14 August, 2005ICEM news release No. 37/2003
O n World AIDS Day, 1 December 2003, the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine & General Workers Unions (ICEM) and its affiliates in partnership with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions' (ICFTU) Global Unions HIV/AIDS Campaign recognize the virus as having a devastating impact on the world of work, and call on unions across the world to step forward to educate workers and the public on preventive measures.
The 20-million-member ICEM also calls on all nations and global institutions to establish and then channel resources through a single agency that can best tackle the HIV/AIDS crisis on an international basis.
"There is no single, effective body that is responsible for coordinating the many genuine efforts to control and reverse the HIV/AIDS pandemic at the international level," stated ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. "Until such a mechanism is in place, the responses from the international community, although welcome, will not achieve maximum effect."
Higgs said International Finance Institutions, donor countries, donor agencies and inter-governmental bodies must make a commitment to establish a designated body to effectively combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic across the globe. He used as example the United States government's emergency plan to spend US$2.4 billion next year on AIDS projects in 14 countries. Such a pledge, Higgs said, is bi-lateral between the US and each respective country and none of the funding is channeled through any official global agency. "Establishing such a dedicated entity will discourage governments and other donors from selective contributions based on their own interests and will ensure that resources are directed where most needed in a fair and equitable manner. That is the only way to maximize the impact globally," said Higgs.
ICEM, with 420 affiliated unions in 121 countries, is currently in dialogue with major pharmaceutical companies on providing badly needed anti-retroviral drug treatments to persons living with HIV/AIDS. ICEM is strategically positioned for such a direct role in the HIV/AIDS fight because it not only represents chemical workers in the pharmaceutical industry at major drug-producing firms, but also industrial workers hardest hit by the virus in energy, mining and mineral extraction in developing regions of sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Asia.
On the ICFTU's Global Unions Campaign, Higgs said ICEM affiliates in Central and South Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean have developed and implemented effective workplace programmes and are engaged on national levels to fight the disease. He cited the innovative initiative of South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) to forge formal agreements with employers for worksite education and awareness programmes. He also singled out NUM for its role in moving the South African government to a drug treatment and care programme.
In Botswana, ICEM affiliate Mining Workers' Union has been key in getting the government to provide free HIV/AIDS drugs and education to all citizens. And the Pakistan Labour Federation (PLF), another ICEM affiliate, has established both an HIV/AIDS Center in Lahore and a Women's Group with its purpose to create awareness among workers in rural areas.
Senzeni Zokwana, president of the National Union of Mineworkers in South Africa, said the ICEM is correct in calling for a central agency to coordinate HIV/AIDS eradication efforts and said the process must be devoid of manipulation. "Countries that do not have the means to afford vaccines must have equal access," he said. "Developed nations and existing agencies must remain neutral and not allow their policies or politics dictate the way in which this epidemic is fought."
Haji Muhammad Saeed, and founder and Secretary General of Pakistan Labour Federation, said, "Although HIV/AIDS affects all levels of a population, poverty is in fact a close companion of the virus. The role of trade unions is essential to support and to ensure the rights of workers living with HIV are upheld." The PLF has also endorsed the ICEM's call for a single agency to coordinate efforts.
The 20-million-member ICEM also calls on all nations and global institutions to establish and then channel resources through a single agency that can best tackle the HIV/AIDS crisis on an international basis.
"There is no single, effective body that is responsible for coordinating the many genuine efforts to control and reverse the HIV/AIDS pandemic at the international level," stated ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. "Until such a mechanism is in place, the responses from the international community, although welcome, will not achieve maximum effect."
Higgs said International Finance Institutions, donor countries, donor agencies and inter-governmental bodies must make a commitment to establish a designated body to effectively combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic across the globe. He used as example the United States government's emergency plan to spend US$2.4 billion next year on AIDS projects in 14 countries. Such a pledge, Higgs said, is bi-lateral between the US and each respective country and none of the funding is channeled through any official global agency. "Establishing such a dedicated entity will discourage governments and other donors from selective contributions based on their own interests and will ensure that resources are directed where most needed in a fair and equitable manner. That is the only way to maximize the impact globally," said Higgs.
ICEM, with 420 affiliated unions in 121 countries, is currently in dialogue with major pharmaceutical companies on providing badly needed anti-retroviral drug treatments to persons living with HIV/AIDS. ICEM is strategically positioned for such a direct role in the HIV/AIDS fight because it not only represents chemical workers in the pharmaceutical industry at major drug-producing firms, but also industrial workers hardest hit by the virus in energy, mining and mineral extraction in developing regions of sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Asia.
On the ICFTU's Global Unions Campaign, Higgs said ICEM affiliates in Central and South Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean have developed and implemented effective workplace programmes and are engaged on national levels to fight the disease. He cited the innovative initiative of South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) to forge formal agreements with employers for worksite education and awareness programmes. He also singled out NUM for its role in moving the South African government to a drug treatment and care programme.
In Botswana, ICEM affiliate Mining Workers' Union has been key in getting the government to provide free HIV/AIDS drugs and education to all citizens. And the Pakistan Labour Federation (PLF), another ICEM affiliate, has established both an HIV/AIDS Center in Lahore and a Women's Group with its purpose to create awareness among workers in rural areas.
Senzeni Zokwana, president of the National Union of Mineworkers in South Africa, said the ICEM is correct in calling for a central agency to coordinate HIV/AIDS eradication efforts and said the process must be devoid of manipulation. "Countries that do not have the means to afford vaccines must have equal access," he said. "Developed nations and existing agencies must remain neutral and not allow their policies or politics dictate the way in which this epidemic is fought."
Haji Muhammad Saeed, and founder and Secretary General of Pakistan Labour Federation, said, "Although HIV/AIDS affects all levels of a population, poverty is in fact a close companion of the virus. The role of trade unions is essential to support and to ensure the rights of workers living with HIV are upheld." The PLF has also endorsed the ICEM's call for a single agency to coordinate efforts.