Mara speaking at the session of "HIV and Mobility"Full programmes of Interational AIDS Conference 2008 can be located in the website
Here is the collated programmes:
INTERNATIONAL AIDS CONFERENCE 2008 PROGRAMMES
[under the theme of Migration, Mobile & Refugee Populations; HIV and Mobility; HIV-related Travel Restriction]
3 August 2008
09.00 – 11.00 Labour Migration & HIV: Emerging issues
11.00 – 13.00 Undermining Public Health & Human Rights: The US HIV Immigration and Travel Ban
4 August 2008
10.00 – 12.00 Mexican Migrants & HIV-AIDS
14.00 – 16.00 Redefining AIDS in Asia - Community Perspectives
Gender networking needs and opportunities Asian Networking Zone (7 Sisters)
Panel Discussion - Suksma Ratri, Anandi, Rico Gustav
14.30 – 16.00 Hidden Side Stigma & Discrimination
16.30 – 18.00 Mobile Population & Globalization [Bridging Session] - speakers: Malu Marin, Brahm Press
5 August 2008
11.00 – 12.30 Prevention Programmes with Female Sex Workers
12.30 – 14.30 Travel Restriction on PLHIV: Going Against The Grain of Human Rights & Public Health
14.30 – 16.00 - Scaling up HIV Testing & Counseling: A Human Rights & Public Imperative - speaker: Amara Quesada
- Mexico – US Migration and Vulnerability to HIV and AIDS
16.30 – 18.00 Access & Coverage in Resource Limited Setting
6 August 2008
10.45 - 12.00 Redefining AIDS in Asia [Women's Networking Zone] - speaker; Suksma Ratri
11.00 – 12.30 HIV-AIDS on The US – Mexico Border: A Multi MSM Community Approach to HIV-AIDS Prevention & Change
16.30 – 18.00 Fighting AIDS Under Fire: HIV Programming in Conflict and post-conflict Setting
17.00 – 18.30 Challenging HIV-related Travel Restriction [Global Village] - speaker: Suksma Ratri
7 August 2008
11.00 – 12.30 The Aftermath of War: Women, Children and Displaced Population
13.00 – 14.00 Vulnerabilities of Mobile and Refugee Populations - speaker: Amara Quesada
Poster Presentation:
Wednesday, 6 August 2008 - "Life or livelihood - not a clear choice for HIV positive Cambodian migrants in Thailand" by Brahm Press
TFEM was conducting another skills building workshop in Bangkok on Advocacy and Communication. This workshop was held on June 27 - 29, 2008 and made lively by the participants from Philippines, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Thailand [Phanga and Mae Sod]. The workshop was actually a combination of advocacy, basic GIPA and communication skills.
Greg Gray, the advisor of APN+ was sharing about the GIPA Principles to the participants. All participants had the chance to do discussion and brainstorming regarding GIPA, in order to see their understanding on the issue and also how to integrate the GIPA Principles into their works. The discussions were around What is GIPA? | Why GIPA? | What are the benefits? | Why GIPA is important for populations? | How does it suit migrant workers situation? | How can GIPA make a difference? |
In this opportunity, CARAM Asia also introduced their new look of brochures and their first Annual Report. The brochures had been designed in a more attractive and colourful themes. It contained brief information on CARAM Asia and its Task Forces.
There were a lot of interactive activities during the workshop as well as brainstorming. All the participants had to write "perceptions" on meta-cards and try to put it on the board and sort out accordingly to the similarities. The participants were learning on how to group the issues and avoid the repetitions as well as learn on how to identify same issues wrapped in different terms.
Grouping the migrant's issues based on country.
It is always said that Regional Workshop had a lot of challenges including language barriers. But participants can always resolve the language barriers. We were not only building the capacity here, deeper than that, we were building friendship and family-hood here. And in friendship and family, there's no such thing as LANGUAGE BARRIER.
Apart from the language barriers and dozens of assignments, the participants were not just learning all the time. We had fun too! We had many games that brings us closer as family, and the good thing is, in these games, nobody cares whether you can speak English or not, because the most important thing was YOU NEED TO HAVE A GOOD LAUGH... :)
Every country had several chances to do presentations and everyone was paying full attention to each and every presentation made by other participants. A lot of questions, inputs and suggestions were made during this interactive sessions. It was, clearly, a learning process for everyone. And more over, it was also a forum to share.
During country discussions on action plan and advocacy plan, all participants got the chance to have full supervision and consultation from the facilitator. They can ask questions and consult their discussion result with the facilitator in order to get the best result to be presented. Furthermore, cross-discussion with other countries also very much encouraged. Learning from other country's experience has always been the best method for everyone to analyze and compare the results.
Finally, the presentation of Country Action Plan! All countries had to present their Action Plan. They are guided to produce the most simple and doable plan, and were expected to implement the plan as soon as they go back to their country.
Finally, everyone was happy to be in this workshop and excited to share the knowledge with their peers in the country...... In addition to the conference sessions, AIDS 2008 will feature a set of programme activities that are open to delegates as well as the public. The programme activities for AIDS 2008 will include:
The Global Village
The Global Village aims to intensify the involvement of affected and marginalized communities in the conference and in the global response to HIV/AIDS, in order to bring effective prevention and treatment to communities. Examples of activities include sessions, forums, oral presentations and awards; networking zones; NGO exhibition booths and marketplace booths.
Download the AIDS 2006 Global Village Monitoring and Evaluation Report.
The Youth Programme
The Youth Programme aims to strengthen the participation of youth and the profile of youth issues in the conference through activities such as a youth pavilion, an electronic youth bulletin, a youth media hub, youth presentation space, youth mentorship activities and a youth website.
The Cultural Programme
The Cultural Programme aims to highlight the role of art and culture in the response to and prevention of HIV/AIDS by means of visual arts, literature; film and video; performing arts and other activities.
Applications for the Global Village, youth and cultural programmes are now closed. Thank you for submitting your proposals, these will go through a peer-review process and notifications will be sent late April 2008.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Global Village globalvillage@aids2008.org
Youth Programme youth@aids2008.org
Cultural Programme culture@aids2008.org
Global Village
The Global Village will provide a space to share knowledge and skills, build coalitions, and promote interactive learning among communities living with and affected by HIV/AIDS, policymakers, researchers and other stakeholder groups.
The Global Village will strengthen and support the conference theme Universal Action Now. It will also use the vision of the Community Programme Committee (CPC) to guide the development of activities including the Youth and Cultural Programmes. Please see this website for more details.
Global Village Objectives:
The AIDS 2008 Global Village is open to both conference delegates and non-delegates (including community organizations from around the world, local/national groups and the general public) and enables greater civil society involvement and exchange.
The Global Village will cover over 8,000 square metres at the Las Americas Hippodrome and will have high visibility as the main entrance into Centro Banamex. No registration is required to visit the Global Village.
Global Village Activities
Although most Global Village activities will be based on online submissions, the Global Village programme will include the following:
Youth Programme
The AIDS 2008 Youth Programme will be an opportunity to empower young people, advocate for current and critical issues affecting youth worldwide, and further pinpoint current strategies for effective change. In addition, the programme is working to focus on HIV-positive young people through targeted outreach to HIV-positive youth serving organizations. There will be a new component for young scientists participating in the conference which will help to engage not only activists, but youth from many different fields.
Please see the conference profile for more details on youth attendance and registration.
Youth Programme objectives:
Youth Programme Guiding Principles
The youth programme will have five guiding principles to aid programme planning. These include: leadership has no age limits; meaningful participation; greater involvement of people living with HIV (GIPA); community participation (
Youth Programme Activities
Activities will include a youth pre-conference, a youth website, a youth reception, a youth pavilion, outreach activities, cultural activities related to youth, sessions and workshops.
Governance and Support
A Youth Working Group (YWG) has been established to direct and support youth activities at AIDS 2008. The YWG is comprised of youth who are involved and dedicated to the HIV response. Members come from very different backgrounds and areas of expertise and will assist in providing youth with the tools needed to navigate AIDS 2008 and prepare youth for effective advocacy efforts and meaningful participation during the conference.
HIV is a preventable disease. Prevention demands sustainable, science-based programmes. Programmes focused on youth with active youth involvement have shown to decrease HIV prevalence and increase condom use. However, many global, national, and local leaders and policy makers continue to leave youth out of interventions affecting their lives. It is necessary to engage, encourage, and acknowledge youth as assets in the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The International AIDS Conference will include youth in all stages of development. We need Universal Action Now from young people and for young people.
Cultural Programme
The AIDS 2008 Cultural Activities Programme (CAP) will provide opportunities for educators, professional and amateur performers and community members from across the globe to share their methods and tools for communication, education and action for change. The programme will include visual arts, literature, film and video, performance art and other innovative mediums of expression. Activities will take place at the conference convention centre (Centro Banamex) and a more extensive programme of affiliated events is planned for offsite venues around
Cultural Programme Objectives:
Cultural Activities
Activities will include live performance (music, dance, theatre, performance art, and readings), photo or art exhibits, and screenings (documentaries, short films or videos).
About the
The Skills Building Programme is a unique component of the conference, spanning the community, leadership and scientific programme. Its purpose is to offer workshops covering a diverse range of topics with the principle aim of providing a stage for teaching specific skills or strategies to specific audiences that can then be applied within their own work or life settings once they return home.
The programme also helps stimulate new and stronger partnerships for problem-solving related to the many different HIV-related needs. People share vital expertise with colleagues from other regions of the world to help overcome the many barriers to care, prevention and management of the epidemic.
Conference delegates have the opportunity to put learning into action. The workshops will use interactive, creative training methods on subjects of critical importance to those facing the realities of the AIDS pandemic today – whether they are a medical professional, researcher, politician, administrator, outreach worker, peer advocate, caregiver and/or a person living with HIV/AIDS.
All skills building workshop proposals submitted to the Conference will go through a peer-review process carried out by an international Skills Building Reviewing Committee, each proposal will be assessed by two reviewers, one of which will come from the same region as the proposal’s issue or topic. The skills building workshop review period will take place late February – mid-March 2008. Notification to submitters will be done in April 2008.
1. Scaling up and Linkages:
2. Latin America and the
3. Leadership, Advocacy and Policy:
4. Intensifying involvement of affected communities and participation of civil societies:
5. Science, medicine and community:
| By VIOLET CHO | |
Cyclone Nargis affected everyone in the Irrawaddy delta, but it has placed HIV/AIDS patients under even greater physical and mental stress, according to social welfare groups in Rangoon.
A youth member of Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy, said many HIV/AIDS patients lost everything they had in the storm’s aftermath.
“Our patients are desperately suffering with so many things at the same time,” said
Yazar, a youth member who is also an AIDS activist. “They are poor, and they didn’t have anything more than daily food to keep them alive. Now they’ve lost everything, they do not have food or a place to stay.”
“We are really worried about one of our patients in Dedaye, one of the hardest hit areas in the Irrawddy Delta,” he said. “She lost her husband in the storm. Her house was destroyed by the wind and now she is living with her child who also has HIV/AIDS.”
He said some patients who lived on Hainggyi Island are believed to be dead, because they have not been heard from since May 2.
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Phyu Phyu Thin, a well-known HIV/AIDS activist who has been in hiding since last year’s pro-democracy protests, said HIV/AIDS aids groups have been contacted by more patients seeking help after the storm hit the country.
More cyclone refugees are making their way to Rangoon Division and the larger towns in the Irrawaddy delta seeking assistance, she said.
According to Yazar, the NLD group has provided food and medicine to more than 60 HIV/AIDS patients in recent days. He said the budget is not able to handle an influx of more patients.
“Problems are coming at us from many directions,” he said. “We have limited resources, and as more and more people seek help, we’re worried about meeting their needs in the future.”
As a social welfare group with a broad awareness of the suffering of the people, Yazar said much help will be needed to rebuild the country and aid the homeless population.
“We especially need more knowledge and skills relating to psychological problems,” he said, “because many people need help to recover from depression and mental problems after the storm.”
The NLD-affiliated social welfare group helps care for more than 2, 000 people living with HIV/AIDS across Burma. About 50 patients live in two houses in Rangoon.
For immediate release:
Contact: Shiba Phurailatpam, Regional Coordinator, APN+ Secretariat Office, Bangkok. shiba@apnplus.org , phone:+66 2 2591908-9
In the aftermath of the recent Cyclone Nargis that brought devastating damages in Myanmar, the Asia Pacific Network of PLHIV (APN+) is extremely concerned about its impact on people living with HIV and HIV prevention, care and support efforts in the country.
An informal study recently conducted by people living with HIV in Myanmar found that many HIV positive people are severely affected by the disaster, left without food, shelter, clean water and medicine. Many positive people have been placed in a situation where access to HIV medicines and treatment is extremely difficult, thereby putting their lives in danger.
The current situation could greatly exacerbate the existing challenges in Myanmar where basic HIV prevention, treatment and care services are not readily available and accessible. It is important to remember that Myanmar is one of the countries in Asia where more than 1% of adult population is living with HIV. Disruptions in the supply and provision of HIV prevention commodities and clean needles could put many people at risk of HIV infection.
Under the circumstances, APN+ calls the government of Myanmar, all the relevant authorities, UN and donor agencies to ensure the following:
The Asian Tsunami Study conducted by (APN+) and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) found that HIV positive people faced increased challenges such as illness, poverty, unemployment, psychological trauma and discrimination as a result of the 2004 Asian Tsunami. Therefore, disaster situation emergency responses must include comprehensive HIV treatment, care and support and prevention services, with particular attention to the needs and involvement of HIV positive people.
APN+ requests all stakeholders to support people living with HIV and those working in the response to the Cyclone Nargis disaster to ensure the availability of HIV prevention, treatment, and care and support services in Myanmar.
Global AIDS Week of Action 18-24 May, 2008
One week. One voice
Dear Colleagues,
For this year many actions have already been planned. These are just few examples;
In
In
In
In Uganda – Week of Action - week of treatment literacy training, a meeting of communities with VCT and Family Planning Community Outreach Services, and a ‘Right to City Campaign in Kampala’.
In Sierra Leone – accountability hearing to discuss UNGASS report, awareness raising activities including use of female condoms, HIV education for children and youth.
In Nigeria – ‘Stand up Campaign’ to present 7 demands to leadership of National Assembly, round table discussion on ‘Strategies on Alternative Livelihood Options for PLWHAs’.
In
In
In
In India – Rallies led by PLHIV will meet the health department and local administration, orientation workshop for sex workers, MSM and PLHIV of 24 districts, series of meetings, press releases of advocates and community representatives for HIV and Aids Bill, public hearing by women living with HIV/AIDS.
In Nepal – Press conference ‘Global Aids Week and UNGASS’ to stress the importance of the week of action and UNGASS and 11 commitments signed by Nepal, radio and television debates, interaction programme and a mass rally for ‘Universal Access to Food, Nutrition and Treatment’.
In
In
We look forward to hearing from you.
Best regards,
Attapon Ed Ngoksin
Communications assistant
International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC)
Secretariat: 176/22 Sukhumvit 16, Klongtoey Bangkok
“One week – One voice”
Support the Global Aids Week of Action May 18 – 24, 2008. To find out more visit the website www.globalaidsweek.
NEWS - 14 May 2008
By Brian Kennedy - Washington, DC
The bill reauthorizes and expands on previous legislation to fight HIV/Aids, under which the program known as the President's Emergency for Aids Relief (Pepfar) was established. The new bill, which authorizes $50 million in spending over the next five years, passed the House of Representatives on April 2 by a vote of 308-116. In order to become law, it must now pass the Senate and be signed by President Bush.
However, seven Republican senators object to the removal of a requirement that a minimum of 55 percent of spending should be directed to the treatment of HIV/Aids patients. The seven have signed a hold letter, which will postpone a vote on the bill indefinitely.
The formal title of the bill is the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008. It is named for two prominent U.S. congressmen, Lantos a Democrat and Hyde a Republican, who died recently.
Senator Richard Burr (Republican-
"What we know is treatment is prevention," added Senator Tom Coburn (Republican-
The move has several critics, including John Bradshaw, director of the Washington office of Physicians for Human Rights, who said in a statement to AllAfrica that the Pepfar program must be "flexible and respond to what is needed in each country - and people on the ground are in the best position to make those decisions, not senators in Washington dictating artificial, numerical targets."
The senators blocking the bill even have critics within the Republican Party. Michael Gerson, a former member of the Bush administration who played a key role in the first Pepfar bill, wrote in an op-ed published today in the Washington Post that the actions of the seven Republican senators are "destructive."
"The 55 percent treatment floor would force the program to waste money in pursuit of an arbitrary, nonsensical spending target – the worst kind of congressional earmark," Gerson wrote. He accused the senators of insisting on a minimum figure for treatment as a means of discouraging what they saw as "feckless or morally dubious" spending which might promote abortion or the purchase of needles for drug addicts.
The supporters of the seven senators claim that the delay is necessary for millions of people with HIV/Aids. Michael Weinstein, the president of Aids Healthcare Foundation, the organization that put together the Capitol Hill press briefing, said "the removal of the language that requires Pepfar to direct a specific amount of its funds toward lifesaving Aids care and treatment will cost millions of lives."
Coburn added: "We are deadly serious about making sure [Pepfar] stays an effective program."
Gerson, however, accused Coburn of "undermining the bill." He reported that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Democrat-Nevada)
"Given these obstacles, supporters of Pepfar reauthorization now estimate a 50 percent chance it will shelved until next year," Gerson wrote.
Coburn seemed to agree with this prediction, telling reporters that the bill was still in an early stage of Senate processes.
Katie Wyly contributed to this report.
Press Release - May 14, 2008
Yesterday, Prime Minister, YAB Abdullah Ahmad Badawi launched a fund for cyclone-hit Burma after Kuala Lumpur's aid team landed in Rangoon. In his speech, he stated "We help them on humanitarian grounds, there is no politics in this matter. When there are people suffering, we Malaysians always offer assistance."
We applaud the Prime Minister and all Malaysians who have come forward to give aid and support to the people of Burma. It is the right thing to do where cyclone Nargis left 100,000 dead or missing and affecting two million or more people.
But right now in our country, there are more than 60,000 Burmese refugees with children who are being hunted down with a form of vengeance by the RELA and the Immigration department and mercilessly being arrested and detained in inhuman conditions in the various Immigration detention centers.
The recent burning of Lenggeng detention centers, reflects the harsh treatment given to migrant detainees and the total mismanagement of the camps by Immigration and RELA authorities.
The NTV 7 revelation , “Refugees for Sale” under the program Siasatan, of the involvement of enforcement officers in the blatant trafficking of women, children and men from the refugee community during the deportation to the Thai border smacks of embedded corruption and blatant arrogance and abuse of power of the enforcement agencies with RELA. To date, the Home Minister has not made public of investigations carried out on these agencies and what steps are being taken to make them accountable.
Meanwhile arrests and abuse have been stepped up, and the sale of them continue with even greater vigor that refugees are forced to flee their homes in Malaysia. We know of pregnant women, even up to 8 months pregnant with other children running for their safety to areas of high risk to their health and their children’s health. Refugees live in great fear of their safety once more from this form of state violence and repression.
The current government cannot continue to behave like the junta of Burma that oppresses and represses the people at gun point. The Burmese refugees are here because their lives have been deeply threatened. They came into this country with the sole hope and believe that a nation that practices democracy and is not experiencing conflict will protect them.
The Prime Minister must live and practice his statement that when people suffer, we must offer assistance. Why can’t we offer support and assistance to the refugees who are here with us in this country? Why are we arresting them and selling them as slaves or threatening them with deportation to Burma when we know that their lives will be at great risk even death? Is this not brutally inhuman?
Knowing very well the deep political crisis in Burma and now with the catastrophe of cyclone Nargis, is not just and right that refugees be recognized as refugees? Should we not start our humanitarian response to the refugees in the country by stopping the arrest of all refugees and going further to recognize them as refugees?
Tenaganita calls on the Prime Minister to show our humanitarian values and response by stopping the arrest and detention of all refugees; stopping the deportation of refugees; recognizing them as refugees so that they can stay and work in the country. We also urge the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar to thoroughly investigate the continued abuse, trafficking and sale of refugees and corruption allegations and reports made on RELA and the Immigration officials.
It is only in recognizing the truth and in acting to redress the intense human rights violations perpetrated against the refugee community can we regain our humanity as a nation.
Dr. Irene Fernandez
Director
On May 7 to 9 I was invited to speak in the ASEAN regional consultation in Vientiane, Lao PDR. This meeting was attended by ATFOA focal points from Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Lao PDR, Cambodia and Myanmar. The participants from Viet Nam and Brunei Darussalam were absence. In addition, representatives from APN+, UNDP, RAK THAI and Third World Network also presented.
Singapore AIDS Candlelight Memorial 2008 
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