XVIII International AIDS Conference – Vienna

Between 18 and 25 of July, 2010, the city of Vienna, Austria, will be the stage of The XVIII International AIDS Conference. The event, with the theme “Rights here, right now” will gather activists, policy makers, persons living with HIV/AIDS and other individuals committed to ending the epidemic. Gestos will participate actively in the moment, hosting two important satellite sessions, as follows:

Date	Session	Organizer
22/07 (18h30 – 20h30)	2010 A year not to forget – Political and Economic Challenges for Achieving the UNGASS-AIDS Goals	Gestos and Laccaso
18/07 (15h45 – 17h45)	Universal Access for Women & Girls –2010 a Year Not to Forget	Gestos

Recife holds the VI UNGASS-AIDS Forum of Brazil

Between May 20^th and 21^st, Gestos – HIV+, Communication and Gender Issues in partnership with the Support Group for AIDS Prevention (GAPA / SP) and with the support of the National STD and AIDS Programme of Brazil, the Ford Foundation and the Special Secretary of Woman of Pernambuco state, held in, Recife, the VI National UNGASS/AIDS Forum of Brazil. The central theme was the ‘Interface between policies for sexual and reproductive rights and AIDS”.

The event aimed to define collective actions of monitoring the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS-AIDS) with AIDS, gay, trans and women activists and the National STD/AIDS Programme of Brazil, encouraging greater interface between policies for sexual and reproductive health and AIDS policies in Brazil.

The implementation of specific plans for dealing with the epidemic of AIDS and other STDs among gays, men who have sex with men (MSM) and Transvestites, of the Plan to Fight the Feminization of AIDS and other STDs and of the Health and Prevention Program in Schools was also discussed at the meeting.

Forum – Altogether, 61 people from the five regions of the country, attended the forum. Among the exhibitors was Mariângela Simão, head of the National STD/AIDS and Viral Hepatitis Programme of the Health Ministry, who presented the successes and challenges to be overcome regarding the UNGASS Goals in 2010. She also presented the process of drafting the 2010 Report and highlighted the participation of civil society in the report.

The representative of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in Brazil, Pedro Chequer, also attended the event and made a presentation on Women, HIV/AIDS and the Millennium Goals.The highlight of the presentation was when Chequer spoke about the agenda for the strengthening of actions for women, girls, gender equality and HIV, pointing out the reasons – epidemiological tendency, social vulnerability of women and girls, unmet needs in the reproductive health field and the relation, increasingly evident, between violence against women and HIV / AIDS.

The interface between policies on sexual and reproductive rights and AIDS was the topic addressed by the chairman of Brazilian Association of Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, Transvestites and Trans Population (ABGLT), Beto de Jesus. The issue was highlighted in the Plan to Fight the AIDS Epidemic in Gay, MSM and transvestites majestically by Jesus, who also pointed out the need to work heteronormativity, the fight against homophobia and the recognition of sexual orientation and gender identity as human rights.

The UNGASS and Civil Society was the theme presented by Alessandra Nilo, who highlighted the situation where we should be in 2010 and the challenges for this to be achieved. Besides her, Josineide Meneses, of Gestos, described the situation of the Plans to Fight the Feminization of AIDS in the Northeast of Brazil, which was complemented by José Carlos Veloso, of GAPA-São Paulo, bringing an overview of the three federal plans.

At the end of two days of forum, the participants prepared a political letter with recommendations regarding the MSM and Health and Prevention in Schools Plan, and the Plan to Fight the Feminization of AIDS, which will be socialized in the coming days.

UNGASS / AIDS – In order to monitor the implementation of commitments made by the Brazilian government in 2001 during the Special Session of UN General Assembly on HIV / AIDS – UNGASS – since 2003, a group of Brazilian NGOs, led by Gestos in Pernambuco, and the Support Group for AIDS Prevention of São Paulo – GAPA – SP – has organized UNGASS AIDS forums, where leaders of  AIDS, women and LGBT movements from all over the country gather to evaluate the government response related to the commitments made, identify progresses and gaps and, based on these data, define an agenda of political incidence. In 2007, Gestos extended this initiative to countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

United Nations General Assembly discusses with civil society the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

The Informal Interactive Hearings of the General Assembly with Non-governmental organizations, Civil society organizations and the Private sector is an initiative of the UN General Assembly in order to provide input to the preparatory process for the ‘MDG summit’ (High-level Plenary Meeting) which will happen next September (20-22). The Hearings will take place at United Nations Headquarters in New York on June 14^th and 15^th.

The objective of the MDG Summit is to discuss how to accelerate progress towards all the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, taking into account the progress made towards the internationally agreed development goals (A/RES/64/184). The summit is expected to undertake a comprehensive review of successes, best practices and lessons learned, obstacles and gaps, challenges and opportunities, leading to concrete strategies for action.

OP UNAIDS Forum – Peru

Between 14 and June 15 will take place in Lima, Peru, the OP UNAIDS Forum. The main objective is to present the Operational Plan for UNAIDS Action Framework – Addressing women, girls, gender equality and HIV, launched in March 2010 at the 54^th Session of the CSW, in New York, for the Peruvian civil society. After the presentation, there will be a reflection process with key actors of civil society on women’s vulnerability to HIV, beyond the identification of strategic actions for greater integration between the country’s response to the epidemic of AIDS and the policies for gender equity and sexual and reproductive health.

In addition, the forum seeks to promote greater integration between the movements of HIV / AIDS and women, by raising awareness about the demands and characteristics of women to HIV / AIDS and the need to establish effective policies to empower them and reduce their vulnerability to the epidemic.

The process of UNGASS Forum in Peru is one of the points that will be presented and discussed. The expectation is to have between 30 and 40 participants. The Movimiento Manuela Ramos is the responsible for the event and will facilitate de process with Gestos.

Gestos holds meeting with legislators and seropositive women from the Northeast of Brazil

Gestos – HIV+, Communication and Gender Issues – held on the last day May 19, the Meeting between women and legislators: strengthening the actions to fight the feminization of AIDS in the Northeast of Brazil. The event had the participation of seropositive women from the nine northeastern states, members of the National Network of People Living with HIV/ IDS (RNP +), National Movement of Posithive Citizens (MNCP) and The Network of Young People Living with HIV/ IDS and of legislators from the region linked to the STD /AIDS area , public policies for women and women’s health.

The day was quite busy, with intense discussions within the group of legislators and women. The main result was the construction of a shared agenda between legislators and women to carry out actions in each state. Efforts will focus on workshops in smaller cities to inform about the Plan to Fight the Feminization of AIDS, the development of educational materials and the creation of management committees to monitor these plans.

Meeting – The meeting was part of the project Monitoring UNGASS-AIDS Goals on Sexual and Reproductive Health, funded by the Ford Foundation, which aims to strengthen the performance of seropositive women in their states by political incidence and social control of public policies, to build a map of each state situation  related to services for this public and to discuss the interface between sexual and reproductive rights, violence and AIDS, so that together – government and civil society – are capable of articulating strategies for coping with the feminization of AIDS.

The choice to act in the Northeast of the country is due to the fact that AIDS remains severely impacting the region and, contrary to what occurs in other parts of Brazil, there is no stability, but growth in the number of cases. According to the Brazilian National STD and AIDS Program - 2009, from 1997 to 2007, in the Northeast, the incidence doubled from 5,3 per 100 thousand inhabitants to 10,8 and has increased among the female population, especially the youngest.

Gestos – Since the beginning of its activities in 1993, Gestos – HIV+, Communication and Gender Issues – has been facing the feminization of AIDS developing actions for women in the prevention and care field. In recent years, has promoted meetings, seminars, public policies monitoring and developed research and publications on the subject. Moreover, it has trained leaders of seropositive women, directly contributing to their political formation and performance in areas of social control.

Integration of sexual and Reproductive health and Rights and HIV/AIDS highlighted during the V UNGASS Forum South Africa

The V UNGASS Forum South Africa, held on February 3^rd and 4^th, and organized by MOSAIC and Health Trust System, focused on the linkages between and integration of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and HIV/AIDS at various levels. The event had the participation of over 40 women’s organizations.

One of the main results of the forum was the preparation of a report that was submitted to South Africa National Aids Commission (SANAC) and later was annexed to South Africa’s 2010 UNGASS Report, highlighting the importance of integration between SRHR and HIV/AIDS.

The development of a SRHR policy which integrates HIV&AIDS into SRHR programmes, and conversely, SRHR into HIV&AIDS programmes and the review and update of ARV treatment guidelines to cover relevant SRHR issues beyond ARVs are some recommendations highlighted by the report.

The Forum made also recommendations to address the gaps and challenges of integration efforts in South Africa. At structural level, it recommended the development of a unified M&E framework that is informed by human rights; that takes SRHR and quality of care issues into consideration more effectively; and that allows for collection of disaggregated data on SRHR and HIV/AIDS at national, provincial and local levels.

The document will be used by the Women’s Sector in the next two years to guide its advocacy and service-related programs. And will contribute to a much broader view of treatment of HIV positive women in South Africa.

Social organizations discussed the situation of HIV/AIDS in Uruguay during the IV UNGASS Forum

More than 50 representatives of social organizations which fight against HIV/AIDS and public legislators gathered last May 21st to reflect and discuss the national situation regarding public policies on HIV/AIDS during the IV UNGASS Forum Uruguay.

A report, coordinated by MYSU and ASEPO,  which covers the progresses weaknesses and  regarding the impact on the sexual and reproductive lives of women, children and adolescents,  was presented to the the Sub-Secretary of Public Health, Jorge Enrique Venegas, and other authorities responsible for public policies related to addressing the situation of the pandemic in the country.

Among the main recommendations, to develop national policies that include coordinated actions in women’s health, SRH, HIV – AIDS – able to overcome vertical approaches – and to ensure health public services on SRH and AIDS. It also was proposed for the National Integrated Health System (SNIS) to advance over previously existing policies at public services and to ensure universal coverage and access, quality and integral care in these areas and the need to develop HIV/AIDS and SRH campaigns of public interest with an inter – institucional approach.

This activity was part of the international project on monitoring the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS-United Nations) on women’s sexual and reproductive health and HIV goals. In Uruguay, the project is coordinated by the National Coordination of MYSU and ASEPO. The International Coordination is done by Gestos, Brazil, funded by the Ford Foundation with the support of UNAIDS.

Civil Society strengthens dialogue with government in 2010

March 31^st was the deadline, both to governments and Civil Society, for submitting the 2010 UNGASS-AIDS reports to UNAIDS.  The bi-annual reports are required from governments by UNAIDS to monitor the achievements and challenges in the national AIDS responses. Our project Monitoring UNGASS- AIDS Goals on Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health resulted in the crafting of 12 Civil Society reports on the theme.

All reports have been analyzed and summarized in a consolidated report by Gestos and sent to UNAIDS. Besides that, all country coordinators found the best suiting way to send their findings –  some decided to send it straight to Joint Program, as a Shadow Report, others attached it, in part or fully, into the National Report, while others managed to get the key findings incorporated into the National Report. In most cases more than one strategy was utilized.

Most countries decided not to send the report independently to UNAIDS, which is a positive indicator, since the reason to do so is that they have been satisfied with the attachment and/or incorporation of the key findings into the National report produced by government. So, one first affirmation that can be drawn from this process is that in comparison to 2008, the relationship and negotiations with governments have in general improved.

Another important indicator is that all countries held talks about its contents with governmental authorities in charge of the National Report. This happened in many levels: through the participation in the UNGASS-AIDS SRH Forums and/or the invitation to CS to have a series of official meetings to address the National Report.

Situation of the countries:

Country	Attached fully or summarized to National Report	Findings into the Natl. Report text	Sent to UNAIDS independently	Group took part in negotiations with govt. about Natl. Report text
Argentina	YES	YES	NO	YES
Belize	YES	YES	NO	YES
Brazil	NO	YES	NO	YES
Chile	NO	YES*	YES	YES
Indonesia	NO	YES	YES	YES
Kenya	YES	YES	NO	YES
Peru	YES	YES	NO	YES
South Africa	YES	YES	NO	YES
Thailand	YES	NO	NO	YES
Uganda	NO	YES	NO	YES
Ukraine	YES	YES	NO	YES
Uruguay	NO	YES	NO	YES

*The former government AIDS authorities compromised in incorporating the CS UNGASS report into the National Report, nevertheless, due to the recent change of president and cabinet, it hasn’t been confirmed yet.

The 54th CSW made important resolutions regarding women’s SRH

After two weeks of intense discussions, the 54^th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) held last  March, at the United Nations in New York, drew some conclusions based on a fifteen-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly.   The objective of the event was to share experiences and good practices, with a view to overcoming remaining obstacles and new challenges, including those related to the Millennium Development Goals.

The coordinator of Gestos, Alessandra Nilo, participated in session as a member of the Brazilian’s government delegation. The activist, among other civil society leaders, took part  in a parallel session about “The Challenges of HIV/AIDS from Beijing to 2010”, and was also part of an interactive dialogue with Government representatives and gender and AIDS experts on how to dramatically improve national responses to AIDS for women and girls at national and community levels.

Among the conclusions, some are crucial when taking into consideration the UNGASS/AIDS goals on women’s sexual and reproductive rights. They are:

1. To significantly increase and coordinate political and financial commitment to address gender equality and equity in national HIV and AIDS responses, and urges Governments to effectively reflect in their national policies, strategies and budgets the gender dimension of the pandemic, in line with the time-bound goals of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, the Beijing Platform for Action and the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS;

2. To strengthen policy and programme linkages and coordination between HIV and AIDS and sexual and reproductive health, and their inclusion in national development plans, including poverty reduction strategies and sector-wide approaches, where they exist, as a necessary strategy for fighting the HIV and AIDS pandemic and mitigating its impact on the population, which could result in more relevant and cost-effective interventions with greater impact;

3. To strengthen and implement legal, policy, administrative and other measures for the prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls, including harmful traditional and customary practices, female genital mutilation, domestic violence, abuse, early marriage, child and forced marriage, rape, including marital rape, and other forms of sexual violence and coerced sexual activity, battering and trafficking in women and girls, and to ensure that violence against women is addressed as an integral part of the national HIV and AIDS response;

4. To call upon Member States to accelerate action on women, girls, gender equality and HIV, in accordance with the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development;

5. Calls upon States to fully and effectively implement the Beijing Platform for Action, the International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action and the outcomes of their review conferences, including the commitments relating to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights and the promotion and protection of all human rights in this context; and to maximize their efforts to eliminate preventable maternal mortality and morbidity by strengthening comprehensive health services to women and girls, including access to sexual and reproductive health care services and information as agreed to in the Beijing Platform for Action and Cairo Programme of Action;

6. To encourage the United Nations to continue to support national monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in the context of the “three ones” principles, to enable the production and dissemination of comprehensive and timely information on the gender dimension of the pandemic, including through the collection of data disaggregated by sex, age and marital status, and to raise awareness about the need to address the critical intersection between gender inequality and HIV and AIDS.

CSW Resolution – Maternal mortality and empowerment

CSW Resolution – Women and HIV.AIDS

Getting there in 2015. A proposal of extension for the UNGASS-AIDS deadlines

The UNGASS-AIDS goals are the result of the 26^th United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on HIV/AIDS, held in 2001 and establishes a global commitment to fight the epidemic. In the document there are goals, deadlines and indicators to address the crisis of HIV/AIDS in the world, considering the particularities of the different regions and countries. Throughout the process, the goals were divided into groups to be accomplished in 2003, 2005 and 2010.

The first set of goals, expected for 2003, was about the structuring of a national policy to promote an effective action against the epidemic. The goals for 2005 and 2010 relate to the expansion of programs of impact relief, care and HIV prevention.

As the deadline for the UNGASS-AIDS goals is close, organizations that deal with this issue are debating what direction will be given in order to develop policies to fight the epidemic, since a large part of the proposed goals, which should be achieved by the end of this year, has not been accomplished yet. There is a tendency to readdress the discussions to the context of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), whose term is due to 2015.

The MDGs were set in the United Nations Millennium Declaration, adopted by 191 Member States, in 2000, establishing concrete and specific commitments, with indicators, goals and deadlines for eight major themes that cover the main areas of work in order to promote quality of life and sustainable development of humanity. These eight goals cover 18 goals and 48 indicators that are regularly monitored – measured, evaluated and compared at national, regional and international level – by governments and civil society.

The organizations consider that, regarding the policies to fight the HIV/AIDS, the MDGs are far more general and less specific than the goals set by the UNGASS-AIDS. The transposition of the platform would, in fact, mean the loss of relevant commitments assumed and also of an accumulated discussion that is not adequately represented in the universe of the MDGs.

Thus, the civil society proposes an extension of the deadline of the UNGASS-AIDS indicators for 2015. As it occurs with the MDGs, despite significant progresses made, many of the UNGASS-AIDS goals were not totally achieved. The aim is to assure that the efforts of governments, civil society and international organizations will not be dismissed after the expiration of the UNGASS-AIDS and that the goals assumed can be effectively implemented, as well as the monitoring and evaluation of actions.