DUBAI, May 2: The United States has placed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and five other members of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states in the watch list under the ``Special 301 provision,'' local media here reported today.

Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are the other GCC countries placed under the list for alleged violations of intellectual property rights, including pharmaceutical patents, it has been reported.

A total of 31 countries, including India, have been placed under the list maintained by the US as a means of monitoring implementation of intellectual property rights and promoting access to related US products.

The move came as a surprise to many observers here, as the UAE despite its slim bureaucracy has made ``a determined and visible effort'' in the past two years to wipe out piracy in software and other purported violations of patent rights. The UAE has been kept on the unilateral watch list since 1991 largely because the US believes ``there are deficiencies in the UAE patent laws which exempt medicine and pharmaceutical compounds from protection and contains onerous compulsory licensing provisions'', the report said.

``Concern remains about reports of unauthorised production of pharmaceutical products,'' US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky said in Washington. The charges are vehemently denied by the UAE.

The USTR admitted that piracy of motion pictures and sound recordings has been largely eliminated in the UAE but claimed ``efforts have not been sufficient enough to significantly reduce the level of illegal activity,'' according to the report.

The UAE regulations on import and manufacture of medicines and drugs at present stipulate among other things that the products be certified in Europe, a condition that has kept bulk of the much cheaper Indian exports out of the UAE market. If the licensing provisions are relaxed it may help Indian drug exports.

Qatar is placed on the `special mentions' list which has been changed this year to `other observation' category to take note of developments being made on the copyright front.

Bahrain, on the list since 1995, was urged by the US to bring its copyright regime in line with its obligations under the Berne convention and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and to end piracy of copyrighted works of all types.

Kuwait came on the special mentions list in 1995 and was elevated to the watch list last year. The USTR said unauthorised duplication of software continues to be a major problem in Kuwait.

Pharmaceutical patents are not protected under the existing law which fails to meet international standards in numerous other regards as well, the USTR charged.

Oman, which was similarly placed like Kuwait, was taken to task for slow progress in implementing the IPR regime. ``Legal protection for pharmaceutical patents is absent, copyright and trademark procedure are yet to conform to world standards,'' it said.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.