Kaisernetwork.org (Washington, DC)
17 April 2008
Global Challenges
African Countries Have Made Least Progress in Reducing Infant, Maternal Deaths, Report Says
[Apr 17, 2008]
Some countries in Africa have made the least progress among developing nations worldwide toward reaching targets in the United Nations Millennium Development Goal of reducing infant and maternal deaths, according to a report released on Wednesday, Reuters reports (Roelf, Reuters, 4/16). The report was released by the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, which includes about 240 members such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization and Save the Children (SAPA/Independent Online, 4/16). The report found that the 10 countries with the worst infant mortality rates are in sub-Saharan Africa, which is highly affected by HIV/AIDS, according to UNICEF Chief of Health Peter Salama. "Many of these countries where under-five mortality has actually increased since 1990 are high HIV prevalence countries ... such as Botswana, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and South Africa," Salama said.
The report calls for an additional $10 billion to improve health interventions and reduce mortality rates. About 10 million women and children die annually from preventable causes, and major challenges include poor nutrition, weak health infrastructures and a lack of funds. Many of the countries that made little or no progress on infant and maternal deaths are experiencing health care worker shortages, according to Reuters. Countries that have made progress took steps such as bolstering vaccine programs and distributing more vitamin supplements and insecticide-treated nets (Reuters, 4/16).
The report is available online.
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Relatives of Detained Chinese HIV-Positive Protesters Appeal for Their Release
[Apr 17, 2008]
The relatives of a group of HIV-positive people on Wednesday in Beijing appealed to police to release the group, which was detained after protesting in front of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Reuters reports (Blanchard, Reuters, 4/16).
On April 5, Chinese police allegedly beat, shocked and detained 11 HIV-positive protesters from the Shahe province who were hoping to attract Wen's attention about their efforts to be compensated by a hospital where they allegedly contracted HIV through tainted blood in the mid-1990s, according to Beijing-based HIV advocate Wan Yanhai of the Aizhixing Institute. The protesters also were sprayed in the face with a substance that caused them to become unconscious, Wan said. They were then taken to a hospital and detained.
Wang Weijun, a friend of the protesters, said three women later were released after they agreed to drop their complaint against the government and not discuss the incident. The other protesters -- six men and two women -- did not agree to the conditions, Wang said.
According to Wan, the Shahe local court has refused to accept the group's case against the hospital, and the local government has not supported them despite making a pledge to do so. Although the Chinese government has acknowledged responsibility for HIV cases that were transmitted through tainted blood, many HIV-positive people who contracted the virus through blood transfusions have had difficulty receiving compensation (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 4/14).
A relative of one of the detained HIV-positive people, who asked to remain anonymous, said, "Our husbands have been detained, so how can we live?" She added, "We have come to Beijing to use the law to find out what happened to them." In response to repeated calls, police and government officials in Shahe have said that they are not familiar with the case or that it is not within their jurisdiction.
The detainees' lawyer Jiang Tianyong said police told him the case was a matter of national security, and they have refused to say what happened to the protesters or what charges could be brought against them. The protesters "just went hoping to meet Wen," Jiang said, adding, "They heard he was a person who cared about the people's suffering. We hope their husbands can be released as soon as possible" (Reuters, 4/16).
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Workplace Attitudes Toward HIV/AIDS, Acceptance of Condoms Improving, ILO Report Finds
[Apr 17, 2008]
Workplace attitudes toward people living with HIV/AIDS, and acceptance of condom use and other preventive measures have increased in some countries as a result of HIV policies and practices, according to a report by the International Labour Organization, the U.N. News Service reports (U.N. News Service, 4/15). The report, titled "Saving Lives, Protecting Jobs," was prepared by the ILO Programme on HIV/AIDS in the World of Work and presented Monday to the U.S. Department of Labor, which is the funding partner in the Strategic HIV/AIDS Responses in Enterprises, or SHARE, project, Occupational Health Safety reports.
The report tracked changes in attitudes related to HIV/AIDS and looked at data collected from the ministries of labor, and employers and employees from workplaces in six SHARE pilot countries, including Belize, Benin, Cambodia, Ghana, Guyana and Togo. According to the report, in all six countries, the proportion of workers who reported supportive attitudes toward co-workers living with HIV/AIDS increased on average from 49% in 2003 to 63% (Occupational Health Safety, 4/15). Attitudes toward condom use also improved in the six countries. The percentage of workers who reported using condoms with nonregular partners increased from 74% in 2003 to 84%, the report found. The recorded changes in behavior could be attributed partly to the increased access to HIV services in the workplaces in all six countries, the report noted (U.N. News Service, 4/15). According to an ILO release, the report also found that in 2003 when SHARE started, only 14% of the participating workplaces in the six pilot countries had codified HIV policies. The report found that 76% of the participating enterprises now have written policies.
ILO's SHARE project is active in more than 650 workplaces in 24 countries and covers about one million workers. Of the 24 countries, 16 have adopted a national policy or declaration on HIV. Sophia Kisting, director of ILO's Programme on HIV/AIDS in the World of Work, said the program "helps to protect the ILO's constituents from HIV, which challenges the implementation of its decent work agenda." She added, "Several countries offer outstanding examples of how they address HIV/AIDS using the workplace for prevention, care and support and tackle stigma and discrimination." The report also indicates that employers' and workers' organizations are using ILO's Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS to develop policies and practices for the workplace, according to the release (ILO release, 4/14).
Link to this story.
Politics and Policy
House Passes Bill That Would Expand Debt Relief Plan by 25 Developing Countries
[Apr 17, 2008]
The House on Wednesday voted 285-132 to approve a bill (HR 2634) that would expand the list of poor countries eligible for debt relief by 25 nations, the AP/Google.com reports. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), would require the Bush administration to initiate talks with international financial institutions, such as the World Bank, to establish an agreement allowing new countries to receive debt relief. To be eligible for debt relief, countries must commit to reducing poverty, practicing good governance, holding free elections, fighting corruption and denouncing terrorism and human rights violations, the AP/Google.com reports (Abrams, AP/Google.com, 4/16).
Leaders from the Group of Eight industrialized nations in July 2005 at the close of their summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, agreed to an immediate doubling of aid to Africa to $50 billion annually in order to fight poverty and disease on the continent. The final summit communique officially endorsed a debt relief plan, which canceled at least $40 billion in debt owed by the world's 18 poorest nations. The communique also included an agreement on providing universal access to HIV/AIDS treatment, according to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/7/07).
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