Praneeta Prakash 
Barrister and Solicitor Pita Niubalavu is calling for stronger legal protection of Fiji’s indigenous cultural expressions in the Trademarks (Amendment) Bill.
Niubalavu, who has worked with Pacific governments and international bodies like WIPO and UNESCO, stresses the importance of safeguarding cultural heritage as more businesses and cultural activities move online.
He raised concerns about the growing misuse of cultural heritage in trademarks by individuals and companies for profit, often without permission or benefit to the rightful owners.
Niubalavu welcomed the proposed Section 107A of the Bill, which will give trademark owners faster legal tools to stop infringement, in line with global standards like the TRIPS Agreement.
“With anything that is not registered within the registrar trademarks office, you cannot claim exclusive rights over it. But when it comes to cultural expressions or expressions that belong to local communities, in my opinion, the person who’s wanting to exploit those expressions must seek consent.”
Niubalavu adds that more needs to be done to protect indigenous rights.
He is calling for clear exceptions in the law to allow indigenous communities to register their cultural expressions as trademarks.
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