Manufacture and Sale of Counterfeit Goods - Essay Example

Name: Xiao Li Zhu Instructor: Marina Sapozhnikov Course: Online English 3001-03. Date: May 27, 2010 Against Counterfeit Goods Sweatshop labor has been much debated in the recent past, especially with the advent of many companies producing fake goods in the recent past. People who lobby against sweatshop labor, as explained in the article, “The Human Cost of Fakes” by Jan Goodwin, have several reasons to support their side such as infringement of intellectual property rights, disregard for labor laws and rights with respect to child labor, and meager wages paid to sweatshop laborers, illegal employment, related criminal activities and the mental agony and torture endured by the employees. Peter Law, in his article, “A Call for more Sweatshop”and others who favor sweatshop labor argue that it provides a means of employment for the weaker section of the population which helps the lower income population to lead a better livelihood. In addition, such companies provide employment for women, and that would in turn help them to become more independent and self-supportive. While sweatshop labor does provide a means of employment for the people, the mental and physical turmoil endured by the employees is much more than the benefits gained. In addition, the manufacturing of fake goods by itself is illegal as it is a deliberate infringement of the intellectual property rights of companies that produce the original goods. Hence, stricter policies and judicial changes should be introduced to close down companies producing fake goods and help save the lives of millions of women and children who are forced to work under horrendous conditions. The production of fake or counterfeit products is a violation of intellectual property rights and it poses a significant threat to world economy as both businesses as well as the consumers are at a loss. As mentioned by Goodwin, the intellectual property theft has affected the world economy to the tune of nearly $600 billion a year. The number of fake products being seized is increasing at an alarming rate with a recent report from the EU customs showing seizure of nearly 100 million products in 2001. This illegal trade is part of every sector such as the information technology sector, clothing, toy industry and pharmaceuticals to name a few and the global market of counterfeit products have risen from 3 billion a year to nearly 100 times more (Counterfeiting and Organised Crime). The sale of counterfeit products has risen sharply over the past decade. A recent report shows that both industrial and commercial counterfeiting represents about 5 to 7% of trade in the world. With the advent of e-commerce and online purchasing via the internet, the counterfeit industry has found more selling options which are more convenient and less cumbersome. What began as a small scale activity, the counterfeit market at present has grown by leaps and bounds with advancements in technology, communication and transportation facilities along with adequate investors who finance these companies. Nowadays fake goods are produced and sold within the same country which alleviates the problems encountered at the customs and other export related difficulties. Thus modern methods of manufacture and easier selling process have created a huge demand for fake goods. However it is the customer who is finally at a loss as they are being duped to buying products which are actually fake and sold as genuine ones. As noted by Goodwin, China is the leading producer or fake goods due to the increasing unemployment rate. Parents who are not able to afford their children’s education are resorting to such employment and in worst cases are sending their children to work in fake goods producing companies. Recent reports show that nearly 20 of the workforce in such companies is constituted by children. (Counterfeiting and Organised Crime, 2003). Thus apart from the intellectual property theft there is also exploitation of children and the vulnerable section of the population. While the counterfeiting industry provides a means of employment for many, the working conditions afforded are nevertheless hazardous and with very little wages paid to the employees the job is only exploiting the poverty and helplessness of the weaker section of the population. While Peter Law argues that sweatshop wages as low as $3 would help people come out of starvation, the working conditions afforded to the people are at times so unbearable that the money they earn would only be used to buy medicine rather than food. Despite the huge profits made by the industry as the products are often sold at the price of the original, the employees in these companies are subjected to hazardous working conditions and are paid meager salaries. The number of child laborers in these organizations has increased over the past years and they are forced to work day and night all days of the week for very little wages. Jan Goodwin compares these conditions to slave labor as the employees are not provided with holidays or any other benefits which they are legally entitled to get. Sweatshop labor has also become a means for illegal employment as most counterfeiting companies employ illegal immigrants as laborers who would work for small wages and the financial profits arising from such labor are quite large. Most of these laborers are from Asian countries such as China, Pakistan and Bangladesh. They are employed in both the sales and the production of counterfeit products (Counterfeiting and Organised Crime, 2003). And the counterfeiting industry is not picky about the products they manufacture; any product that would fetch profits is produced and sold. There have also been reports of child death due to the potentially harmful conditions to which they are exposed. Thus, the counterfeiting industry is causing varied effects as a large number of consumer products are being faked; in addition, the health of the population, businesses and employment related issues is also affected. And compared to the drug trafficking industry, the companies that produce consumer items such as fashion clothing and accessories have less legal constraints and the risk of suffering severe penalty is also relatively low. Hence the financial benefits from the trafficking of fake products are much higher and with low judicial risks (Counterfeiting and Organised Crime, 2003). In addition to the above, manufacturing of fake goods has become a source of employment for criminal and terrorist organizations. Peter Law argues that lack of employment would lead to increasing terrorist and other criminal activities but reports suggest that many criminal groups are connected with counterfeit goods producing companies and the large profits gained through this business are used for criminal activities. Many experts believe that the counterfeiting industry has become a more organized crime which in turn supports several other criminal networks. Several reports have been published that note the involvement of organized criminal gangs in the production of counterfeit products. Most notably it has been linked with drugs and arms trafficking, terrorism and illegal immigration and employment. All these issues cause serious economic and political problems. Terrorist organizations are increasingly using counterfeit goods to finance their activities. In addition, drugs and arms are also being produced by those involved in manufacturing counterfeit goods. Several arrests and raids have been conducted in several parts of the world in connection with the above and specific gangs that are behind the operation have been identified in Southern Italy, Japan and Hong Kong. There is however a lack of strict penalties imposed on companies that produce such goods and hence many judiciaries across the world are in the process of implementing better legal policies and creating a better awareness about the counterfeit industry (Counterfeiting and Organised Crime, 2003). Hence the situation calls for implementation of stricter policies and measure that should help to curtail and combat the manufacture and sale of counterfeit products across the world. While many activist groups favor sweatshop labor as it provides a means of employment to the weaker section of the population, especially the women population who would become more independent through employment, the trade involves several problems and issues which are infact deterrent to the growth of the country as a whole evne though they might be beneficial to the lower income groups. Those lobying for sweatshop labor must bear in mind the long term consequences of such employment rather than the short term benefits. Hence abolishing sweatshop labor and counterfeit goods production is a wiser option considering its harmful effects on both consumers and the global economy. In conclusion, manufacture and sale of counterfeit goods do not stop with infringement of the intellectual property rights but goes beyond to affects the quality of life, business and economy of a country. While anti-counterfeiting laws are in the books officials lack the courage and motivation to implement them and save the lives of millions of people who are subjected to such terrible working conditions. Thus purchasing of counterfeit goods should be prohibited through better awareness and stricter policies and laws need to be implemented to help combat the situation of growing production of counterfeit goods. Works Cited 1. “Counterfeiting and Organised Crime”. 2003. 18 May 2010 http://www.gacg.org/Content/Upload/Documents/rapport_uk.pdf 2. Goodwin, Jan. “The Human Cost of Fakes.” 9 May 9, 2010 http://www.jangoodwin.com/articles/thehumancostoffakes.pdf 3. Law, Peter. “A Call for More Sweatshop.” 26 Jan. 2005. 9 May 2010 http://www.eye.columbiaspectator.com/2005/01/26/call-more-sweatshop-labor Xiao, You are on the right track; however, your paper requires more work. Here are a few suggestions that I have: 1. Start with your introduction and thesis; clean up the wording and sentence structure in both. 2. After that, work on the body paragraphs and establish a clear connection between each topic sentence and the thesis. Support each topic sentence with different kinds of evidence, and finish the paragraphs by illustrating how your examples prove the point you make in the topic sentence. Also, divide paragraphs that become too lengthy into shorter ones, so that information is presented in manageable chunks. 3. In a separate paragraph, summarize the opposing point of view and respond by either rebutting it or conceding to it. Make sure you use specific vocabulary in the opposition paragraph. 4. Finally, clean up punctuation and sentence structure errors throughout the whole paper. Rephrase parts that are awkward, or not quite clear, and explain your points with more precise words. Also, use the MLA format correctly to document in-text citations and to arrange a Works Cited page. Read More