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From Aug. 3-8, the 17th International AIDS Conference (IAC) was held in Mexico City, coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the Declaration of Alma Ata (the promotion of health for all people and primary health care) and the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The first IAC to be held in Latin America, it was attended by more than 24,000 persons.
A pre-conference organized by the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance, a network of faith based groups, was held July 30-Aug. 2. Its theme, “Faith in Action – Now,” pointed the 450 participants to the urgency of moving religious beliefs to concrete and immediate action, a challenge given the diversity of backgrounds, theologies and perspectives on the response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Some participants left feeling inspired by what they heard and saw, and others expressed a need for a more developed and articulated theology around AIDS.
Participants, including large numbers of active and vocal youth, as well as representatives of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered communities, were encouraged and trained to take advocacy messages to the IAC on issues such as access to medicines, travel restrictions, children’s medicines and workplace issues. In addition, participants were introduced to advocacy campaigns for pediatric diagnostics and treatment, spearheaded by Caritas Internationalis and joined by other faith based organizations. Some participants met with pharmaceutical companies later during the main conference to express these concerns.
Despite the fact that Catholic organizations have provided 25-40 percent of the caregiving in many countries, Catholic input to the pre-conference was quite low. Given that, it was heartening to have Guatemalan Bishop Gabriel Penate Rodriguez attend both conferences. A major outcome of the pre-conference was a proposal to develop a Catholic AIDS network for sharing information, networking, pastoral reflection and exploring our theological roots in light of the AIDS pandemic.
At the IAC, hundreds of plenaries, workshops, panels and poster presentations dealt with scientific, economic, social, behavioral and policy aspects of prevention, treatment and care, funding, special populations and human rights, criminalization of AIDS and more. Across from the main conference site, the Global Village housed an array of international NGOs in a lively, sometimes raucous and colorful setting of booths and conversational areas where theatre, workshops, selling of crafts and even prayer sessions raised up a multitude of aspects of the pandemic. Marches against homophobia, for universal access, and for women living with AIDS brought the world’s demands to the streets of Mexico City, and a large demonstration in the main conference hall drew attention to the millions of death caused by AIDS-related tuberculosis.
For every two people on treatment, there are five new infections; in many places, 25 percent of infected persons do not know their status; again the call was made for comprehensive prevention and the combination of prevention and treatment. Women and violence against women was a theme often heard, and finally, there were sessions on children, the most invisible and vulnerable group, for whom prevention, treatment, testing and care have been sorely neglected, but for whom stigma is a road to death. The general consensus now is that orphaned children should be cared for within family systems (as opposed to orphanages or institutions), meaning that families must be supported for this to happen.
Stigma, discrimination, and the exclusion of vulnerable groups were also frequent themes, voiced by representatives from groups of men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgendered persons and people who use drugs. The Mexican government was congratulated for its anti-homophobia campaign, as well as for lifting the restrictions against importing HIV medicines. While the U.S. was praised for the recent increases in PEPFAR and the lifting of travel restrictions, it was also reported from the Black AIDS Institute that the numbers of African Americans living with HIV are higher than previously reported (nearly 600,000), and that the U.S. has no national strategy to respond to the AIDS epidemic.
Questions about the use of resources and for whom the conference is actually held were raised due to the IAC’s exorbitant registration fee; very few grassroots activists from Africa and Asia attended, but there was no lack of government officials and professionals, as well as NGOs.
HIV and AIDS are indeed lightning rods for all major justice issues: poverty, debt, rights of women and children, trade, racism, human rights, compassion for all. It is crucial that people living with the virus, vulnerable groups and women have a stronger voice and active participation in the planning, execution of and monitoring of programs, from the grassroots to the government.
Karen Jamina Dunaway Gonzalez, a 13-year old from Honduras who lives with HIV and who shared the opening stage with UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, expressed her vision: “We children and adolescents are here, growing, with many goals; many of us want to be artists, doctors, even have children, but these dreams are only possible if we are assured the medicines we need, are accepted in schools, and if we can grow up in an environment without violence, stigma and discrimination. We want to participate and be heard, we want governments to hear our opinions, to be part of the discussion, and we hope that the cure becomes a reality, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable.” We can support her dream by faithfully intensifying our global advocacy.
For podcasts and transcripts from the IAC, go to the Kaiser Network’s website.
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