Opinion Editorial: The U.S. and India –
The Promise of Partnerships against AIDS By David C.
Mulford, U.S. Ambassador to India
November 30, 2006
NEW DELHI – Today is World AIDS Day, a
day when people around the world take stock of the
progress being made in one of the greatest global
challenges of our time. Working with public and
private partners around the world, including India,
the United States is engaged with governments, NGOs,
the private sector, religious organizations and the
more than 38 million people living with the disease
today. We must stop the continued spread of HIV-AIDS
– for which there is as yet no cure – and ease the
lives of those combating it.
HIV-AIDS knows no
boundaries. Just over one million people in the
United States are battling the disease. In India,
over five million people are affected by HIV-AIDS,
the vast majority infected by unprotected sexual
intercourse. Although the spread of the disease in
America has been stabilizing, HIV is still a growing
threat to India.
India’s response
to this epidemic is gaining momentum under the
leadership of the National AIDS Control Organization
and Indian government ministries are now
incorporating HIV programs into their annual plans.
The United States remains committed to working in
partnership with the Government of India’s AIDS
control program.
In 2003 U.S. President George W. Bush launched a
$15 billion initiative to fight AIDS around the
world, the largest-ever health initiative to target
a single disease. In India, the U.S. supports
diverse prevention, treatment and care programs with
Indian public and private partners in Tamil Nadu,
Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, where
rates of infection are the highest. These
action-oriented partnerships strengthen India’s
national programs and enhance the grassroots work of
local communities.
In absence of a cure, experience shows that the
problem of HIV cannot be solved by medical solutions
alone, but must involve all sectors of society.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made this clear this
year at the National Youth Convention on HIV-AIDS
when he said, “Non-governmental organizations, civil
society, the private sector, religious leaders…must
all play a prominent role…leading a healthy and safe
sexual life is one of the commitments we must all
make.”
Private industry is also getting involved in the
fight against HIV-AIDS. The Indo-U.S. Corporate Fund
for HIV-AIDS was launched in March, 2006, as part of
an agreement between President Bush and Prime
Minister Singh to strengthen public-private
cooperation in the fight against HIV-AIDS. With
assistance from ICICI Bank, GiveIndia and the U.S.
Government, the fund has received pledges from
Indian businesses totaling 5.8 crores rupees.
Participating businesses can use the Fund to support
innovative HIV-AIDS interventions for prevention and
treatment in their workplaces.
Workplace programs are helping to reduce the
painful stigma that is faced every day by those who
suffer from HIV and spread awareness about how to
protect oneself against infection. Businesses and
governments alike must recognize that supporting
their own employees is a first step all of us can
and should take. Businesses can establish HIV-AIDS
policies in the workplace that provide information
to employees about the disease and safe sex.
Workplace initiatives that involve friends and
colleagues of those suffering from HIV help create a
work and social environment free from the stigma of
HIV.
India is having some success in slowing the rate
of HIV-AIDS infections. For example, HIV
transmission rates in high risk populations and
spread among some populations in Tamil Nadu have
been steadily declining. In that state, the U.S.
joined with the National AIDS Control Organization
and a vast number of local non-government
organizations in a project that reaches out to high
risk populations such as truckers, prostitutes and
migrant workers.
Partnerships with faith-based organizations are
another source of strength in the fight against
HIV-AIDS. Religious leaders representing Bahais,
Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jains, Muslims, Sikhs
and others are joining to use their vast networks of
hospitals and schools across the country to reach
out and provide integrated prevention and treatment
programs.
Those infected by HIV/AIDS have an important
role to play as well. People like Kausar Khan, a
migrant in the city of Mumbai, and others living
with HIV-AIDS can make important contributions in
the fight. Mrs. Khan, who received counseling and
support from a faith-based organization after
contracting HIV from unprotected sex with her
husband, is an inspiring example of the power of
partnerships.
Weak and dying, Kausar Khan was referred to an
anti-retroviral treatment center where her health
improved dramatically after receiving treatment. She
is now a vocal advocate for women who are infected
with HIV and makes home visits as a peer educator.
Her counseling helps other women get treatment and
her personal story brings hope to others in
desperate situations.
In America, we have seen how people living with
HIV-AIDS are strong advocates for others affected by
the disease. They provide living examples of how
proper treatment can help sufferers to lead more
stable, productive lives. Groups in India such as
the Indian Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS
and the Network of Positive People are helping those
affected to live with dignity by reducing the stigma
of HIV.
We need to work together: governments, civil
society, the private sector, religious organizations
and others -- including those suffering from the
disease and their loved ones. We can defeat the
HIV-AIDS epidemic here in India and around the
world. We need to spread the message about how to
prevent the HIV infection in our families, our
communities and our nations. We must also ensure
that those already infected are treated with respect
and have access to the health and support services
they need. This is truly a global challenge. The
fight is now and we must act together to make a
difference.
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