Why and How to Make a Treaty Crime of Medicine Counterfeiting: A Reply to Attaran, Bate and Kendall

Abstract:     
In response to an article recently published in this Journal by Amir Attaran, Roger Bate and Megan Kendall regarding counterfeiting medicine, the authors dispute Attaran, Bate and Kendall’s understanding of the problem on several points. These points include the choice of a forum such as the WHO for treaty negotiations and the neglect of the pre-existing UN criminal justice framework. The authors conclude that the issue raised by Attaran, Bate and Kendall concerns three sometimes conflicting constituencies — health, customs and criminal justice. Therefore, the authors claim, the problem is better contextualized and handled in a ‘forum familiar’ to criminal law.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 5

Accepted Paper Series