Association, Greenpeace Aotearoa and M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res New…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":15424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_planet4_optimize_post_is_variant":false,"_planet4_optimize_experiment_name":"","_planet4_optimize_variant_name":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"42 groups and respected experts call on PM to back a Peoples' Vaccine,","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"not set","p4_local_project":"not set","p4_basket_name":"not set","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[46],"p4-page-type":[6],"class_list":["post-15423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greenpeace","tag-coronavirus","p4-page-type-story"],"yoast_head":"\n