United Nations: Special AIDS Session Next Week

AIDS Treatment News, June 23, 2001 by John S. James

On June 25-27 the entire United Nations General Assembly will focus on AIDS. The goal is worldwide commitment and consensus on dealing with the epidemic. The negotiations leading up to this Special Session have been contentious, even more so than most diplomatic meetings.

No matter what the outcome, this meeting will be historic and will be a major focus of world attention. Here is some background, and resources that you can use as a starting point for finding information.

Official Web Page

The Web page for the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (often called UNGASS) is http://www.un.org/ga/aids/ Here are some of the important documents available there before the meeting:

* Under the heading "A call to action" are several recent statements by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who has provided exceptional leadership on this issue in advance of the United Nations special session;

* The "Documents" section includes the "Revised Draft Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS" -- a single-text statement that is being negotiated in order to reach as much agreement as possible. (At this time, June 16, the current draft is the 2nd published version, dated May 11.)

* The "Bulletin" is an electronic news bulletin to keep participants informed. At this date (June 21) only one issue has been published, with general background such as AIDS statistics, overview of the meeting, and media accreditation. Two more issues are planned by June 25.

* A "calendar" of dozens of official UN and unofficial events around the time of the session.

* Other sections on background information, NGOs and civil society, and media.

From the official media advisory:

Governments Will Convene to Plan Intensified Action to Combat the Global Epidemic

The United Nations will hold a Special Session on HIV/AIDS to galvanize leadership at the highest levels, intensify international action and mobilize the resources needed to combat the epidemic. The Special Session, to take place from 25 to 27 June 2001 at UN Headquarters in New York, will be the first ever to address a public health issue.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and high-level government delegations will address:

* The importance of political leadership in developing effective responses and decreasing the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS

* Encouraging all sectors of society to play a major role

* Increasing resources for treatment, prevention, and care

* Preventing new infections and alleviating the social and economic impact of the epidemic

* Access to care and the development of new technologies and treatments that are both effective and affordable

Governments are expected to adopt a Declaration of Commitment setting targets and timetables. In addition to statements in the Plenary, four interactive round tables will discuss human rights, international funding and cooperation, prevention and care, and the socioeconomic impact of HIV/AIDS. These will involve participants from NGOs, the private sector and other civil society groups. A full programme of press conferences and special events will provide additional media opportunities.

Live Webcast, Plus Archive and Transcript

Kaisernetwork.org, a service of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, is webcasting the entire UN Special Session on HIV/AIDS, June 25-27. Anyone around the world can watch it for free.

An archive and transcript will also be available, a few days after the session.

For more information, or to watch the webcast, visit

http://www.kaisemetwork.org/healthcast/un/aids/jun01

Areas of Agreement

On June 16 the Background section of the official Web site includes a one-paragraph summary under "What Will the Outcome Be?" It summarizes some of the major areas of at least nominal agreement:

Given the urgency of the epidemic, at the special session governments are expected to agree on a Declaration of Commitment that will outline priority areas where stronger action must be taken. These are likely to include prevention, improved access to care and treatment, care of children orphaned by AIDS, expanded public/private sector partnerships, the need for an accelerated multisectoral response to the epidemic and for resources commensurate with the crisis.

Controversies

Some of the major areas of disagreement are:

* Whether to name vulnerable groups, such as men who have sex with men, in the Declaration of Commitment. The current draft includes the following section, which some countries object to:

By 2003, develop national strategies, policies and programmes, through a participatory approach, to promote and protect the health of those most vulnerable to, and at greatest risk of HIV infection, such as: children in especially difficult circumstances, men who have sex with men, sex workers and their clients, injecting drug users and their sexual partners, persons confined in institutions and prison populations, refugees and internally displaced persons and people separated from their families due to work or conflict;

According to a June 15 Associated Press story, an Egyptian diplomat commented, "Does it have to be so explicit? This is shocking for my society." He proposed "irresponsible sexual behavior" instead. And the Iranian Ambassador said negotiations should "not be considered as an opportunity by certain quarters in the Western world to push the envelope on areas where there is cultural sensitivity, ideological sensitivity, ethical sensitivity" (from same Associated Press story).