Governments, International Organizations, Private Sector Must Overcome Stigma, Denial of HIV/AIDS, Opinion Piece Says

"The only hope we have to start winning the war against AIDS is to have a clear and consistent message to overcome stigma and dismantle denial" of the disease, Richard Holbrooke, president of the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, writes in a Toronto Globe and Mail opinion piece. According to Holbrooke, "ignoring the problem" of HIV/AIDS "will only make it worse" and international society must be mobilized to provide "proven, effective interventions" to "stop this disease." These interventions include expanding HIV testing; reaching a global "consensus on the use of condoms" to prevent HIV transmission; developing and providing antiretroviral drugs "that work well if appropriately prescribed and adhered to"; and "rolling out" HIV/AIDS treatment programs in the developing world. The "massive effort" required to fight the pandemic "must be led by governments and international organizations, such as [the World Health Organization], UNAIDS and the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria," Holbrooke writes, adding that there also is a "huge potential role" for the GBC to "fill [the] gap" in the fight against HIV/AIDS. "Let us hope" the XVI International AIDS Conference, which will be held Aug. 13 through Aug. 18 in Toronto, "is a wake-up call that AIDS is more than the worst health crisis in history ... [I]t is also a direct threat to the economic, social and political development and stability of many nations on every continent except North America," Holbrooke writes (Holbrooke, Toronto Globe and Mail, 8/8).

The XVI International AIDS Conference program is available online.

Kaisernetwork.org will serve as official webcaster of the conference. Sign up now to receive free daily email updates during the conference at www.kaisernetwork.org/aids2006.

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