EPO Martial Law?

Summary: A look at some of the latest moves at the European Patent Office (EPO), following Battistelli's successful coup d’état which brought the EPO into a perpetual state of emergency that perpetuates Battistelli's totalitarian powers

THE EPO is in a state of deepening crisis and the other day we mentioned Haar as the likely location for the new site of the Boards of Appeal, following the exile/purge. Shortly thereafter the staff of the Boards of Appeal received the following confirmatory message:

To all members of DG3

Following a decision taken by the Administrative Council in June, the President has instructed PD44 to implement the relocation of the Board of Appeals.

PD44 has visited eleven locations in order to find a building that would best suit the requirements of staff and business partners of the BoA. The principles for the search were:

€· Modern building with highly professional accommodation standards €· In the area of the European School €· Very good access to public transport €· Short distance to the city centre and Munich airport

Having considered the above factors, the relocation will take place to Richard-Reitzner-Allee 8 in Haar in the South-East of Munich.

"It is no longer a rumour," one person told us, as "DG3 was sent an email on Friday." Another person wrote: "It is no longer simply a rumour that the Boards of Appeal will be sent to Haar. A note was sent to all DG3 staff yesterday late afternoon, informing them that the Boards will move to the office building at Richard-Reitzner-Allee 8 in Haar. The rent contract will be signed after the Budget and Finance Committee approves the plan in October. The goal is to start the move in July 2017. It should be stressed that neither the Boards nor the stakeholders were consulted or even informed beforehand, just like no meaningful consultation took place on any other part of the reform proposal that was submitted to the Administrative Council. Being in DG3 myself, I can say that the current atmosphere is not very positive."

Around the same time as the Munich shootings (which no doubt Battistelli will exploit to the fullest tomorrow) somebody responded with: "I wonder if any attention has been paid to the security aspects of the proposed new site ..."

Quite a few people have mentioned this to us. Another asked, "did you hear the latest about Haar?"

"The building reserved for the BoA is supposed to be in Vaterstetten, which is near Haar (just a bit farther)," told us another person. "If they are really going to move there I would regard it as a total waste of EPO money. A sign of further erdoganization of what was once a respectable European organization fallen prey today to the megalomaniac ambitions of a ruthless president."

That note about "erdoganization" of the EPO is timely as we have made this kind of comparison for about a year now.

"Interesting article about ErdoÄŸan," one reader told us about this one from the time of the coup. "Same problem with Battistelli..."

To quote: "You’d be wrong. Instead, the order came down from Erdogan’s thousand room palace that one Binali Yildirim — and only Yildarim — would replace Davutoglu as leader of the AKP and as Turkey’s new prime minister. Yildirim has been part of Erdogan’s inner circle for decades, an absolute loyalist certain to do his bidding. In a display of party discipline that would have made Lenin proud, more than 1,400 AKP delegates thereupon saluted smartly, sang paeans of praise and obedience to their great “chief” Erdogan, and voted unanimously to confirm his chosen candidate."

"Sounds like the AC," told us this reader, referring to the Administrative Council that has been reduced into a bunch of Battistelli lapdogs -- those who recently helped him send the Boards of Appeal to exile near Haar.

Speaking of ErdoÄŸan, coups and sovereignty/security (in light of Friday's shootings), there is further militarisation going on at the EPO where the coup plotter is actually Battistelli and his 'troops' (so he is, in some sense, on the opposite side of ErdoÄŸan, who was actually elected unlike the Turkish military).

"To better understand why people are treated so badly inside the EPO (and even outside of it, e.g. bloggers who are critics) look closely to what happened in Turkey over the past 10 days or less."Writing about "who is who [at the] EPO," one reader told us: "I know we both ***love*** FB. Here an interesting page of one recently-promoted BB's [Battistelli] pet. Even more interesting [is] one of her "friends": Perhaps a next director?"

This alludes to Jean-Baptiste Deprecq (photo above is from his account), who is connected to the recently-promoted Nadja Merdaci-Lefèvre.

"This give a lot to think about the saying "you chose your friends not you family"," added our reader.

To better understand why people are treated so badly inside the EPO (and even outside of it, e.g. bloggers who are critics) look closely to what happened in Turkey over the past 10 days or less. Collective punishment at the hands of a megalomaniac isn't so extraordinary. One might call it Martial Law. ⬆