World AIDS Day 2004 - An Open Letter to the media concerning the above 2 postings and an AIDS article in "The Australian" (1/12/04)
Former Federal Health Minister Michael Wooldridge who's now Head of the government's revamped AIDS Council (ANCARD) has dropped a resounding clanger in his World AIDS Day article "No longer a killer, but stay alert" (The Australian" 1/12).
He exhorts us to "stay alert", but he's already fallen asleep at the wheel.
He asserts "Australia has about 3,000 people living with HIV/AIDS...we have one of the lowest rates among developed nations."
The reality is that that Australia has about 14,000 people living with HIV/AIDS, and these UNAIDS figures(up to the end of 2003) reveal that while a "Low estimate" would be 6,800, the "High estimate" would be 22,000.
A further reality is that Australia's HIV infection rate has been surging for the past 3 years in a row and there's no meaningful arresting strategy or mainstream HIV/ AIDS warning message in place. In fact, there's no warning at all for the nation's heterosexuals. What alert messages there are in place are confined to the gay saunas and gay magazines.
We also call on Health Minister Abbott to stand down Fr Michael Kelly, the Melbourne Jesuit priest he appointed to his HIV/AIDS advisory sub committee earlier this year. A key plank of the Australian government's HIV/AIDS prevention strategy is its support for and promotion of the use of condoms. That plank does not have his support. With his conflict of interest, and to avoid further confusing the general public...Catholics and non Catholics alike, he should step down.
Today's edition of Cath News ( www.cathnews.com ) and the independent e forum, Online Catholics, refer to his rejection of condoms, and our support for them, especially for partners of HIV-infected people.
Brian Haill
President,
The Australian AIDS Fund Inc
PO Box 1347
Frankston, Victoria, 3199, Australia |
