HOLY SEE ADDRESSES U.N. GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON HIV/AIDS

VATICAN CITY, SEP 24, 2003 (VIS) - On September 22 in New York, Cardinal Claudio Hummes, O.F.M., archbishop of Sao Paulo, Brazil, addressed a United Nations meeting on HIV/AIDS. He heads the Holy See delegation to the high level plenary meeting of the U.N. General Assembly devoted to the follow-up of the outcome of the 26th special session: Implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS.

In his speech, made public yesterday afternoon, the cardinal stated that "HIV/AIDS has been and remains one of the major tragedies of our time. It is not only a health problem of enormous magnitude; it is a social, economic and political concern as well. ... It is also a moral question, as the causes of the epidemic clearly reflects a serious crisis of values, .... sparing no geographic segment of the human family."

He drew the assembly's attention "to one of the most vulnerable groups of HIV/AIDS victims, namely our children. So many of them have been and continue to be victims of this epidemic, either because they have been infected by the virus passed on to them by birth, or because they have become orphans due to AIDS-related premature death of their parents. ... According to one estimate, by 2010 in Africa alone there will be 40 million AIDS orphans, 95 percent of whom carrying the virus."

"Treatment for these young patients can be met by the advances in medical science," the head of delegation affirmed. He noted the very high cost of medical treatment, "compounded by legal issues," but said the Holy See is "heartened by the World Trade Organization agreement reached August 30, 2003 which will make it easier for poorer States to import cheaper generic pharmaceuticals made under compulsory licensing."

Cardinal Hummes remarked that "the Holy See and Catholic institutions have not shrunk from the global fight against HIV/AIDS," pointing out that "12 percent of care providers for HIV/AIDS patients are agencies of the Catholic Church and 13 percent of the global relief for those affected by the epidemic comes from Catholic non-governmental organizations. The Holy See, thanks to its institutions worldwide, provides 25 percent of the total care given to HIV/AIDS victims."

He said, in closing, that "in order to coordinate better its activities, the Holy See has established an Ad Hoc Committee on the fight against HIV/AIDS ... (which) intends to express particular solicitude for sub-Saharan Africa" and "to pay special attention to the problems of stigma and discrimination accompanying the disease, to access to treatment and care, to education on responsible sexual behavior ' including abstinence and marital fidelity ' and to the care of HIV/AIDS orphans."