Aids Belief Botswana Cultural Hiv

Through a congressional appropriation, the State Department is catalyzing long-term efforts to lay the foundation for the rule of law, greater public participation and a robust civil society. We are supporting programs to foster the development of the legal and democratic institutions that will hopefully serve as a means to check human rights abuses in China. The programs we support address some of our most serious human rights concerns, including the right to due process of law, the harassment and detention of criminal defense lawyers, and lack of judicial independence. We are supporting efforts to help non-governmental organizations become effective advocates for their communities and the disenfranchised, such as workers suffering under sweatshop-like conditions and those living with HIV/AIDS. ... [Read More]

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe is a republic in which President Robert Mugabe and his Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) have dominated the executive and legislative branches of the Government since independence in 1980. Although the Constitution allows for multiple parties, opposition parties and their supporters were subjected to significant intimidation and violence by the ruling party and government security forces, and financial restrictions continued to be imposed on the opposition. In 1999 the country's first viable opposition party emerged, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which won 57 out of 120 seats in the 2000 parliamentary elections. The March presidential election was preceded and followed by a government-sanctioned campaign of violence directed towards supporters and potential supporters of the opposition. Although the voting process itself generally was peaceful, most election observers agreed that there ... [Read More]

Zimbabwe

The Government has a national HIV/AIDS policy that prohibits discrimination against persons living with HIV/AIDS and the law aims to protect against discrimination of workers in the private sector and parastatals; however, societal discrimination against persons affected by HIV/AIDS remained a problem. Despite an active information campaign by international and local NGOs and the Government through its Ministry of Health and the National AIDS Council to destigmatize HIV/AIDS, ostracism and condemnation of those affected by HIV/AIDS continued. Children who lost their parents as a result of AIDS were often ill treated by their guardians and other members of the community. The Ministry of Public Service, Labor, and Social Welfare operated a program called Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) to assist needy orphans and children affected by HIV/AIDS by paying their school fees. ... [Read More]

Department of State Washington File: Transcript: Clinton Remarks at Warwick University, England

The developing countries themselves hold a critical part of the answer. However limited their resources, they must make treatment and prevention a priority. Whatever their cultural beliefs, they must be honest about the ways AIDS spreads, and how it can be prevented. Talking about AIDS may be difficult in some cultures, but its far easier to tell children the facts of life in any culture than to watch them learn the fact of death. ...

Today, infectious diseases are responsible for one in four deaths around the world -- diseases like malaria, TB and AIDS, diarrheal diseases. Just malaria, tuberculosis and diarrhea kill 8 million people a year under the age of 15. Already in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe, half of all the 15-year-olds are expected to die of AIDS. In just a few years, there will be three to six African countries where there will be more people in their 60s than in their 30s. This is a staggering human cost. Parenthetically, the economic toll is also breathtaking. ... [Read More]

Zimbabwe

The Government has a national HIV/AIDS policy that prohibits discrimination against persons living with HIV/AIDS, and the law aims to protect against discrimination of workers in the private sector and parastatals; however, societal discrimination against persons affected by HIV/AIDS remained a problem. Despite an active information campaign by international and local NGOs and the Government through its Ministry of Health and the National AIDS Council to destigmatize HIV/AIDS, ostracism and condemnation of those affected by HIV/AIDS continued. ... [Read More]

China and the Future of U.S.-China Relations

We also have begun a comprehensive program of cooperation on HIV/AIDS. As China’s government faces up to its mounting AIDS crisis, the United States stands prepared to help. The National Institutes of Health has granted $14.8 million to help China upgrade its AIDS-related infrastructure. Two experts from the Centers for Disease Control will be assigned to the Chinese CDC to help provide assistance to local governments. ...

Such problems, inevitably, demand collective responses. Without partners, the United States cannot easily or efficiently tackle problems that transcend America’s borders. Al-Qaeda operates in more than sixty countries. HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis do not stop at Immigration and Customs. Industrial emissions from one country do not respect borders. To be sure, there will undoubtedly be occasions when unilateral action is warranted or necessary. Yet joint efforts need to be the norm, not the exception, if we are to successfully address the transnational challenges that define this era. ... [Read More]

A Comprehensive Human Rights Strategy for China

Through a congressional appropriation, the State Department is catalyzing long-term efforts to lay the foundation for the rule of law, greater public participation and a robust civil society. We are supporting programs to foster the development of the legal and democratic institutions that will hopefully serve as a means to check human rights abuses in China. The programs we support address some of our most serious human rights concerns, including the right to due process of law, the harassment and detention of criminal defense lawyers, and lack of judicial independence. We are supporting efforts to help non-governmental organizations become effective advocates for their communities and the disenfranchised, such as workers suffering under sweatshop-like conditions and those living with HIV/AIDS. ... [Read More]