Biodiversity and Bio-Piracy: With Special Reference to Sri Lanka

Abstract

Sri Lanka is a small island, 65,610 km2 in area situated close to southeast corner of the peninsula of India and rich with high level of biodiversity. The significant feature of the biodiversity of Sri Lanka is high portion of endemic species among fauna and flora. According to the Convention on Biological Diversity, biodiversity means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part and this includes diversity within species between species and of ecosystems. Hence bio-piracy means commercial development of naturally occurring biological material such as plant substances or genetic cell lines, by a technological advanced country or organization without fair compensation to the people or nations whose territory the materials were originally discovered. Thus, Sri Lanka as a biodiversity hot spot as well as a developing country has faced challenges to protect its endemic fauna and flora from commercially developed countries and multinational companies. Therefore this research be discussed the existing legal framework which is available and which is not adequate to address bio-piracy as sui generis concern and steps which can be taken to prevent this issue. Further the whole question is that is Sri Lanka has adequate legal framework to prevent bio-piracy over the biological resources in the country itself. The circumstances such as less of technological infrastructures, lack of knowledge and a precise framework to protect traditional knowledge among indigenous people of Sri Lanka and basically greediness for money there is a trend among the people to sell endemic fauna and flora to developed countries or Multinational Companies for experiments led country for bio-piracy. The objective of this study is to identify a sui generis legal framework to protect genetic resources in Sri Lanka and to determine in-situ and ex-situ conservation on biodiversity to prevent bio-piracy in Sri Lanka. Methodology of this study will be mainly based on the literature review in area of law relating to Intellectual Property and Environmental Laws. Both procedural law and substantive law aspects will be addressed and the analysis will be based on academic and judicial expressions on Genetic Piracy in Sri Lanka.