Author: André Franco Montoro Filho

Source: Veja São Paulo - MAGAZINE - 16/09/2009

I would like to compliment VEJA SÃO PAULO for the article “She does not accept imitations” (September 9), which shows a perverse face of piracy: that of society's tolerance. People not only consume these products, but they also see the crime of adulteration and tax evasion as a minor crime, without realizing its harmful impact on the population. In some sectors, illegal trade accounts for a third of the market, and its insides threaten entire segments of the formal economy. There was a change in the profile of those involved in counterfeiting - from simple street vendors, they became members of large organized crime networks. Street vendors are the weakest link in this scheme set up by mafias that support a parallel business structure. The Brazilian government, with the collaboration of the National Council for Combating Piracy and Intellectual Property Offenses (CNCP), linked to the Ministry of Justice, has been combating the entry of illegal products into Brazil through repression actions led by the Federal Police and by the Federal Highway Police. However, inspection alone is not enough. The population must say no to illegal trade. Only with the engagement of society will it be possible to change the picture portrayed by the report.

André Franco Montoro Filho

Executive President of the Brazilian Institute for Competition Ethics and member of the National Council to Combat Piracy and Intellectual Property Offenses