LAST NIGHT we wrote about the EPO's reaction to criticism for keeping a kangaroo court. António Campinos is attacking justice just as much as Benoît Battistelli did. Days ago, as it turned out, even the Appeals Committee is all rigged. The reason the Office keeps granting European software patents is that the Office management besieges or controls the panels. This means that any unlawful act can be later approved.

"This means that any unlawful act can be later approved."Where are European officials? Well, that too has been rigged, so there's nobody willing to hold the Office accountable for its crimes. The corruption persists and it often seems like nobody cares, certainly not the bribed media (the EPO brags about giving millions of euros to publishers, in exchange for puff pieces).



The silence across Europe (media, politicians etc.) is self-discrediting. One can get the sense or the general feeling that nobody really minds corruption or human rights abuses. That's how many EPO examiners feel.

At the moment there's a series in progress about a scandal in Germany. It's an EPO scandal. It's bound to make the German government look bad. Given the apathy (e.g. not caring at all about data protection abuses by the EPO), one might get the impression that law enforcement is only selectively applied. The people put in charge of the EPO in Munich are in effect above the law and they've even hired firms that have Stasi connections (yes, literal Stasi) to spy on their staff, especially on people who expose EPO corruption.

The situation is, indeed, as grim as it sounds. But the facts are on our side. The cover-up cannot last forever and it'll all be documented here for weeks to come. ⬆