37. The representative of Hong Kong, China said that his delegation was among those delegations which had been approached individually by the Chair for consultations on an early review of its legislation. However, further consultations with the Chair and the Secretariat on some fundamental issues relating to such a review were necessary. He said that it was heartening to have a confirmation that there would be only one review for those Members which would agree to come forward in a spirit of cooperation. However, he wished to underline the importance of having a clear understanding of the ground rules for early reviews. On the one hand, he agreed that there was a need for some Members to come forward in anticipation of the workload in the review exercise in the year 2000; on the other hand, it was legitimate for other Members to have a clear understanding about the ground rules for early reviews. As the representative of India had stated, there were some systemic issues, such as the question of being covered by a review once only. Another systemic issue concerned notification of national legislation by those Members submitting themselves to an early review; these should be excused from making a second notification in the year 2000, i.e. when the transitional period would come to an end. In this regard, paragraph 3 of document IP/C/2 provided, in his delegation's view, a legal basis for Members which, in advance of assuming their TRIPS obligations in full, had accepted to be submitted to an early review without prejudice to their rights under Article 65. He said that his delegation looked forward to further consultations with the Chair on the ground rules for the early review.
