It was Monday afternoon and Jiraporn Limpananont was enjoying every minute of it as she and other activists packed a Bangkok hotel room to discuss the aftermath of their campaign work against a trade conference of the tobacco industry.
A good thing about my life after retirement is that now I have free time to work during the day," said the 62-year-old former lecturer on pharmacy at Chulalongkorn University.
During her academic years, she sacrificed her evenings and weekends to pursue her other passion - campaigning for consumer rights.
"I didn't want to be an academic or researcher who stands aloof from the people,"she said.
"It would be such a waste if I was to produce several research papers, without also using them to drive for social changes," she said.
Her realisation about the importance of advocating for consumers started about three decades ago when she was part of the Drug Study Group, a group of lecturers and college students who worked in rural areas to protect people against misleading advertisements and other forms of exploitation by drug companies.
In the late 1980s, the drug industry pushed the United States government to pressure Thailand into amending its Drug Patent Act 1979.
It wanted the period of patent protection for essential drugs extended from 15 years to 20 years. "At the time, I didn't understand the technical aspects of this issue, so I started to research and study it," she said.
Since then, she has turned her research on intellectual property rights and drug patents into a campaign tool against the drug industry, to improve and protect access to drugs by consumers.
The legal amendment made some drugs, especially those taken by people living with HIV/Aids, more expensive because it prohibited local production, she said.
The US effort was successful in 1992 but Ms Jiraporn has never wavered in her determination to stand up for consumers.
She and the civil group celebrated a groundbreaking victory in 2007 when the coup-appointed government decided to use compulsory licensing to overrule patents on four drugs, for treating cancer, heart disease and Aids. Ms Jiraporn is now chairwoman of the Foundation for Consumers, a non-profit organisation.
"I would not do other types of campaigning such as lobbying politicians for policy change because I know that they wouldn't spend more than 15 minutes listening to me," she said.
"They wouldn't allow me to go into detail about issues. So I believe my other colleagues can do this better than me," she added.
Ms Jiraporn was among activists and academics who protested at the international tobacco industry conference in Bangkok two weeks ago.
"We were successful to a certain extent.
"Our pressure resulted in them failing to fullfil their sales targets. They were forced to reduce their trade booths," she said.
An advertiser who organised the tobacco exhibition was also fined 20,000 baht for allowing banners carrying images of cigarette brands and logos at the event.
A 1992 law prohibits displays of brands of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Health Ministry staff spotted the violation on an inspection of the exhibition.
The unnamed company pleaded guilty in court.
Ms Jiraporn said industries take advantage of consumers by failing to provide them with important information.
She keeps an eye on the drugs, telecom and tobacco industries, because they are powerful and influential.
"Products offered by these industries usually involve technologies that laymen find hard to understand, which paves ways for exploitation by the companies," she said.
Ms Jiraporn is also chairwoman of the Southeast Asian Consumer Council.
"It's important to work with consumer networks and academics in other countries to share lessons learned," she said.
"This will help make our campaign stronger at the regional level as industries become more multi-national."
But consumers must also learn to stand up for their rights, she said.
Jiraporn Limpananont vows to continue her campaign to protect consumer rights after her retirement as a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University’s faculty of pharmacy. CHANAT KATANYU
"Thais tend to be compromising. As consumers, we may shrink from confronting businesses, even retail outlets, when we find themselves being ripped off," she said.
The Foundation for Consumers is planning changes as it needs to gain strength in specific technical areas which could help protect consumers, she added.
A single woman, she has no plan to retire from activism.
"I enjoy working more than ever before," she said.
"I may stop working once I find someone who can replace me."
Contact Buyer Beware: consumers@bangkokpost.co.th
Source:bangkokpost.com
No comments:
Post a Comment