June 9, 2016 (ADF International) – On 8 June, at the ‘High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS’ the Member States of the United Nations adopted the ‘Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS: On the Fast-Track to Accelerate the Fight against HIV and to End the AIDS Epidemic by 2030.’ The meeting is one of the most influential gatherings of the international community on the issue of HIV/AIDS and occurs every five years.
“ADF International fully endorses the underlying aim of the Political Declaration adopted this year, namely to end the AIDS epidemic,” said Elyssa Koren, Director of UN Advocacy for ADF International. “Unfortunately, UNAIDS and some Member States took the opportunity to try and advance so-called ‘sexual rights’ and other agendas in direct contravention to the will and sovereignty of the majority of countries. It is unacceptable to pursue controversial ideologies at the expense of the millions who suffer as a result of HIV/AIDS.”
Ending HIV/AIDS must be priority
For the majority of countries around the world, ending HIV/AIDS is of grave and immediate importance, and must not be conflated with the promotion of controversial agendas. Due to the Arab, African and other countries who insisted that the focus remain on ending HIV/AIDS, the final document is free from references to so-called “sexual rights” or similar terms.
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“Unfortunately, these countries did not possess the same political will to keep out references to abortion. As is the norm in negotiated UN documents, all references to abortion are qualified with a corresponding reference to national law, which serves to protect pro-life Member States in which abortion is not yet legal,” said Koren.
Reproductive rights are not human rights
Although certain Member States fought tirelessly for the inclusion of a reference to “reproductive rights” tied to “human rights,” this ultimately was rejected. “Reproductive rights are in no way part of the internationally recognized body of human rights,” said Koren.
“Member States were clear on the fact that responsible sexual behaviour affirming the innate dignity of every person has proven most successful in ending AIDS in their respective national contexts. Regrettably, so-called ‘UN-experts’ took the liberty of warning Member States against the inclusion of any language on abstinence or fidelity in the document, incorrectly asserting that these terms are representative of a ‘failed social experiment.’”
Reprinted with permission from ADF International.