The birth in Milan of the first anti-counterfeiting Committee

The creation of an outstanding institution recognized for its fight against counterfeiting and illegal practices The first Consiglio Milanese Anticontraffazione (Milan Anti-counterfeiting Committee - CMA) has been set up in Milan. The project was presented to the press yesterday morning in the Sala dell'Orologio, Palazzo Marino, by the Mayor of Milan Giuliano Pisapia, the Councilor for Commerce and Manufacturing Franco D'Alfonso, and the Councilor for Security Marco Granelli, with the collaboration of the President of Centro Studi Grande Milano (Milan metropolitan area's Research Center), Daniela Mainini.   "Safeguarding health, top-quality products and Made in Italy – stated Mayor Giuliano Pisapia – is an important aspect of our policy. The attention paid by Milan City Council to this sector has always been at the highest level and with the birth of the Committee we now have an additional tool for fighting the counterfeiting phenomenon. The collaboration of the Local Police, Law Enforcement Agencies and trade associations represents a shared effort to eradicate forms of illegality that damage the economy and often have serious consequences for health, as testified to by the seizure of toxic and counterfeit material". "With the birth of this Committee we want, first and foremost, to protect the huge national and Milan's heritage of creativity, expertise and work that distinguishes all Made in Italy products – whether they be by artisans or large companies", commented Councilor for Commerce and Manufacturing Franco D'Alfonso. "By implementing communication and awareness-raising actions - the Councilor concluded – we aim to contribute to the spread of a new culture of legality that will involve the city's students, citizens and consumers and will generate an economy that is honorable and legitimate".   "A counterfeiting-free Milan metropolitan area to be revealed to the rest of Italy and the world, also vis-à-vis the next Universal Exposition, takes considerable planning. It is no coincidence that Milan will be the headquarters of the Stati Generali (a representative body) against counterfeiting on November 19, where the entire Italian representatives will be united in this vital battle for legality", explained Daniela Mainini, President of Milan metropolitan area's Research Center and the Italian Anti-counterfeiting Council.   A project that is the result of the collaboration between the Council for Commerce and Manufacturing at Milan City Council and the Milan metropolitan area's Research Center Association and aims to create an outstanding institution that is recognized for its fight against counterfeiting and illegal practices by adopting an original approach and by defining a basic intervention model that can be used by other cities. A model that links all interdisciplinary and interprofessional expertise to become a meeting point for all institutions and operators that in a variety of ways are involved with counterfeiting, the protection of intellectual property and "Made in Italy". The initiative is the outcome of the Administration's determination to curb a phenomenon that involves all production sectors; a phenomenon that began with luxury and top-of-the-range items but which now concerns products that are a potential health and safety hazard for citizens and consumers (pharmaceuticals, food, cosmetics, toys and spare parts).   The objectives pursued by the Milan Anti-counterfeiting Committee are numerous: to monitor the counterfeiting phenomenon in the municipality of Milan by collecting data from Law Enforcement Agencies and establishing a relationship of collaboration directly with the Public Prosecutor's Office; to begin cooperating with schools and universities on the definition of suitable awareness-raising campaigns in addition to an appropriate citizen-oriented information campaign on the effects of counterfeiting and illegal trade; to develop a collaboration with Expo 2015 to ensure that the event can be described as "Counterfeiting Free", where the intellectual property rights of all attendees are effectively protected throughout all the months of the Universal Exposition.   The work schedule that will be proposed and fine-tuned as CMA activities progress envisages a committee composed of Milan City Council, Milan metropolitan area's Research Center, the Antimafia Commission at the City Council, the Public Prosecutor's Office, Assolombarda, the Chamber of Commerce, the Local Education Superintendency, Expo 2015, the Prefecture, Rete Imprese Italia (Network of Italian Enterprises), Labor Unions and Consumer Associations.   State Law Enforcement Agencies (the Tax Police, State Police, Carabinieri) will also be involved in defining a specific method of collaboration through the Prefecture. The CMA will also use three Permanent Commissions for transmitting information and preparing specific projects regarding Production, Economy and Labor; manufacturing trade associations and communities abroad, and will work in coordination with the Italian Anti-counterfeiting Council at the Ministry for Economic Development. As a member of the Italian Anti-counterfeiting Council, Anfao will also be part of the Permanent Commissions, thereby confirming its long-standing commitment to the fight against counterfeiting.   The headquarters of the Milan Anti-counterfeiting Committee will be located in Palazzo Marino and at the Council for Commerce and Manufacturing, Via Larga, 12, Milan.