The multi-stakeholder task force supports the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of the 2021 Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS.“We reaffirm the progress reflected in the Political Declaration, even though we are disappointed with some critical omissions and weaknesses. We commit to act and be vigilant to address these challenges as we continue to work towards building an AIDS-free world,”the group said in its statement.
Four decades after the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the first known cases of HIV/AIDS in their historic report of June 5, 1981, the 2021 Political Declaration on HIV/ AIDS represents a transformational moment in global action in response to AIDS, Aidsfonds is confident. Thus, the voices of communities and civil society calling for a return on the path to ending AIDS by 2030 by supporting a fully funded, human rights-based and evidence-based response have been heard by the global community.
The process leading to the high-level meeting on HIV/AIDS and the adoption of the new Political Declaration revealed conflicting views of UN member states on equality, human rights and the inclusion of key populations – sex workers, gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, transgender people, people who use drugs, and people in prisons and other closed facilities – along with women, girls and young people. It also exposed conflicts over intellectual property barriers to essential medical products.
“At this high-level meeting, for the first time in the history of the UN, such a resolution was adopted by a vote at the request of the Russian Federation, breaking the consensus on issues related to human rights, harm reduction and legislative reform. Of all the votes , 165 Member States voted in favor and four against, that is, the Russian Federation, Belarus, Nicaragua and the Syrian Arab Republic. In doing so, they deliberately undermined the global consensus on the approach needed to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030″, Aidsfonds is convinced. ” Reaching consensus has been a painful process that will cost lives in humane and scientifically-approved interventions towards sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), comprehensive sexuality education, harm reduction, sexual orientation and gender identity, community leadership, decriminalization and abolition of punitive laws. In addition, some Member States have strongly opposed the abandonment of TRIPS in order to make basic medical technologies and innovations more accessible. Most of these important areas have either been blurred to the point where commitments have become toothless, or have been removed entirely from the text during the negotiations on the Political Declaration.
According to Aidsfonds, at least 73 concessions were made in the course of negotiations to develop a consensus document of Russia. The organization sees Russia’s refusal to accept a painstakingly negotiated consensus and its decision to vote on the Political Declaration today as an attempt to undermine the outcome of the High-Level Summit on AIDS and the global AIDS response based on evidence and rights.
“Still, the Political Declaration has something to welcome,” the Multilateral Task Force said in its statement. “We are pleased that it at least names key populations, despite opposition from some Member States, which has led to a reduction in the language that allows countries to determine which populations are at the center of their response. Key populations have been at the center of the community-led HIV response for 40 years. Their continued leadership, along with that of other vulnerable populations – women, adolescents and youth, indigenous peoples and people with disabilities – is essential and deserves greater recognition. We are concerned that, by citing national legislation, the Political Declaration may allow Member-States to ignore relevant global and national data when identifying key and vulnerable populations in their own countries, and giving them too much leeway to avoid reforming punitive legislation that inhibits an effective response to HIV.”
The Multi-Stakeholder Task Force recognized that, despite the losses and constraints associated with provisions on national sovereignty, the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS is broadly aligned with the priorities of the new Global AIDS Strategy and emphasizes the urgent need to address structural barriers to discrimination, gender inequality, criminalization, underfunding and the isolation of people living with HIV, key populations and other priority populations vulnerable to HIV, including migrants and people in conflict and humanitarian conditons.
“For the first time in history, transformative and measurable program goals that can make AIDS a reality have become part of the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS adopted by the UN General Assembly,” they said. One of the most important achievements of the group is the inclusion of 10-10-10 targets on social drivers that call on the Member States to end all inequalities faced by people living with HIV, key and other priority populations by 2025, reducing it to 10%. The Group also highlighted a commitment to support community leadership and to ensure that more and more HIV services are community-led, especially testing and treatment services, HIV prevention programs for key populations, and programs that support the attainment of social factors. In addition, Aidsfonds called it a “revolutionary victory” to prioritize combination HIV prevention interventions that meet the diverse needs of key and priority populations. The group particularly welcomes the commitment to end vertical transmission of HIV and AIDS in children by 2025, and to meet the 95-95-95 testing targets.
“Since none of these commitments means anything without funding, the Multi-Stakeholder Task Force welcomes the commitment to fully fund the AIDS response, in particular by strengthening global solidarity to meet the 0.7% gross national income target as development assistance and increasing the annual Investment in the fight against HIV in low- and middle-income countries to $29 billion by 2025”.