CONGRESSWOMAN BARBARA LEE OF CALIFORNIA
HIV/AIDS: Africa, A Continent in Peril
As we move into the new millennium, the AIDS pandemic
will prove to be the greatest humanitarian crisis in history.
WASHINGTON -- 3.20.01 | Last year, Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman James Leach of Iowa and I led a successful bipartisan campaign to pass and fund the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act, H.R. 3519 (P.L. 106-264). This bill created the World Bank AIDS Trust Fund and provided $150 million for two years to combat HIV/AIDS globally. Although only $20 million was allocated by Congress last year, we are currently working to fully fund the Trust Fund through public and private partnerships.
When the Black Caucus met with President Bush earlier this year, he indicated that his Administration is committed to attacking the global AIDS pandemic. Later, when Secretary Colin Powell addressed the House International Relations Committee, he too indicated his strong commitment to addressing the African AIDS crisis. Yet, we have seen little of that commitment outlined in the new Administrationšs budget request. The Black Caucus will continue to ensure that the Bush Administration lives up to that commitment.
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS estimates that it will cost $3 billion a year to address HIV prevention in sub-Saharan Africa alone. We need a comprehensive effort to effectively address HIV/AIDS in Africa and throughout the developing world. While we provide some support for HIV/AIDS education and prevention initiatives, we must also increase development and infrastructure building and access to no-cost or low cost drugs.
This year, our assault on the HIV/AIDS crisis will be three-pronged. The Congressional Black Caucus will strive to increase the United States bilateral response through several initiatives including, the LIFE initiative and USAID programming; increase the multilateral approach through full funding of the World Bank AIDS Trust Fund; and finally, to focus our foreign assistance efforts by developing a strategy that links HIV/AIDS to infrastructure development.
Access to life saving medications must be part of our overall strategy. Media and advocacy groups have brought incredible attention to the issue of treatment access. However, significant obstacles remain. Last month, thirty-nine pharmaceutical companies filed a lawsuit against the government of South Africa in order to block Medicines Act of 1997, a law that would allow the manufacture or importation of generic substitutes for patented-lifesaving AIDS medicines.
While some pharmaceutical companies have taken steps to address the lack of affordable AIDS medicines in sub-Saharan Africa, this lawsuit continues to challenge basic human rights to accessible and affordable medical treatment and care. Barriers established by such litigation must not be tolerated.
Congresswoman Maxine Waters has introduced the Affordable Medicines for Poor Countries Act, H.R. 933 to address this glaring problem. I introduced a bill which codifies into law a Clinton Executive Order allowing the importing and manufacturing of generic life saving HIV/AIDS drugs. Additionally, the CBC will also continue to work with African Ambassadors to develop strategies to address the many complex issues surrounding the African AIDS crisis.
Finally, a severe lack of basic health and economic infrastructure impedes our ability to combat the HIV/AIDS crisis in South Africa, the Caribbean, and in other developing nations. Building the bridge between public and private sectors and bringing foreign investors to the table is central in our strategy to eradicate this disease. These are the crucial elements that are called for in the AIDS Marshall Plan.
This bridge must be built swiftly, otherwise our efforts will be for naught. The AIDS Marshall Plan and the World Bank AIDS trust fund provide a road map that leads to that bridge.
We are in the midst of a global health crisis. We must escalate our efforts to combat the effects of HIV/AIDS in Africa and other developing nations. With a new Administration in place, the momentum and focus for the global fight against HIV/AIDS must continue. The American people, too, must press the U.S. Congress to remain fully engaged in the war on AIDS.
In a time of growing federal budget surpluses the United States can do more and must take the lead in addressing this deadly disease. By addressing HIV/AIDS, we also address injustice. It is a moral imperative.
*NOTE : Congresswoman Lee chairs the Congressional Black Caucus Task Force on HIV/AIDS and represents California's Ninth Congressional District.
Print This Story
E-mail This Story
