ENFORCEMENT

Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement
SECTION 1
most vulnerable individuals in society that find their
way to these positions on the ‘sweatshop’ floor, where
they are not granted the same form of protection
available to the legitimate employment market. 121 With
a workforce comprised of individuals with little to no
means—including migrants who have been smuggled
into a country or immigrant workers who have had their
identity papers confiscated—these are often ‘deadend’
positions from which it is difficult to free oneself.
“I remember walking into an assembly plant in
Thailand a couple of years ago and seeing six
or seven little children, all under 10 years old,
sitting on the floor assembling counterfeit leather
handbags. The owners had broken the children's
legs and tied the lower leg to the thigh so the
bones wouldn't mend. [They] did it because the
children said they wanted to go outside and play.”
Source: Dana Thomas, Harper's Bazaar, "The Fight Against Fakes,"
exerpt from "Delux: How Luxury Lost its Luster."
Labor and human rights violations extend beyond the
point of manufacture to the time of sale, where individuals
are exploited by human traffickers and illicit traders. For
example, illegal immigrants—often from Africa or Asia—
are reported to have been smuggled into countries and
coerced by their facilitators to engage in street sales of
counterfeits. 122 Although street sales operations may not
appear to be under forced circumstances, reports confirm
that many of these street sales and unlicensed markets
are often controlled by organized crime groups and other
illicit actors. 123
These types of exploitative acts and violations are not
confined to foreign countries, as reports demonstrate
that individuals in the United States have engaged in
human trafficking and forced labor in connection with
the distribution and sale of counterfeit and pirated
goods. 124 As the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District
of Texas noted in connection with one criminal case that
was prosecuted to conviction: “Driven by greed, these
defendants mistreated and abused the victims of human
trafficking after enticing them to come…with promises of
employment and a better life. Forced to sell counterfeit
goods to repay their smuggling fees and earn their
freedom, bootleg CDs and DVDs became the shackles of
the victims of this modern day slavery.” 125
5. Poses Threats to Domestic and International
Security.
In addition to the various risks and consequences flowing
from the unlawful exploitation of intellectual property
rights discussed above, these same illicit activities
may also give rise to far-reaching and serious threats
to domestic and international security. Although these
threats may be closely linked to, and converge with, one
or more of the threats summarized above, the risks to
national security interests must be better understood.
The U.S. is a key player in the global financial and
trade networks and a leader in producing valuable
intellectual property. Therefore, it continues to remain a
prime target for counterfeiting and piracy networks. As
a target, the United States is both seen as a main source
of critical technology, life-saving medicines, and other
innovative and creative works to be stolen or otherwise
misappropriated, as well as an attractive receiver or
destination of incoming illicit goods due to market size.
Put simply, the dual nature of the threat—incoming illicit
goods and outgoing misappropriated IP—gives rise to
unique national security concerns.
“Illicit networks seek to navigate, infiltrate, and/
or dominate global supply chains to further
their activities and enhance their power. They
actually thrive in open societies with the free
flow of goods, people, and capital. Just like licit
businesses, illicit networks are matching the supply
and demand for goods, services, capital, and
information for their clients. Illicit actors utilize
and…seek to control or co-opt supply chains
around the world[.]”
This section highlights two particularly acute threats
in which illicit IPR activities may also impact security
concerns: namely, when illicit goods infiltrate critical
supply chains (such as military and civilian computer
network systems) and when intellectual propertybased
crimes are used to finance and support criminal
syndicates around the world.
Source: Convergence: Illicit Networks and National
Security in the Age of Globalization (2013).
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