By PrathanaRebecca Knapp
Asia and Southeast Asia has longbeen a hub for both the production and consumption of various counterfeitproducts. Fake luxury goods for sale in Patpong and photocopies of LonelyPlanet in Siem Reap might hurt only the IP rights (IPR) owner’s bottom-line,but other counterfeit products actually harm consummers.
Counterfeiters will make and sellanything for which there is a demand. Undiscriminating and lower-incomeconsumers are ready buyers of substandard, unlicensed goods. The unfortunatetruth is that many of the poor become consumers of harmful counterfeit goods unknowingly– usually due to lack of knowledge and,in some cases, the unavailability of properly manufactured products.
A case in point is that ofanti-malarial drugs in rural Cambodia. Fuelled by the cost of branded medicinesand simply by the lack of access to genuine medicines (due to the lack ofinfrastructure), the trade in counterfeit/substandard/falsified medicines hasgrown in Cambodia.
Many first-line-of-defenseanti-malarial drugs are widely counterfeit. Popularly counterfeited areArtesunate, Quinine, Chloroquine and Mefloquine. Counterfeits usually containlittle or no effective ingredients, thereby leading to complications and secondaryillnesses. Most significantly, the use of counterfeit anti-malarial medicines in Cambodia hasled to the evolution of drug-resistant strains of malaria. The earliest strainof drug-resistant malaria was identified in Cambodia in 1970. As use ofcounterfeit medicines become more prevalent, increasing numbers of pathogensevolve into drug-resistant strains.
It is impossible to determine the current number ofannual fatalities caused by harmful counterfeit products. What is certain isthat counterfeit products do cause harm. In 1999, 30 Cambodians died aftertaking counterfeit anti-malarials prepared with sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine butsold as Artesunate. Other common harmful counterfeit drugs are those used totreat HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.
It is obvious that there are potential risksassociated with the use of pharmaceuticals. Less obvious is the exponential increaseof risks when counterfeitpharmaceuticals are used. Most surprising, however, is that counterfeit versionsof seemingly benign consumables can also cause grave injury.
Counterfeit versions of beauty products, foods anddrinks, and cigarettes can also be lethal. In March 2010, a 23-year-oldCambodian woman died after using a skin-whitening cream that contained highlevels of mercury.
Counterfeiters trade on the rightful IPR owners’reputation and consumers’ lack of money and awareness. Production standards,quality control, and actual ingredients are irrelevant to these makers ofharmful goods. The best defense for all consumers anywhere is to buy trustedbrands, from reputable businesses. IPR owners can best defend against thedisrepute caused by harmful counterfeit products by protecting their IPRs andworking with local authorities to develop the necessary safeguards.
PrathanaRebecca Knapp