17 August 2009

The World AIDS Campaign has announced the global theme of Universal Access and Human Rights for World AIDS Day 2009.

Started on 1st December 1988, World AIDS Day is marked throughout the world and is important in reminding people that HIV has not gone away, and that there is still much to be done to tackle this global epidemic.

A focus on universal access is timely because next year will be a milestone for the Millennium Development Goals – encouraging high level review of what has and has not been accomplished in relation to achieving access for all to essential care by 2010.

The World AIDS Day theme emphasises the critical need for universal access and draws attention to the links between violations of human rights and HIV infection rates.

The message for World AIDS Day is that access for all to prevention, treatment, care and support is a fundamental human right. This offers an opportunity for organisations around the world to highlight human rights violations among vulnerable and marginalised communities.

To support organisations marking World AIDS Day, posters and postcards have been created bearing a variety of new slogans including ‘I am safe’, ‘I am living my rights’ and ‘Right to Live’. These materials are now available to order in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Arabic, Mandarin, Hindi and Portuguese from the World AIDS Campaign website.

UNAIDS founded the World AIDS Campaign as a loose partnership of UN agencies, governments and all sectors of civil society to campaign around specific themes related to AIDS.

Through significant efforts by civil society partners around the world, the WAC is now an independent NGO based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The Alliance is the NGO representative on the World AIDS Campaign Steering Committee.

http://www.aidsalliance.org/sw60239.asp