World
AIDS Day
This year the International Federation
is encouraging National Societies and Overseas Branches globally
to use the materials from the Come
Closer anti-stigma campaign which was launched last
year.
The “Stamps” campaign materials released
in 2002 took more than one year for National Societies and
Overseas Branches to adopt and adapt, include in budgets
and roll out, so this was taken into account when the Come
Closer materialswere released. The Come Closer materials
were specifically designed for easy local adaptation and
utilisation.
More than two thirds of National Societies
and Overseas Branches around the world used the anti-stigma
materials in 2005, mostly as part of World AIDS Day events
in capitals. It is hoped that by keeping the same materials
in 2006 a wider audience will be reached.
Additionally National
Societies and Overseas Branches in the Caribbean can incorporate
the “Faces” campaign
in the activities for World AIDS Day.
The 2006 theme being promoted
by the World AIDS Day campaign is “Keep the Promise”.
The Red Cross Red Crescent Come
Closer campaign materials can be linked to this global
theme given the following promises:
- At the United Nations General
Assembly Special Session on HIV and AIDS in 2001, all governments
agreed to a series of targets such as number 58 ‘By 2003, enact, strengthen
or enforce, as appropriate, legislation, regulations and other
measures to eliminate all forms of discrimination against and
to ensure the full enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental
freedoms by people living with HIV and AIDS and members of
vulnerable groups…..and develop strategies to combat
stigma and social exclusion connected with the epidemic’.
Red
Cross Red Crescent clearly has a role to play in implementing
commitment number 58 given our core programme to promote
humanitarian values and our current International Conference
endorsed agenda to ‘Protect human dignity’.
However,
three years after the deadline, many countries still have
no protections in place for people living with HIV (PLWHA).
One
way to address this is through advocacy behind closed doors
using the privileged access to government arising from our
'auxiliary' status.
- At the Seoul General Assembly all Red Cross Red Crescent
leaders committed to:
1. Publicly
acknowledge the humanitarian contributions of PLWHA
2. Appear
in public with PLWHA to role model inclusion
The World AIDS Day Campaign is
highlighting ‘Accountability’ under ‘Keep
the Promise’ theme, by focusing on the Code of
Good Practice for NGOs responding to HIV, which was
developed by a project hosted by the International Federation.
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