MDG 6: Spreading Awareness, Not the Virus

Last May 2010, a news from Malawi caught the attention of HIV/AIDS advocates and UNAIDS where a gay couple (Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga) was sentenced with 14 years imprisonment with criminal charges of "indecent practices between males" and "unnatural offenses." Both were jailed in December 2009 and released after five months after charges against them were cleared. In some countries in Africa, homosexual relationships are considered a criminal case, and UNAIDS opposes the idea of criminalizing individuals because of sexual orientation. With this kind of mindset towards the third sex, who mostly are victims of HIV/AIDS aside from the sex workers and drug addicts, it hampers the campaign of UNAIDS, HIV/AIDS advocates and non-government organizations (NGOs) to prevent the spread of the virus from one “unknown” victim to another because they were forced to go underground of the fear to be imprisoned.

Combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases are part of the United Nation Millennium Development Goal and it falls to number 6. In spite of the new technologies and “freedom” for most nations, the others see people living with AIDS as “modern lepers,” some still thinks that the virus can be transferred through sharing of public toilet, shaking hands, sweat and even just talking to the person. This is how I see it in countries that impose travel restrictions to those who are infected with the virus. It is a form of discrimination for these countries, despite having signed and agreed on the creation of UN MDG in 2010, where combating diseases, especially AIDS, were mentioned.

In the 122nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union last March 2010 in Bangkok, Thailand, UNAIDS appealed to the remaining 52 countries that have oppressive travel restrictions against people with AIDS, to lift these conditions. Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS challenges the leaders to encourage their legislators in creating a law that will safeguard the rights and welfare of people living with AIDS.

In countries like the Philippines, there are NGOs and certain health centers that offer minimal cost medical check-ups in order to test if a patient is positive or not with HIV. Former Department of Health Secretary and now the Senior Health Adviser of United Nations Population Funds (UNFPA), Dr. Esperanza Cabral went out at the streets of Metro Manila during the Valentine’s Day to distribute condoms and informed everyone on how they can prevent the spread of the virus. The Philippines has Republic Act 8504 or The Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998, where it states that the law will defend the HIV/AIDS patients from any form of discrimination from workplace, schools, hospital, and other establishments. We may have laws like RA 8504 but in reality, the said act is weak and discrimination is rampant in some offices and establishments.

The challenge for this year’s Stand-Up Take Action and Make Noise for the MDGs is call on leaders who are going on the UN Assembly in New York to create an international policy that will strengthen the rights of people living with AIDS and lift the travel restrictions. For leaders to allocate budget for information drive and testing where their countrymen will have full awareness about HIV/AIDS and to become responsible by spreading awareness to the society, and enlighten them to help prevent spreading the said virus.

***

For HIV/AIDS testing, you may visit Social Hygiene Clinic - Manila Health Department at2nd Floor,208 Quiricada Street, Sta. Cruz, Manila. For inquiries, please call +63(2)711-6942 and look for Dra. Diana Mendoza or Ms. Malou Tan, Mondays to Fridays , from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You can also call the Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC) at +63(2)7438301 local 2553 for counseling. Some of the accredited HIV/AIDS treatment hubs include Philippine General Hospital (PGH - contact number +63(2)5218450), San Lazaro Hospital (SLH - contact number +63(2)7408301 local 6000), and Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM - contact number +63(2)8072628 local 801). For other AIDS hotlines you may call the following: Lunduyan Foundation INC at +63(2)4214953, Pinoy Plus Association INC at +63(2)5244507, Remedios AIDS Foundation INC at +63(2)5240924, and Positive Action Foundation Philippines INC at +63(2)8326239.

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MDG 1: Standing Up for the 1 Billion Hungry

World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), there are 925 million people who are undernourished as of 2010-- almost a billion individuals including women and children experience chronic hunger.

WFP and FAO launch the campaign “1 Billion Hungry” to educate everyone about the present situation of those who are under extreme poverty and victims of calamities such as drought that are facing hunger. This campaign takes part on the quest of the United Nation Millennium Campaign (UNMC) to achieve MDG number 1, which is eradication of poverty and hunger. Three-fourths of the world’s population is experiencing chronic hunger, especially in Asia and the Pacific and Sub-Sahara Africa regions. The campaign involves hunger fighters, advocates, and individuals to take part with this advocacy to be part of the one billion people who will stand up for the one billion hungry and reaching out to them. A signature campaign is currently ongoing on FAO’s website (http://www.1billionhungry.org) as sign of support.; There are also donation pages at WFP’s website (http://www.wfp.org) to raise funds to support their projects that include nutrition for children and pregnant women who are front liners of hunger, school meal, calamity and agricultural support.

WFP also opened its donation page to Paypal users for easy transfer of financial support for its projects. For every five dollars donated, it would give healthy school meals for a child, or $25 dollars could provide nutritious food for a new mother and her child.




On September 20 to 22, world leaders will convene at the United Nations headquarters in New York for the UN MDG Summit. Leaders from nations that are facing chronic hunger should have concrete and comprehensive projects from their countrymen, and at the same time, establish global relationship to strengthen the support coming from developed nations. The countdown towards 2015 begins as MDG 1 challenges us on how we would fight hunger, and be part of the one billion people helping the one billion hungry. As FAO and WFP said, “One billion people live in chronic hunger and I’m mad as hell.” Let’s be aware of it, stand up, take action, and make noise to achieve MDG 1!

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When people begins to Stand Up, Take Action and Be Heard for the MDGs

This year’s Stand Up and Take Action to End Poverty campaign (SUTA) of the United Nations, organized by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), UN Millennium Campaign (UNMC) and various UN agencies, is very special since this is a pre-event for the upcoming UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Summit, which will be held on 21st to 22nd of September, 2010 at New York.

Happening on September 17-19, 2010, the goal for this year’s SUTA is to make noise or making the world leaders hear the concerns of the people who want the MDGs to be fulfilled. Aside from making noise, SUTA would like to encourage all the citizens to take action by joining other MDG advocates to monitor their leaders and government offices with their implementation of their projects that will help to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve and promote universal primary education, to lessen child mortality rate, promote gender equality, execute comprehensive maternal care, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, to have sustainable environment, and to establish strong global relationship among nations.

In my two years of supporting the MDG campaign of the United Nations and working with various UN agencies as an advocate such as in World Food Programme (WFP), UNAIDS, UNDP, non-government organizations such as WWF-Philippines, Greenpeace Philippines, Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP), Probe Foundation’s Mulat Pinoy, Philippine Legislators' Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD), Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC) and other much more,I saw the issue the pertinent issues that pertain mostly to human rights, health and the effects of climate change to the humanity. I would like to emphasize on the 50 peso test (US$1.25 test) of UN Millennium Campaign (UNMC), where I was one of those who took the challenge on how a person can live for a day with that amount of money. However in reality, 50 pesos is not for a single person, but for a family with four to five members. I had doubts on how 50 pesos could provide the family members with decent food and shelter, provide children with right nutrition, education and health care and same with the maternal care that women needs especially those who is bearing a child.

According to United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) in its Women Delivers Congress, everyday there are 11 mothers around the world that die during child bearing. Like other reproductive health advocates, I believe that mothers should not die in giving birth. Sadly, in developing nations like the Philippines, the number and the equipment in health centers are not sufficient to serve its patients. In the case of the Philippines, there are only 9 health centers from every 13-15 urban or rural barangays (villages).

Aside from maternal and child healthcare, one of the major concerns of the MDG is the eradication of hunger and poverty. WFP and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of UN launched the 1 Billion Hungry campaign to let the world know that there are more than a billion hungry mouths to feed and most of them are children and women. The campaign challenges individuals to take part and aid the hungry, and everyone has the chance to start that change.

Same challenge that UNAIDS calls individuals and advocates spreading awareness and not the virus in combating HIV/AIDS. With the mindset of “modern lepers” toward the people with AIDS, UNAIDS and other NGOs are faced with the problem on how to halt the spread of virus, like in the case of Malawi where they imprisoned a gay couple because of the sexual preference and other countries imposing travel restrictions to those who had the virus. In the 110th Parliamentary Assembly in Bangkok, Thailand, one of the challenges that were raised to the leaders was to put down travel restrictions and impose a law that would safeguard the welfare of people with AIDS.



Each one has the responsibility to take part in making poverty, history. Let’s all Stand Up to show unity, Take Action on issues concerning their respective nations, and Make Noise so that their leaders going to the UN Summit will hear and have no excuses not to fulfill their promise. 2015 is just a few sleeps away!

Visit www.standupphilippines.ph to get updates on the SUTA 2010 here in the Philippines and www.endpoverty2010.org for our campaign towards the 2015 MDG deadline.

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UN Millennium Campaign launches 2010 Stand Up, Take Action Campaign

Manila, Philippines, August 16, 2010–The United Nations (UN) system in the Philippines launched the 2010 Stand Up, Take Action campaign on August 11, 2010 to push the government to accelerate progress on the achievement of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The MDGs are eight goals that world leaders committed to achieving by 2015 during the MDG Summit in New York in 2000. The MDGs are eight concrete, specific, and time-bound targets on improving the lives of the world’s poorest people. These goals are: 1) end extreme poverty and hunger; 2) achieve universal primary education; 3) promote gender equality and empower women; 4) reduce child mortality; 5) improve maternal health; 6) combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; 7) ensure environmental sustainability; and 8) develop a global partnership for development.

(UN Resident Coordinator Jacqueline Badcock, Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman and Social Watch Lead Convenor Leonor Briones)

Stand Up, Take Action is a global initiative against poverty that mobilizes citizens all over the world to compel their world leaders to achieve the eight MDGs by 2015, as committed in the Millennium Declaration signed in 2000.

“The year 2010 is very special because it marks the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Millennium Development Goals Declaration. It also signals the beginning of the five years left for the Philippines to fulfill its commitment to put an end to poverty and hunger and other development challenges, such as lack of access to education, high child and maternal mortality rate, diseases and environmental destruction by 2015,” said Dr. Jacqueline Badcock, Resident Coordinator of the UN System in the Philippines.

Dr. Leonor Briones, Social Watch Philippines lead convenor, discussed the importance of localizing the MDGs. “When the first report from the government on the MDGs came out, we insisted that the MDGs be localized. We insisted that the overall figures be broken down in terms of regions, in terms of provinces, in terms of municipalities,” Briones said. She emphasized the role of local governments and the citizens in achieving the MDGs. “In the experience of Social Watch, we have been most successful when we partnered with local government officials.” Dr. Briones reported that analyzing the 33 percent national level of poverty, the poorest regions in Mindanao have poverty levels that goes as high as 97 percent where mostly indigenous and Muslim people reside. National figures do not automatically reflect the actual state of the MDGs.

“There are still many people who do not have the notion of a national government or a national budget, even the Millennium Development Goals,” Briones revealed. “The Millennium Development Goals is not for showing off in the United Nations. The MDGs are for us.The MDGs are for the Filipino people.”

The UN Millennium Campaign in the Philippines has declared September 13 to 19 as MDG Week, during which various Stand Up, Take Action activities will be spearheaded by socio-civic and private organizations nationwide as part of a concerted, multilateral effort to push for the achievement of the MDGs. Among the marquee events identified are: the weeklong exhibits and discussions at the House of Representatives, the launch of the Citizen’s MDG Report, the Bike for MDGs, simultaneous reading of the Khutba in Mindanao, and the nationwide noise-making activity called the “Make-a-Noise for the MDGs Day,” to be held at exactly 12 noon on September 18. The Stand Up, Take Action campaign will conclude with the MyStreet Party, to be held on the same day at the Ayala, Makati grounds.

With this year’s theme of citizen-led monitoring of the MDGs, Jaime Garchitorena, founding member of Young Public Servants, also launched the MyStreet Portal, a web-based tool that aims to become the collaborative platform for local government units, national government, civil society organizations, media and citizens to monitor the MDGs through the delivery of basic goods and services at the local level.

The Philippine government, represented by Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman also signified its commitment to achieve the MDGs. Sec. Soliman recognized the actual state of the Philippines in terms of the development of MDGs. She presented the major government initiatives to address the issues of poverty, social injustice, and employment among other social crises in the country including the Conditional Cash Transfer program, convergence of key projects led by different government agencies and empowerment of people to improve their socio-economic status. These are just the very basic social protection measures to address the MDGs. According to Sec. Soliman, “What I think we need to work on in addition to the convergence and complementation of my co-servants in government is precisely active citizenship in helping us monitor all these programs that I have just talked about.”

As a symbol of commitment and unified efforts to achieve the MDGs by 2015, UN representative Dr. Jacqueline Badcock, CSO representative Dr. Leonor Briones, and government representative Sec. Dinky Soliman, participated in the ceremonial Millennium Development Goal Countdown to the 2015 UN Review Summit.

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