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HONG KONG, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Over 400 government officials and specialists from 28 countries and regions on Tuesday gathered in Hong Kong for a three-day meeting, which aims to enhance international cooperation in the fight against organized crimes damaging intellectual property (IP) rights.
The conference was co-hosted by INTERPOL and Hong Kong Customs in partnership with an independent product safety certification organization.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Hong Kong's Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Gregory So said that cooperation among jurisdictions and timely intelligence exchange are pivotal to the fight against transnational organized IP crime.
"To stay ahead of such a challenge, we need to help each other to prevent IP criminals from arbitraging between regions. More precisely, we need cross-sector cooperation among law enforcement agencies, IP crime affected industries, rights holders and relevant stakeholders to share efforts, intelligence and resources to counter transnational organized IP crimes effectively," said So.
On the same occasion, INTERPOL President Khoo Boon Hui said it's become a key concern that organized criminal groups are getting increasingly involved in cross-border IP right violation, adding that for the 188 members of the INTERPOL, 145 are affected by such crimes.
He called on closer cooperation between police and customs in the fight against such crimes.
He noted that the model has already proved successful in some South American countries.
The annual meeting, first held in Canada in 2007, has been considered a significant platform for INTERPOL to promote good practices in curbing intellectual property rights-related crimes.
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