Solthis Newsletter 14
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S o l t h i s Newsletter Newsletter Issue 14 – December 2012 Solthis INTERVIEW 2-4 Fogue Foguito, Positive-Generation Eric Fleutelot, Sidaction FOCUS 5-9 Viral Load and Resistances SCIENTIFIC NEWS 10-11 HIV Cure CONFERENCE FEEDBACK 12-13 AIDS 2012 Washington S u mECHOES m a r y FROM THE FIELD 14-15 Solthis support in situ GLOBAL HEALTH 16-18 The Global Fund: at the heart of the reform Women health The situation in Mali is serious: insecurity, are blocked. For example diagnostic HIV tes- Treatment and support of patients and their an impending military operation, the social ting have been seriously lacking in the past families is also a moment of hope. These mo- instability and the breakdown of healthcare few months, undermining the credibility of ments are even more necessary during wars services all contribute to the deteriorating messages recommending testing in pre- and conflicts. conditions of the populations in the North. gnant women. Because of the war, all of this We are absolutely determined to remain as For several months now many thousands of may remain hidden, in the name of a case of close as possible to patients and healthcare Malians have been fleeing this area to Mauri- force majeure. workers, and we cannot be dissuaded. Sol- tania, Burkina Faso and Niger. Despite all this, Solthis remains and will re- this’ activities in Mali are a guarantee that Coverage of healthcare needs, which was main present in Mali to continue its support the care provided to those with HIV will be already difficult in this region, is now se- of diagnostic and treatment programs for durable, despite the terrible conflict in the riously compromised. Our thoughts go out, the local populations. North of the country. E d i tof o course, to all of those in need of medical Our team remains complete mobilized. The SOLIDARITY is truly the first initial of Solthis. care, especially those with HIV, for whom on- regions of Ségou and Mopti are visited regu- n going treatment is vital. larly by our team, who are working together Pr Christine Katlama Mali also has problems with the funding of with local authorities to keep high quality its programs for the fight against HIV, tuber- treatment programs going. Solthis has also Chairman culosis and malaria. In particular, the Global provided support to Bamako 2 and 3 to im- Fund has still not resumed normal payment prove diagnostic testing and access to high of outstanding grants, and most activities quality treatment in the healthcare centers. Universal access to treament by capacity building for all Interviews Fogue Foguito, © Journal La Croix © IAS Eric Fleutelot, Executive Director of the Positive Generation, member of the 15% Coalition Deputy CEO international and spokesperson Cameroonian activist of the conflict against the AIDS, Fogue Foguito is also an activist of the right to Since the annual Conference on AIDS of this summer, Eric Fleutelot rises up in front of health for all. With the Coalition 15 %, it is threatened in its country by a trial for illegal organization of the mass media which speak more and more the « end of the AIDS ». manifestation. You have been active in the Fight Against from membership fees, donations and ser- to healthcare [Abuja Declaration in 2001]. On Can we now speak of «the end of AIDS » funding cuts of the last two years are dange- nical platforms and facing shortages in both AIDS for many years. How did you become vices that we do. The rest of our funding came March 30 2011, the Coalition organized a de- the way it has been announced in the rous. Indeed in the fight against AIDS, which diagnostics and treatment. All of that is ter- committed to this cause? through the partnership response to calls for monstration in front of Parliament. Although media? is a disease that cannot be cured, the cost of ribly demotivating to the small number of hu- I have been politically active as long as I can proposals or joint implementation projects we filed for a permit to hold a public meeting For several months now, the media has cho- medical management is necessarily cumula- man resources dedicated to the fight against remember. I inherited this from my parents with partners. with the authorities, on the day of the protest, sen to take a shortcut from the innovative tive. To give 15 million people access to treat- HIV/AIDS. and even my grandparents: my grandmother The goal of PG is to help improve the living policemen in and out of uniform arrested us treatments available today to reduce the epi- ment, the way the Member states promised was one of first women in her village to fight conditions of patients with HIV/AIDS and several feet from Parliament, and brought and demic and the “end of AIDS”. I am outraged at the United Nations in June 2011, more mo- Although considerable progress has been against the single party; and my grandfather, high-risk populations. We are active in Came- held us at the police station under deplorable to hear anyone speaking of the “end of AIDs” ney is needed than for the 8 million existing made in access to treatment, the same cannot was a famous nationalist known for his moral roon by providing psychosocial support, mo- conditions because they claimed that the de- in 2012, when 1.7 million people have died patients. Thus more funds are necessary. The be said for discrimination and stigmatization. integrity. I come from a family where freedom bilizing the community and lobbying. monstration had been banned. Today, we are of AIDS and there were 2.2 million new infec- cost of disease management can only be re- HIV is a disease associated with significant of speech, justice and equality are sacred. We waiting for a court date. We had a court date tions in 2011. However you look at it, the end duced when the number of patients being stigmatization of HIV+ individuals, and added all learned very early to rebel when justice and Why did you create the Treatment Access on September 26, but the judge couldn’t find of AIDS is not a reality today, not in France or treated is high enough to reduce the number to this is the social marginalization of many of equality were not respected. As a child, my Watch (TAW) Observatory? the file and adjourned until December 26! The anywhere else in the world. of new infections, because of the preventive those who are infected because they are ho- father called me « little Sankara » (anti-impe- As a lobby we are often accused of not being government is trying to frighten us so that we AIDS cannot be cured today. Even in the effect of treatment. mosexuals, drug users, prostitutes etc. A prio- rialistic Burkinabian politician) because I was “scientific” enough. Therefore we created will stop speaking out. Why? There are several “rich” countries where access to testing, care And this is added to the fact that the cost of rity for all of those involved in the fight against the student spokesperson. grids to compile the information we obtained plausible reasons for this, but we cannot com- and treatment is known to be easier than in treatment is still too high. Why? First, because HIV/AIDS should be to work in an environ- At school, I heard about AIDS but I had no idea during our activities, ment on them here, because we countries with low incomes, the epidemic the cost of first line treatments is increasing: ment that respects the rights of the actors in of the consequences of the disease. At the on drug shortages, have been warned about that. We has not been contained. The epidemic is out guidelines recommend not using less ex- the fight as well as of the populations at high university [where he studied communication the quality of pa- will let justice decide. One thing is of control at our door in Eastern Europe. Eve- pensive single dose combination treatments risk of exposure to HIV. Unfortunately, this is and law] I began militate in defense of human tient reception etc. « We wonder why certain: what we are fighting against rywhere in Africa, progress made in the fight based on stavudine (140 dollars per year but not a top priority, in particular in countries in rights with the association Environnemental’ Our capacity for fol- they are going must affect certain obscure interests against HIV/AIDS is in danger. And finally, as with irreversible side effects). And beside this, Sub-Saharan Africa. Art: we discovered that students were being low-up/evaluation because otherwise why would they a person living with HIV, I think that you have more and more people living with HIV are tested for HIV without them knowing it and was very limited, so after us in this go after us this way? to be careful of the meaning of changing from first line Finally we cannot make the progress or ob- that the university refused to give them a we began working We have received the support of words… A world without AIDS to 2nd line treatment, be- tain the victory we hope for in a united fight room. This was the beginning of the fight and with 3SH in 20091 way » the US Embassy, from Ambassador is also a world without any cause of resistant viruses, against HIV/AIDS without the renewed com- Environnemental’Art became Positive-Gene- and a group of doc- Pepfar who is keeping a close eye on HIV+ individuals, and there are « To talk about and 2nd line therapies are mitment of political leaders.