Why and How to Make an International Crime of Medicine Counterfeiting
Journal of International Criminal Justice, pp. 1-30, 2011
30 Pages Posted: 5 Aug 2010 Last revised: 24 Jun 2013
Date Written: 2011
Abstract
Although counterfeit medicines are a global problem, which sicken or kill at least thousands of people a year, currently international law does not even attempt to criminalize their manufacture or trade as it does currency (i.e. money) counterfeiting - a serious and inexplicable omission. In this paper, we summarize the current medical and public health evidence that counterfeit medicines are a serious danger to human well-being, and we review legal doctrines from treaties on other subjects and from the jurisprudence on crimes against humanity to argue that a treaty to criminalize acts associated with counterfeit medicines is both timely and possible. We argue that such a treaty should be negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization, and present a practical review of how this could be achieved.
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