ABSTRACT
On 15 December 1995 ASEAN member countries) adopted a Framework Agreement on Intellectual Property Co-operation (Framework Agreement Z, 1996 35 ILM 1072). Emulating the European model, the Framework Agreement envisages the establishment of an ASEAN patents and trademarks system, including ASEAN Patent and Trademarks Office (Framework Agreement Z, Art 1.4 and 1.5). Intellectual property cooperation is envisaged for the fields of 'copyright and related rights, patents, trademarks, industrial designs, geographical indications, undisclosed information, and layout designs of integrated circuits (Framework Agreement Z, Art 3.1). The Framework Agreement recited the obligations of Member States to implement intra-ASEAN intellectual property arrangements in line with their international intellectual property obligations, in particular, their obligations under the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (Blakeney, 1996). Among the co-operative measures to enhance the enforcement of intellectual property rights, the Framework Agreement proposes co-operation in cross-border protection and the networking of ASEAN judicial authorities and enforcement agencies (Framework Agreement Z, Art. 3.3.1). Additionally, the Framework Agreement proposes the networking of training facilities and the exchange of personnel (Framework Agreement Z, Art. 3.3.4). Prior to the 1995 Bangkok Summit, ASEAN had hesitated to involve itself in intellectual property matters, taking the view that intellectual property rights tended toward the perpetuation of trade imbalances between developed and developing countries (Sirat, 1997).
