Having a Heart for Africa*

[Anu]

<strong>By Tracey Hackett, Contributing Editor
2008.2</strong>

U2 lead singer Bono has described her as ?one of the heroes? for her response to the African AIDS pandemic.

Agnes Nyamayarwo is the leader of the Mulago Positive Women?s Network, an organization started in January 2004 to address the special needs of HIV-positive women in Uganda.

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Thanks to the MPWN?s new web site ? launched on Valentine?s Day to encourage people around the world to ?have a heart for Africa? ? the heroics of Nyamayarwo and her constituents are as close to the rest of us as our computer screens.

The web site (<a href="http://www.mpwn-uganda.org" target="_blank">www.mpwn-uganda.org</a>) provides a ?unique opportunity for the public to interact with some of those in Africa directly affected by the AIDS pandemic,? organizers say.

?The HIV and AIDS crisis in Africa has been recognized as the worst health epidemic in modern human history. Already, more than 37 million people around the world have died of AIDS, with at least 25 million of them in sub-Saharan Africa,? organizers continue.

The new web site includes personal stories of some of the MPWN women, including Nyamayarwo, who are ?living positively? with HIV. Before starting the MPWN, she was one of the main speakers on the ?Heart of America? tour in December 2002, which launched Bono?s DATA organization advocating for debt, AIDS, trade and Africa.
The U2 front man met Nyamayarwo earlier in 2002 during a trip to Africa and was inspired by her courage and her personal struggle with HIV.

Through her continued work with the MPWN ? based in Kampala, Uganda ? she advocates on behalf of the world?s poorest people.

In addition to telling the personal stories of Nyamayarwo and other MPWN women, the organization?s new web site will also allow visitors to purchase traditional African craft items produced by the program?s members.

All proceeds from the sale of these pieces will go directly to the women who produce them, organizers say, and among the items available for purchase are beaded necklaces, batik wall hangings, hand-carved wooden statues, baskets of all sizes, shapes and colors, and an African mother and child doll handmade by Nyamayarwo herself.

It also features links to associated web sites, where visitors can learn more about stopping extreme poverty in African and the spread of HIV and AIDS.
The MPWN is affiliated with The AIDS Support Organization of Uganda. TASO is one of the longest established and most prestigious African-initiated AIDS organizations on the continent. For more information about TASO, visit its web site at <a href="http://www.tasouganda.org." target="_blank">www.tasouganda.org.</a>

Bono?s activities for Africa are carried out through DATA (<a href="http://www.data.org" target="_blank">www.data.org</a>), the One campaign to make poverty history (<a href="http://www.one.org" target="_blank">www.one.org</a>), Red (<a href="http://www.joinred.com" target="_blank">www.joinred.com</a>), and Edun (<a href="http://www.edunonline.com" target="_blank">www.edunonline.com</a>).

The MPWN organizers would like to thank Jason Liebe and Iterative Media of Austin, Texas, for assistance with the creation and maintenance of the new web site.

They say they also want to thank Juliet Tembe and TASO, all the people at DATA and One, along with Debbie Kreuser, Sue Sadkowski, and Bono.

<em>For more information about the MPWN and its new web site, call 512/992-7782.</em>

 

[Jamila]

On behalf of the MPWN website, we would like to thank Tracey and everybody on the Interference staff that were a part of this article.

Your kindness is very much appreciated.



We have had a wonderful week letting others know about our new website and answering the emails that we have received about our craft items.

We have sold over $100 in craft items made by the members of the MPWN already!



The sale of these crafts is the main way that many of the women of the MPWN have right now to support their families. And please remember - ALL proceeds from the sale of our items go directly to the women who make the items.

What could be better than that?



Thank you for all the good wishes that we are receiving and all the inquiries regarding our craft items. We'll be back with another update on our activities soon.


Thank you for all your support of our efforts.

 

[Jamila]

We have just received a new shipment of craft items from Uganda with several new items in it which I have never seen before.


There are beautiful new necklaces made from the seeds of local trees, new multicolored coin purses (quite cool) and HANDMADE GREETING CARDS!


We will be posting these on the website within the next week but if you are interested in any of these, you can contact me for more info at ultravioletlove_14@yahoo.com or through the website.


And Thank You, Interferencers, for supporting this project for these women who have a special place in the Heart of a certain Irishman.

 

[Jamila]

I just wanted to let y'all know that last week I received a new shipment of craft items from our friends in Uganda and the craft items look GREAT!


I've had a very busy week and haven't been able to post the new craft items on the MPWN website yet but I did want you to know that they are in so please be on the outlook for some EXCELLENT NEW CRAFT ITEMS soon.



I also wanted to extend to all of you an invitation to JOIN US at www.change.org or at www.myspace. com where I am hosting several discussion areas about the Mulago Positive Women's Network (MPWN).


All the Best....


Living Positively, debbie

 

[Jamila]

Today, members of ONE from the DC office were in Kampala Uganda visiting the Mulago Hospital and the offices of TASO there.



TASO is the "mother" organization of the MPWN which is also stationed at the Mulago Hospital.


There is a lot happening right now in regards to this so, for now, let me just give you a link where you can find out more what ONE is doing in Uganda today!


http://www.one.org/blog/2008/03/10/visiting-taso/#comment-536836


ONE HEART, ONE HOPE, ONE LOVE -

 

[Jamila]

This was an email action alert that many ONE members got yesterday.


If you have not yet contacted your Senators to encourage them to support the Feinstein-Smith Amendment to restore $2.6 Billion in funding for programs that fight AIDS and extreme poverty in the International Affairs sector of the FY2009 budget - PLEASE DO IT TOMORROW MORNING!


It is ONE small thing that you can do which will have a big difference for good in the lives of millions of people.


Thank you.

============================================


Dear Debbie,


I am writing you from Kampala, Uganda. I just visited TASO (The AIDS Support Organization) Mulago, one of the largest treatment, prevention, and care centers in Uganda, and took this picture of the line of people waiting. They tell us that often there are more people in line than they have medication for. The need is greater than the funding here.


This funding comes from the international affairs budget. Unfortunately, the Senate is poised to slash billions of dollars from the president's 2009 international affairs budget, and, while we will deliver our petition asking senators to restore the funding, there is still much more we should do.


It's going to be a close vote to save the funding, and to make sure that Senators....vote for a budget that reflects our values, we need to start making some phone calls.


While talking to their staff, make sure to tell them:


You are a constituent and a ONE member.

You want them to support the Feinstein-Smith amendment to restore $2.6 billion to the international affairs budget, to match the House of Representatives funding level....



Uganda is home to one of the earliest African success stories in the fight against AIDS. Thanks to the work of groups like TASO, they have cut the number of people in Uganda living with HIV by more than half.


By restoring this funding we're one step closer to making sure that the U.S. adequately funds programs like TASO and others that help provide basic education, clean water, and lifesaving medicines. Making a phone call is the single best way to make this happen.



I was invited to a woman's home this morning who was receiving AIDS treatment from TASO. I asked what message she'd like to send back to America. She wanted us to convey her thanks to all those people who make it possible for her to be receiving treatment.


Thank you for your voice,

Josh Peck, ONE.org

 

[Jamila]

Here is an article about one of the members of the MPWN which was sent in by a supporter of the MPWN:


http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/26/611275


HIV-positive women need their rights

Wednesday, 13th February, 2008


Katabaire encourages HIV-positive women

By Angela Hill


When Fausta Katabaire, 54, worked to found the Mulago Positive Women’s Network (MPWN) in 2004, she wanted to help HIV-positive women realise their lives were not yet over.


Now, as the treasurer of the organisation, Katabaire encourages HIV-positive women to train and get skills, work and fight for their rights.

Women are at a greater risk of contracting HIV than men because of social, cultural and biological factors like child marriages, polygamy, rape, defilement, wife inheritance, poverty, exploitation and ignorance.


Katabaire lost her husband to AIDS in 1997 and struggled to keep her children in school. She was lucky that after her husband’s death, his family did not try to take away her children or property, as is often the case in some areas in Uganda.



The Uganda Women Lawyers Association (FIDA), deals with so many issues surrounding unfair treatment of people living with HIV/AIDS and they have a project dedicated to addressing the rights of these people.

Barbara Babweteera is a lawyer working on the Legal Rights for People Affected by HIV/AIDS project and is based in Kamuli.


Babweteera says as long as a couple was legally married, when the man dies, the woman can be protected because the property belongs to both the husband and wife.

“In cases where the relationship is not recognised by the legal system, the assets go to the children. It is harder to protect the women in these cases.”


Babweteera says a major concern in her area is the practice of wife inheritance. When a man dies, his wife can be inherited by his brother, which when combined with polygamy, can lead to a greater spread of HIV.


The issues are not just surrounding the death of a spouse. When a woman is discovered to be HIV-positive she can also encounter conflict.

“Many women are sent away and their property is taken by the relatives. Some even had their children taken,” said Katabaire, about some of the women in her group.



FIDA tries to provide an avenue for these women to fight. They try to mediate between the couple to avoid using the legal system. Often times, says Babweteera, with counselling the issues can be resolved.

However, Katabaire says many women do not know where to go for help. It is these women the MPWN aims to help.




The organisation has mobilisation teams that target women who have gone to Mulago Hospital for treatment, those that have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and those who have been neglected at home.


The teams visit the women’s communities and meet their families to encourage positive living of those with HIV/AIDS, especially those who are facing stigma and hostility. A big part of their work relies on peer counselling, women sharing their stories and training.


The organisation offers information to women on topics such as adherence, nutrition for patients and their families, hygiene and trains them in small business book keeping.


“We encourage women living with HIV/AIDS to be active for as long as they are still strong,” Katabaire says.


MPWN is creating a training centre on Gayaza Road, seven miles from Kampala. When completed, the members plan to start mushroom growing, piggery, poultry keeping and fish farming. They will also be taught about beading, jewellery making and sewing.


The association encourages its members to plant fruits and vegetables in order to provide balanced nutrition to their families. To facilitate this, MPWN hands out seedlings.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


I'll have some comments on this excellent article in the posts to come in.


Thanks to the person who sent this in. We encourage all of you to get involved with our efforts to help these women.

 

[Jamila]

I want to extend to all of you an invitation to JOIN US at www.change.org or at www.myspace.com where I am hosting several discussion areas about the Mulago Positive Women's Network (MPWN).


At the page for the MPWN at www.change.org I have posted several photos of some of the women of the organization - including one of Agnes sewing together an "Agnes" African mother and child doll and one from last year of Fausta, who was featured in the article above.


We hope that you'll check these photos out and let us know how you like them.

 

[Jamila]

If you receive regular email updates from ONE then you would have received this one on Tuesday from Agnes Nyamayarwo:



Dear Debbie,


My name is Agnes Nyamayarwo. I'm a nurse, a mother and an activist living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.


It has been more than a decade since I lost my husband, Augustine, and youngest child, Christopher, to AIDS; another son, Charles, ran away from home to escape the stigma of this disease.


Now I honor their memory through my work with an organization called TASO (The AIDS Support Organization) here in Kampala, Uganda. At TASO, I work with HIV/AIDS patients, orphans and mothers to try and save others from experiencing the pain I have.


I am also a member of the TASO Board of Trustees, representing the views of people living with HIV/AIDS in all the 11 centers of TASO across the country.


Your work at ONE to make global AIDS an American priority has touched my heart. Last week, you asked your members of Congress to support the reauthorization of PEPFAR and fund the fight against AIDS, TB, and malaria and you won.


Now PEPFAR goes to the U.S. Senate and I'm asking you to please sign ONE's petition and urge your senators to co-sponsor this lifesaving bill.


http://www.one.org/pepfarsenate?id=286-221534-NbmgRw&t=3


Tell your senators that a vote for this bill is a vote to provide TASO and other groups like ours with anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs and to help us in the all the work we do at the clinic and in neighborhoods across Kampala.

Two pills that cost only a few dollars a day can save a life. I know, because I take ARVs and I remember how sick I was before and am amazed at how strong I am now.


I use my strength to raise awareness among women about the risks of mother-to-child transmission so they can be tested and protect their children. I also talk to young people in my community about HIV/AIDS to help end the stigma and to teach about testing and prevention.


American generosity supports what I and so many other people are doing here to try and end the suffering caused by AIDS. PEPFAR has already provided women with treatment during ten million pregnancies and helped 30 million people get access to voluntary counseling and testing.


You can ask your senators to co-sponsor PEPFAR reauthorization and bring hope to a new generation here in Uganda.


http://www.one.org/pepfarsenate?id=286-221534-NbmgRw&t=4



Being able to make a difference in this war against HIV/AIDS is the cause of my life and fills me with joy. I hope you can feel the same way about the work you do as ONE members. Together, our voices and our actions can win the struggle against global AIDS and save lives.


Thank you for joining me,


Agnes Nyamayarwo, ONE Member

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

If you live in the USA and haven't taken this action yet, I encourage you to contact your Senators and let them know that you support the full funding of the PEPFAR program - to help Agnes and all those in Africa who daily struggle with HIV/AIDS and poverty.


Thank you.

 

[Jamila]

It has been a few days since I last updated this thread so here it is.


We are working with the web masters of our website to update it with some more stories of the women of the MPWN and some new craft items that are available for purchase.


We'll let you know when these changes have been made so that you can check out our new & improved MPWN website!



In the meantime, I will be developing a few ideas of interest that surrounds the MPWN in the next week or so in order that people can get a better idea of how people in the "majority world" actually deal with AIDS & abject poverty in their daily lives.



Thank you all for your continued support of the MPWN website and of the efforts of these courageous women to live positive lives in the midst of all the challenges that they face.

 

[Jamila]

I just wanted y'all to know that if you're in the Austin TX area this weekend we would love for you to stop by our ONE/ (RED) booth at the Austin Reggae Festival.

This will be the FIFTH year in a row that I have staffed a ONE booth at this music festival and it is a blast!



The music is excellent, the food is great and the African/Caribbean crafts are beautiful. This is one Austin music festival not to miss.


Every year I sign up at least 200 people for ONE at this festival plus spread the message of (RED) along the way. This year there will be an additional separate side area from the ONE area to spread the word / highlight the crafts of the MPWN (www.mpwn-uganda.org).


It will be an IRIE time for all at the 2008 Austin Reggae Music Festival !!





Here is all the specific info that you'll need to attend this weekend:

http://www.one.org/event/events/event.html?event_id=414


Austin Reggae Fest

Auditorium Shores
950 W. Riverside Drive

19 Apr, 12:00 PM

2008 AUSTIN REGGAE FESTIVAL Presented by the Capital Area Food Bank Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20 Music from noon to 10 pm both days Great people-watching, plus arts & crafts market and exotic foods! Admission is $10 per day plus two cans of food Children 12 and under free with adult. Handicapped accessible.




Hope to see you there - for Africa's Future !!


ONE HEART, ONE HOPE, ONE LOVE - debbie

 

[Jamila]

I'm back after the most IRIE time at the Austin Reggae festival this past weekend!


I was able to sign up slightly over 300 more people for ONE, informed at least 300 more people of (RED) and, at another side booth, I was able to raise over $250 for the MPWN!


The weather was beautiful and the crowds were huge.
African/Caribbean music, crafts and food was all around - I simply was in heaven. (smile)


I had a day off work yesterday which was good because after standing on my feet talking to people about Africa for over twelve hours each day, I was completely exhausted and lost my voice!

I'm better today. More later....


All the Best, debbie

 

[Jamila]

Just to thank those of you who have either already bought some of the MPWN craft items or are in the process of doing so because your continued efforts for these women ARE bearing fruit.


Last night after work, I was able to send to Uganda the latest amount of money raised for these women in the last month.

Although compared to our standards here in the rich world, the several hundred dollars is not that much money, for these women the money is a life-saver.



It allows them to send their children to school (and buy them the clothes necessary to go to school), especially the girls, which all these women want to do so that their girls grow up to be independent, self-sufficient and happy people and so that they have a better chance of living a long and productive life.


Thank you on behalf of the women. Please continue to support them in their efforts to help their families.



ONE HEART, ONE HOPE, ONE LOVE - debbie

 

[Jamila]

This morning I got a message from one of the women in the MPWN thanking me for everything that I am trying to do for the mothers of their group in their efforts to provide for their children.

She told me that, in a real way, I am a mother to these mothers and they are all grateful. ~



What a sense of gratitude that I felt upon reading these words - that women who struggle everyday to provide for the basics for their families while attempting to LIVE POSITIVELY with HIV/AIDS would take the time out of their day to remember me !

That says a lot about these amazing women.



So if there's a way that you could take the moment or two to check out our website for the women of the MPWN and read about THESE MOTHERS' COURAGEOUS FIGHT FOR LIFE in their battle with AIDS and poverty - please do.

And if there's a way that you could purchase one or two of their craft items that we help them sell at the site to help them take care of their families, that would be excellent too!



ALL proceeds from the sale of the MPWN craft items go directly back to the women who make them.

And what could be better than that?



LIVING POSITIVELY, debbie
www.mpwn-uganda.org



PS: Happy Mother's Day !

 

[Zoomerang96]

who are you talking to, exactly?

 

[Jamila]

I am talking to the 1414 people who have already viewed this thread.

Please - for the sake of the people who are trying to save their lives in Africa, don't turn this thread into anything negative.


If someone is not interested in reading what I'm posting here or if you don't care about this issue, please just find a place at Interference where you're happy.


Bono calls it, COEXIST.

 

[Jamila]

There is currently an ATROCITY on the verge of taking place in the U.S. Senate. A small group of Republican Senators are attempting to stop the re-authorization of the PEPFAR program - the program that Bono and DATA were so instrumental in getting passed into U.S. law in 2003 and the program which has literally saved MILLIONS of lives in Africa.



If PEPFAR is not re-authorized in Congress, it will cease to exist and put at risk those MILLIONS of people's lives who have been helped by PEPFAR!

This SIMPLY CAN NOT HAPPEN and we're ASKING FOR YOUR VOICE to stop this travesty.




PLEASE GO TO WWW. ONE. ORG & SIGN THE PETITION TO MAKE SURE THAT PEPFAR CONTINUES.


Here's the link:

http://www.one.org/pepfarsenate/



And if you'd like some more info on the SUCCESS OF PEPFAR, please click here:

http://one.org/pepfar/



I'll have more on this issue in a few days but please take this small step today to help save millions of people's lives in Africa which are currently at risk in the U.S. Senate.



Thank you for your concern for the world's poorest people. ~



ALWAYS FOREVER, ONE - debbie

 

[Jamila]

Sorry for the break in posting updates to this thread. Many things have been happening.


One of the positive things that has been happening has been the participation of some friends of the MPWN in a MAJOR international conference taking place in Kampala, Uganda on the international HIV/AIDS crisis from the perspective of those who are responsible for IMPLEMENTING the programs which provide the life-giving assistance that HIV/AIDS affected people, including AIDS orphaned children, partake in.

This includes PEPFAR, the Global Fund, the U.N. agencies and other concerned international organizations.

Here is the website for more info.

2008 HIV/AIDS Implementers' Meeting - Kampala, Uganda - June 3-7, 2008



I hope to be able to share with all of you soon some of the results coming out of that conference.

--------------------------------------------------------------------


For today, I want to repost a recent editorial from the Washington Post about the continuing battle in the Senate to re-authorize PEPFAR.

Simply put, if PEPFAR is not extended, millions of people's lives in Africa will be at risk.



I do not want to see that happen. I hope that you do not either.

I'll be back soon.



All the Best, debbie




Senate Roadblock - washingtonpost.com


Senate Roadblock
Partisan concerns and side issues must not stop a key U.S. HIV-AIDS initiative.


Sunday, June 1, 2008



THE PRESIDENT'S Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is American "soft power" at its life-saving best. Since 2003, PEPFAR has supported HIV testing and counseling for more than 33 million people and care for more than 6.6 million (including more than 2.7 million orphans and other children infected and affected by HIV). The program has funded medicine for about 1.5 million men, women and children worldwide, the vast majority of them in sub-Saharan Africa. Even President Bush's harshest critics concede that PEPFAR, which has cost $15 billion so far, is one of his best accomplishments. When Mr. Bush asked Congress to authorize a five-year, $30 billion extension, Democratic lawmakers in both houses raised the proposed funding level to $50 billion, and legislation sailed through with bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.



Then it stopped: Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and six other Republicans have exercised their prerogative to keep it off the Senate floor. Mr. Coburn wants to mandate that 55 percent of PEPFAR's money go to treating those who are already sick with AIDS -- as opposed to preventing new cases and other purposes. That was the rule during PEPFAR's first five years. And Mr. Coburn has a point: As the program grows to include tuberculosis and malaria and as the definition of HIV-AIDS prevention work expands, PEPFAR risks mutating into all-purpose development aid or taking on goals -- such as changing traditional attitudes toward gender -- which are not only culturally sensitive but hard to measure in terms of progress.



Yet history does not support Mr. Coburn's broader argument for mandated spending targets. In fact, drug prices dropped so much over the past five years that PEPFAR met its treatment goals for less than 55 percent of its budget each year. In devising the next five-year plan, the White House assumed that this positive trend would continue. The epidemic does not follow predictable patterns. In some countries, it is a generalized problem; in others, it is concentrated in a particular region or population subgroup. Last year, the Institute of Medicine, a unit of the National Academy of Sciences, told Congress that it should eliminate fixed directives for PEPFAR. Better to let individual country teams tailor programs to fit their particular needs, the institute said. Last month, the Government Accountability Office reported on a survey of 22 international HIV-AIDS experts, most of whom backed a more flexible approach. The GAO report raised particular questions about the efficacy of a requirement, inserted in the current PEPFAR law by conservative Republicans, that requires 33 percent of all prevention funds to be spent teaching abstinence and fidelity.



Both the House and Senate bills remove rigid mandates for treatment and prevention spending. But, avoiding a new culture war, they meet conservatives' concerns, requiring that PEPFAR recipients promise to stay out of prostitution and that country teams tell Congress if abstinence and fidelity programs fall to less than half of their prevention spending. This is compromise legislation that expands and modernizes America's signature global health initiative. Properly implemented under careful congressional oversight, it could add to PEPFAR's proud record. Mr. Coburn and his colleagues should get out of the way.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Please contact your Senators to support PEPFAR's re-authorization. You can find their contact info at U.S. Senate ray:

 

[Jamila]

Hi EveryONE,


PEPFAR, America's main vehicle for helping end the suffering caused by global AIDS is in trouble. The two most powerful senators, Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell, need to hear from us that we appreciate their past support and need their leadership now on this critical bill.


I just took action with the ONE Campaign and you can too, here:

Reid, McConnell and PEPFAR



If PEPFAR is not re-authorized this fiscal year, the futures and the lives of millions of African people - men, women and children - will be at risk!


Join us....AS ONE.



ONE HEART, ONE HOPE, ONE VOICE, ONE LOVE - debbie

 

[Jamila]

There is some hopeful news on the future of the PEPFAR program.


Thank you if you have added your voice to the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have stood up for the continuation of PEPFAR.

The battle is not over yet but it is looking better!



So please make sure to contact your Senators TOMORROW and let them know that you support the re-authorization (extension) of the PEPFAR program.




Take very good care, my friends. Blessings always.



ALWAYS FOREVER, ONE - debbie

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


Politics and Policy | Sen. Reid Sets Tuesday Deadline for Agreement on PEPFAR Reauthorization Legislation

[Jun 20, 2008]



Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has set a Tuesday deadline for negotiators to come to an agreement on measures (HR 5501, S 2731) that would reauthorize the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, the AP/Google.com reports. In a statement released on Thursday, Reid said it is "confounding and indefensible" that seven Republican senators, led by Sen. Tom Coburn (Okla.), are blocking a vote. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Joseph Biden (D-Del.) and Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), the committee's ranking member, are working on a compromise, according to Reid (Abrams, AP/Google.com, 6/19). Coburn on Thursday said that he did not want to comment on the issue because negotiations were still ongoing with the White House (Reilly, The Politico/CBS News, 6/19).




The Senate version of the PEPFAR reauthorization bill passed the Foreign Relations Committee in March, and the House version was approved 308-116 in April. Both the Senate and House versions of the bill would reauthorize PEPFAR at $50 billion over five years. However, Coburn and six other Republican senators are blocking the legislation because they are opposed to the legislation's cost and "mission creep" into health and development efforts. In addition, they want language inserted into the measure that would guarantee that 55% of PEPFAR funding goes toward treatment, including antiretroviral drugs. Some advocates have said that they would agree to the treatment language but that efforts to compromise with Coburn have been ineffective (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/19).



"There is no question that PEPFAR has been the most successful foreign aid program since the Marshall Plan," Coburn said during a recent speech. He also has said that without the funding provision for treatment programs, money could be diverted into unrelated development and poverty programs. Coburn added, "Will we turn PEPFAR into just another bloated, unmeasured and unmeasurable foreign aid program with no accountability and no real impact?" Some other conservative lawmakers also are concerned that funds will go toward "politically sensitive" programs -- including the "distribution of condoms, male circumcision or family planning" -- the AP/Google.com reports.



Coburn and supporters of the block face "heavyweight" opponents who support passage of the reauthorization legislation, the AP/Google.com reports. Presumptive presidential nominees Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) are both co-sponsors of the Senate bill. Obama recently said, "Today an estimated 40 million people around the world are living with HIV/AIDS, with over four million new infections in 2006 alone." He added, "I urge my colleagues to bring this important bill to the Senate floor for a vote as soon as possible." In addition, 14 Republican senators, led by Lugar, last month wrote Senate leaders urging quick consideration of the bill. They wrote that PEPFAR "has served as a powerful demonstration of U.S. leadership and compassion throughout the world." Lugar has stressed the need to act before President Bush goes to the summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations next month in Hokkaido, Japan (AP/Google.com 6/19).



Politics and Policy | Sen. Reid Sets Tuesday Deadline for Agreement on PEPFAR Reauthorization Legislation - Kaisernetwork.org

 

[Jamila]

I have some very worrying news to share with all of you regarding the effort to get PEPFAR re-authorized.


I hope that after reading this news, you'll be willing to help our movement to end AIDS & extreme poverty to pass this legislation - to save the millions of lives that are being helped right now from programs that Bono & "his" organizations have had a large part in forming.

=================================


U.S. SENATE HOLDS UP THE PASSAGE OF PEPFAR LEGISLATION



Friday, June 27, 2008



Politics and Policy Senate Attempts To Pass PEPFAR Measure, Faces Continued Block Over Cost; PEPFAR Issues Annual Report




Senators on Thursday attempted to pass measures (HR 5501, S 2731) that would reauthorize the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, but Republican opponents of the legislation vowed to continue to block it because of its cost, Reuters reports. Wesley Denton, a spokesperson for Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) said, "Senator DeMint objects to a huge increase in deficit spending and the lack of real oversight to ensure funds are going for medical purposes to help those in need."



On Wednesday, "progress toward passing the bill in the Senate" came after negotiators reached an agreement on funding allocation (Cowan, Reuters, 6/26). Under the agreement, "more than half" of PEPFAR funding would go to treatment. The agreement also requires that antiretrovirals used in PEPFAR programs be approved by FDA or another approved regulator agency. In addition, the agreement prevents PEPFAR funding for wealthier developing nations, such as China and Russia (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/26).



The bill's supporters sought to pass the legislation before President Bush leaves for the Group of Eight industrialized nations summit, which begins July 7 in Japan. The House passed its version of PEPFAR reauthorization in April (Reuters, 6/26). Bush has said he would like it to pass in Congress so he can use it at the summit to call for increased contributions from other countries (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/26).



PEPFAR Report


In related news, PEPFAR on Thursday released a report that found the program is helping to supply antiretroviral drugs to 1.73 million people worldwide, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, up from 50,000 in the region when the program began in 2003 (Reuters, 6/26). "Only a few years ago, many doubted whether prevention, treatment and care could ever successfully be provided in resource-limited settings, where HIV was a death sentence," Ambassador Mark Dybul, who administers PEPFAR, said. He added, "Today, while much remains to be done, the skeptics have been proven wrong. Millions of people are on life-saving antiretroviral treatment in developing countries, and many millions more have benefited from prevention and care programs ." Since the program's inception, PEPFAR has supported prevention of mother-to child-transmission for women during more than 12.7 million pregnancies. For pregnant women found to be HIV-positive, it has provided antiretroviral prophylaxis in more than one million pregnancies, preventing transmission of HIV to an estimated 194,000 infants. (PEPFAR release, 6/26).


The report is available online (.pdf).




Related Editorial


"It will be irresponsible if PEPFAR isn't reauthorized, and successful life-saving health programs and treatments are disrupted, before the current legislation expires," a Contra Costa Times editorial says. "We urge the Senate to approve" the legislation "before its July 4 break or Aug. 11 recess," the editorial says (Contra Costa Times, 6/26).



Politics and Policy | Senate Attempts To Pass PEPFAR Measure, Faces Continued Block Over Cost; PEPFAR Issues Annual Report - Kaisernetwork.org


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FYI:


Senators Sessions, Vitter (R-LA), and DeMint (R-SC) are the recalcitrant senators blocking the PEPFAR bill.




This is an inconscienable action by the U.S. Senate and could lead to the deaths of millions of African People if this legislation is not passed SOON!



If you would like to contact the three Senators mentioned above and let them know how you feel about their actions to stop PEPFAR, please exercise your democratic right to voice your opinions to them, especially if you live in South Carolina, Louisiana and Alabama.