Bonum Certa Men Certa

Hundreds of EPO Staff at The Hague (Including Managers) Spontaneously Protested Today, Making Almost Half of All Staff Present

Protests by EPO staff against the EPO itself have grown large enough to become comparable/competitive with antiwar protests (below)

A protest



Summary: Actions against the EPO's union-busting moves (culminating in mass firing of union leaders) quickly multiply and readers are urged to contact their delegates as soon as possible

IN SPITE of the spontaneity of today's EPO protests (just a couple of hours to plan), nearly 2,000 people from Munich protested in support of the fired representatives (details in a previous article). The numbers were even greater when there was time to prepare, e.g. when petitioning anonymously or attending a scheduled protest.



"Contact delegates immediately to make them informed of what just happened."We have lots of EPO-related articles to be published tomorrow. They are all related to firing of staff as this is a huge scandal. It only gets worse when one sees what actually happened behind the scenes. Contact delegates immediately to make them informed of what just happened. This is a huge injustice that even Pierre-Yves Le Borgn' condemned very strongly. To explain this in relatively simple terms, what the EPO just did (or tried to do) is to make it harder/impossible for staff to join the unions! It's classic union-busting action and look which firms the EPO has recruited/contracted to help with this task. The attack on staff unions may be only the beginning. UPC critics should now beware... the surveillance is still in place and was never removed (the pretext was a fishing expedition for sources, not an attack on dissent and self-censorship though Big Brother-esque methods).

Browsing or reading through some comments for anonymous updates, this is the most informative comment we have found so far. The commenter is "feeling so sad with these terrible news. Employees in the Hague heard the news at 11.30 and spontaneously gathered at 12.00. There were a few hundreds of people, including managers."

"To explain this in relatively simple terms, what the EPO just did (or tried to do) is to make it harder/impossible for staff to join the unions!"So there was also an EPO staff protest in The Hague today (we heard of it but didn't have the numbers), not just in Munich. There were probably more (we might write about that later).

Among other comments there are some that allude to WIPO for timely analogies, e.g. this one which says: "Interestingly, this reminded me that WIPO is the other place were a Union representative that exposed bad practices within the organisation was happily dismissed. What the f#*k is going on in these patent organizations? Why do they all seem to think that they are above the law?"

The commenter links to this report from over a year ago. It says: "On 19 September 2014, the World Intellectual Property Agency (WIPO) fired Mr Moncef Kateb, president of the WIPO Staff Association, the accredited trade union of the UN specialized agency’s staff, in retaliation for his defense of staff and continued opposition to alleged misconduct by the WIPO Director General and his administration."

Remember that WIPO's managers also threaten bloggers, not just their own staff. Great resemblance there. Just hours ago, IP Watch, often a critic of WIPO, showed how WIPO tries to expand its cope of power with so-called ‘IP’ in Africa.

But anyway, we digress.

"Battistelli and his supporters," said another comment, "have sacked staff representatives based on mock trials and bogus evidence." Here is the comment in full: "In the past few months this and other blogs have published a huge number of contributions and evidence in respect of the manifest violations of human rights and of the rules of law by Mr Battistelli and his clan. A number of press articles have also appeared with highlights of the arrogance and cynicism of Mr Battistelli and members of his magic circle, and the negligence and apathy of the Administrative Coucil. Enough evidence to trouble and irritate any normal thinking mind. Unperturbed by the mounting criticism, Mr Battistelli and his supporters carried on implementing their programme and now they have sacked staff representatives based on mock trials and bogus evidence. What really angers me is the total indifference of the host countries, in particular Germany. The Germans hide themselves under the smoke screen of the special status of the EPO. How hypocritical! I have now completely lost my trust in their democracy as I'm convinced that for their own sake they would not hesitate to tolerate any misbehaviour. They could gain my respect back only if, in retaliation for the EPO dictatorship, they will refuse to ratify the Unitary Patent convention."

The part about "indifference of the host countries" is quite true and this is why we urge people to Contact delegates immediately. I spoke (and heard back from) the German delegation. They're listening. But if nobody contacts them, then cowardice will lead to inaction and apathy. Somebody wrote this poem:

We've never heard silence quite this loud, as the mist of our thoughts drifts into a cloud.

Once we could fly and now we are lower than high, all we can do is flutter & sigh.

EPO used to set us free but now we can't even get off our feet from feeling BB’s nasty streak.

The IP universe bleeds through the holes of BB’s moon, blood dripping in our bodies, making us swoon.

Our heart feels empty and our throat is stuffed, an inner turmoil that storms us in a huff.

Nothing leads BB and goons into the right path we are damnations, hell's wrath.

Crying and rambling, our brain slowly pours, convoluted thoughts full of depths and closed doors.


"During the last meeting of the Administrative Council," one person wrote, "Battistelli was ordered to leave the staff representatives alone. In his sentence of today he shows the AC his obedience, and his middle finger."

Another person wrote: "Today's news is an utter disgrace, and indeed, as a previous commenter remarked, is Batistelli's two finger salute to the AC and the whole patent community. Being above the law, he can do what he wants."

Well, speak to delegates and ensure this thug is held accountable. He has done enormous damage to the international image and reputation of the EPO, where even the staff protests routinely. This one comment says: "The disciplinary committee did not reccommend dismissal for Ion Brumme because he has five children - one is just a baby - and a loan to pay on his house.

"You behaviour is disgraceful Mr Battistelli."

Another commenter wrote: "Time for the AC to launch an independent investigation against the EPO administration and the EPO president concerning harassment against staff representatives."

"This whole supervisory system is rigged."I was told earlier this month that my complaints had been forwarded to the AC and its Chairman. I have not heard back since then, so I assume Kongstad and his colleagues stick to the conspiracy of silence they've adhered to even when letters were sent to them from Transparency International (before the conflict of interests). This whole supervisory system is rigged. It's no longer functional. It got 'hacked' by Battistelli, who gradually shut down regulation and oversight, then bragged about it.

The EPO is in shambles for many reasons, not just the above. According to this new article, once again an EPO patent (warning: epo.org link) was found to be invalid by a court (one of many such patents). To quote IP Kat: "Concentration isn't that hard - Methotrexate patent Accordingly found invalid [...] Accord, a generics manufacturer, initiated proceedings, seeking revocation of medac’s patent (EP 2046332), which related to the use of methotrexate for subcutaneous administration in the treatment of inflammatory autoimmune diseases, wherein the methotrexate is administered in a pharmaceutically acceptable solvent at a concentration of about 50mg/ml. The patent contained Swiss and second medical use claims."

"Oversight and external/independent investigation are desperately needed."We have a lot more coming regarding the EPO (not just union-busting) and there are several political actions (at numerous levels) going on regarding the alluded abuse against patent applicants, not just patent examiners. Be patient as it may take time for us to safely disclose information about that. The EPO sure looks like a house of cards right now. Oversight and external/independent investigation are desperately needed. It might already be too late.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

An Update About Soylent News, With Jan Rinok "Back in the Saddle"
Burnout or "near burnout" a possibility when having to curate abuse
Rejecting 'Snoop-Phones' and Turning "Old" Phones (or Tablets) Into Freedom-Respecting Appliances
Paul Fernhout (pdfernhout.net) wrote back to Akira Urushibatathis this past weekend
Apple is the Company of Dictators and Worse
Apple is just another greedy corporation in search of sweatshops and even pedophiles (especially the high-profile ones)
Counting Unhatched Eggs Is Not Counting Chickens
Everything here will persist as normal
The "Infinite Bread"
The biblical story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 has software parallels
In Many Cases and in Many Different Ways, Technology Became Less Durable and Less Reliable Over Time
The "modern" things are more complex. And complexity is a foe or reliability and repair-ability.
 
The Register MS Selling Slop for Microsoft (Vapourware, Ponzi Scheme, False Claims)
What will be left of The Register MS if it keeps repeating falsehoods and looking to profit from Ponzi schemes?
analytics.usa.gov Says Less Than 14% of Web Requests (to Government Sites) Come From Vista 11
Vista 11 was released more than 4 years ago!
People Who Attempt to Take Down Correct Information Need a Doctor a Day
“Journalism is printing something that someone does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.” ― George Orwell
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, October 20, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, October 20, 2025
Vista 11 is Sinking While Microsoft is PIPing (Mass Layoffs But Silent Layoffs)
We're witnessing a shift in platform dominance
Richard Stallman is Having a Good Week Already (Stallman Was Right About 'Clown Computing')
That alone is worth bringing up in his talk
When Prominent GNU/Linux Distros Are Run by Spies
What has Microsoft Canonical become?
More Publishers and Companies Nowadays Say "GNU/Linux", Not "Linux"
It's not to see InstallAware saying GNU/Linux this week
Google News is Now Promoting a Parasitic Slopfarm Called "findarticles.com", Where Plagiarism of "Linux" Articles is Rampant
Does Google even care about the slop epidemic? Google itself is a vendor of slop now (and it calls it "Gemini")
Gemini Links 20/10/2025: Pumpkin Carving, "Hey Hi", and Other Buzzwords
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Google News Promoting Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt (FUD)
What is the value of Google News if so many results in it are fake 'articles?
Our Uptime This Year Was Better Than AWS (Also a Lot Cheaper)
We never used "the cloud"
Amazon Web Shenanigans
An ongoing, experimental endeavour
Death of Elias Diem: FSFE mailing list archives hidden
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 20/10/2025: Louvre Museum Reveals Weakness, About 7 Million Protest US Turning Into Oligarchy/Monarchy
Links for the day
They Should Have Listened to Techrights Over a Month Earlier (Xubuntu Site Compromised)
we reported this issue about 40 days earlier and nobody did anything about it
Richard Stallman to Give Another Talk Today in Bavaria (Bavarian Academy of Science)
Tomorrow at 6 PM he speaks in Munich
Barry Kauler Explains That Puppy Linux and EasyOS Exclude Systemd to Keep Things Simple
Barry Kauler's Puppy Linux is in the community's hands. He now focuses on EasyOS and more.
Half a Year After Brian Fagioli Got Kicked Out of BetaNews for Slop He's Still Doing LLM Slop and Slop Images Targeting 'Linux' (Plagiarising Original Works)
If the Web gets polluted or flooded by slopfarms such as these, and Slashdot then sends traffic so these slopfarms (Slashdot probably doesn't do this intentionally), then real writers with real knowledge of GNU/Linux will lose the spark for publishing
Microsoft's LinkedIn is Losing Money, Traffic, and Hope; Now It Wants to Sell Its Users' Lifeblood (and Data)
Let this be a reminder of what social control media really is about
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, October 19, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, October 19, 2025
Campaign of FUD Against Framework Laptops and GNU/Linux (Using Microsoft's Attack on Linux, 'Secure Boot')
Ritual Defamation Cult has turned its attention over to Framework
Microsoft Lunduke: Freedom of Speech Means Spreading What I Have to Say and Banning People I Disagree With
4Chan is one he aims for and he is siccing 4Chan trolls at people he doesn't like
Liberation From 'The Feed'
They rank things based on the editor's choice/ideology (he or she knows the sponsors, hence the masters)
Microsoft's Killing of Vista 10 Seems to Have Resulted in More Articles About GNU/Linux (But Also FUD)
We not only saw a rise in traffic, we also saw a remarkable rise in the number of articles
Today (a Day Before Richard Stallman Talk at TUM) There's a Patent Propaganda Event at TUM
Perhaps an opportunity for Dr. Stallman to rebut this "invention to patent" nonsense/fantasy (conflating monopolies with innovation)
OpenSource or "Open Source" as a Brand is Dying, Let's Get Back to Talking About Software Freedom
Those of us who actually want to reform the industry and put users in control of their systems/devices will recognise that "Open Source" was selling a lie or got-co-opted by liars
19 Years in Numbers: Techrights' Anniversary Countdown and Retrospective
In 2019 we began improving our workflows and, accordingly/predictably, we became a lot more productive
Slop Turns People Off (LLMs Lack Intelligence, They're Just Plagiarism Powerhouses That Fail to Deliver Any Real, Measurable Value)
"More" (or "MOAR") isn't always better
IBM Red Hat Has Re-calibrated or Adjusted to Bubble Economics, False Promises, and Slop/Plagiarism
This won't end well
Fake Numbers, Fake Claims, Fake Economy, and Media Grifters That Prop Up Fraud
Grifters like The Register MS won't be looked upon kindly after the bubble implodes
For Some, the GNU Web Site is Not Accessible This Week
They seem to have gone into some kind of lock-down mode
Richard Stallman Back at the "Rudolf-Diesel" Hörsal "MW 2001" in About 40 Hours
He spoke there before; there's a very high seating capacity there
Symptoms of Upcoming Microsoft Layoffs in XBox
A crashing franchise
Psychiatrist confession: Germanwings crash & Debian toxic culture recognized before suicides
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Gemini Links 19/10/2025: Scentjacking 101, Slop Hype Boosters, and Steam Next Fest
Links for the day
Slopwatch: The Serial Slopper, LinuxSecurity, and Google News
Let's hope slopfarms die as soon as possible
Links 19/10/2025: Cambodia Scam Centres, Slop Hurting Wikipedia Traffic
Links for the day
As Economies Crumble Free as in Beer Will Matter, Not Just Free as in Freedom/Libre (Libertad)
French regions choosing to embrace Software Freedom
25 Years Ago, an Explanation of How Reducing Free Software to 'Apps' Would Interfere With Freedom Goals
there's nothing unreasonable about it
A List of 63 Known Gemini Clients (Software to Browse Geminispace Content With Gemini Protocol)
Not counting browser plugins for Web browsers
Gemini Links 19/10/2025: "Firma Odin Is Transforming" and Bot Attacks While "AFK"
Links for the day
US Government: 6.1% of Site Visitors Use GNU/Linux
GNU/Linux has a considerable share and it is growing
LLM Slop Could Not Rise to Prominence Without Media Complicity and Artificial Hype
Inane garbage disguised as "journalism"
Why the FSF No Longer Recommends Debian, as Explained by Richard Stallman This Month
some weeks ago
All the Latest Half Dozen Articles by Mehedi Hasan (UbuntuPIT) Only Admit at the End That He's Using LLM Slop
Disclosure is OK, but the practice of using slop is not
The 'Modern' Web of Fake Security and Easy Censorship of Whole Domains
Each year it gets worse
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, October 18, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, October 18, 2025