Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-11-19-Speech-3-385"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20081119.25.3-385"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
"− Madam President, I would say to the honourable Members and to Minister Jouyet that, as we approach World AIDS Day on 1 December 2008, this plenary session provides a good opportunity to reflect on some significant achievements in combating HIV/AIDS and to focus on the serious challenges that lie ahead.
So what can we as politicians do to address and overcome this situation?
Our common humanistic core values and a strong commitment to human values, solidarity and our position against discrimination must be the basis of all policies to fight HIV/AIDS, and should be the foundation for all activities in combating the disease. The European position and response is clear: we concentrate on prevention and raising awareness; we promote HIV testing and access to treatment and care for all in need; we fight for affordable medication; we oppose and fight any form of discrimination or stigmatisation; we seek to identify best practice and support civil society. In areas within our political responsibility, we have to create the conditions for effective actions on the ground, serving both society and people living with HIV and AIDS.
Clearly we cannot be complacent. We have to keep up the momentum.
The EU also looks beyond its borders to the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa and other developing countries, which represent an exceptional challenge to social growth and development.
Eastern Europe and Central Asia continue to experience the fastest growth of the epidemic in the world.
In this context, we reaffirm our commitment to supporting partner countries in scaling-up towards universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.
On behalf of the Commission, I welcome the resolution on early diagnosis and early care of HIV/AIDS and fully endorse and support the principle of breaking down barriers to HIV testing, treatment and care.
The Commission further encourages people to use the possibility of HIV testing and reiterates to Member States the need to establish testing centres that meet international standards and operate according to agreed principles.
The Commission is currently developing its second strategy on combating HIV/AIDS in the EU and also our near neighbourhood, which will further concentrate on prevention and will focus on the regions and groups most affected by the epidemics. However, what a successful prevention approach needs most of all is openness and tolerance on a political and societal level: openness to the realities of our lives today, of sexuality and behaviours; openness to means of harm reduction; openness to fight inequalities, discrimination and suppression; and openness to other cultures and habits.
In facing up to the challenge of HIV/AIDS, the Commission will continue to play its role to the full. I know that we have Parliament’s support in this endeavour, and we treasure it highly.
This year’s Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to two European researchers at the Pasteur Institute – Professor Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Professor Luc Montagnier, who were the first to isolate the Human Immunodeficiency Virus back in 1983.
Let us continue together the strong political momentum, together with the Council, to ensure that we all live up to our responsibilities.
That landmark discovery paved the way for many important developments and diagnostics, and the treatment of HIV infections, and allowed us to understand more about the pathogenesis of HIV infections and its devastating consequences.
However, 25 years later, we still do not have a cure for HIV/AIDS and still witness millions of new infections per year worldwide, including tens of thousands of new infections in Europe.
How can this happen? It is well known how HIV transmission can be effectively prevented.
Successful campaigns in the 1980s and the early 1990s have shown that awareness and knowledge are essential elements of prevention strategies against HIV infections.
Determined political leadership and civil responsibility are two further elementary prerequisites for successfully combating HIV/AIDS – as is an open and constructive partnership with the stakeholders.
Today’s plenary session is also an excellent time to reaffirm our political commitment – a time to be ambitious. I should add that I appreciate very much the European Parliament’s commitment in keeping HIV/AIDS high on the political agenda.
Indeed, we recently had a very useful exchange of views on HIV/AIDS in a round-table meeting organised by Vice-President Miguel-Angel Martínez Martínez and Zita Gurmai on the need for HIV testing and subsequent early ‘state of the art’ care and support. Experts estimate that an average of 30% of people in Europe infected with HIV are not aware of their status. That incredible figure carries two risks: first for the person concerned, since he or she may not receive treatment and care on time; and second for his or her partner(s), who may be exposed to the infection."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata | |
| lpv:videoURI |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples