[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 92 (Monday, July 17, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H6090-H6091]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL SEES HIV/AIDS AS GLOBAL CRISIS, NOT
JUST A HEALTH PROBLEM
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I am really here to join two
previous speakers, the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) and the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), who were with me today at the
United Nations Security Council in New York where the United Nation's
Security Council for the first time in history voted for a united
effort and attack on the AIDS crisis in the world and saw it as a
security problem, not just a health challenge before us. It recognized
a that HIV/AIDS is more than a health problem but actually a global
crisis. It set a very important target to work towards the reduction of
AIDS by 25 percent by the year 2010 in the age group of 15 to 24.
It was a very significant and ground-breaking action, but it is by no
means an end. It is a beginning of many more steps that we have to
take.
Earlier in January, I was there when Vice President Gore announced
his support for this effort, and I applaud the leadership, not only of
the Vice
[[Page H6091]]
President, but of Ambassador Holbrooke who have worked with the
Security Council to bring it to the vote today on this important
resolution.
It will look at AIDS as a long-term and domestic policy. It will set
up a tracking system around the world. It will focus on training and
education around the world, but also on the peacekeepers, testing
voluntarily the peacekeepers, and making them aware of the crisis and
the harm that it can be to their own health and to many others.
I might add that this body has also acted to combat the AIDS crisis.
The Department of Defense legislation contained $10 million to really
work, in a joint effort, with military organizations around the world
to educate and combat AIDS. Just last week, in the Foreign Operations
bill, there was a vote of $244 million for USAID to combat AIDS.
I also applaud the hard work of the gentlewoman from California (Ms.
Lee) on her ``Marshal Plan'' against AIDS, which was reported out of
the Committee on Banking and Financial Services with strong bipartisan
support with $100 million authorization for 1 year and $500 million
over 5 years. That legislation is currently before the Senate. We hope
it will likewise receive strong bipartisan support.
I wanted to join my colleagues in really applauding the first-ever
action by the Security Council in recognizing AIDS as a health problem,
a security problem in our new world of interdependence and
globalization, in a very positive step that they took today in passing
out this resolution which I will place in the Record as follows:
Draft Security Council Resolution on HIV/AIDS
The Security Council,
Recalling its meeting of 10 January 2000 chaired by the
Vice President of the United States, at which it was briefed
the President of the World Bank, the Administrator of the
United Nations Development Program, and the Executive
Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on the
connection between the spread of HIV/AIDS and peace and
security in Africa,
Deeply concerned by the extent of the HIV/AIDS pandemic
worldwide and by the severity of the crisis in Africa in
particular,
Bearing in mind that it has the primary responsibility
under the Charter of the United Nations for international
peace and security,
Recalling in this context, the Statement of its President
on the role of the Security Council in the prevention of
armed conflicts (S/PRST/1999/34),
Reaffirming the importance of a coordinated international
response to the economic, health, social, cultural and
humanitarian problems which are often the root causes of
armed conflict,
Recognizing that the adverse effects of the spread of HIV/
AIDS on all sectors of society, including individuals,
families, workers, political leadership, and the military,
have weakened the capacity of affected countries to maintain
domestic and regional peace and security,
Further Recognizing that the spread and impact of the HIV/
AIDS pandemic is greatly exacerbated by poverty and lack of
development,
Further Recognizing that the HIV/AIDS pandemic not only
poses a threat to stability and security, but is also
exacerbated by conditions of violence and instability,
Recognizing that HIV/AIDS poses a truly global risk to all
continents and peoples both civilian and military,
Expressing Concern at the damaging impact of HIV/AIDS on
international peacekeeping operations.
Welcoming the March report of the UN Special Committee on
Peacekeeping which affirmed the need to incorporate HIV/AIDS
prevention training in aspects of the UNDPKO training for
peacekeepers,
Welcoming the Report of the Secretary-General for the
Millennium Assembly of the United Nations, and in particular,
those sections where he notes that the spread of HIV/AIDS is
a truly global crisis, that unless action is taken HIV/AIDS
will be even more damaging in the future, and his call for
coordinated and intensified international action to reduce
the rate of new HIV infections by 25% by the year 2010,
Commending the efforts by UNAIDS to coordinate and
intensify the work of the world's states and the UN
organizations against the HIV/AIDS pandemic,
Commending the efforts of the United Nations Department of
Peacekeeping Operations to address this issue, including
providing HIV/AIDS prevention awareness information to
peacekeepers through its train-the-trainers courses and
materials:
1. Requests the Secretary-General ensure the provision of
mission-specific training of all peacekeepers on issues
related to the prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS, and
ensure the further development of pre-deployment and on-going
training of all peacekeepers on issues related to the
prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS,
2. Urges all states to acknowledge the problem of HIV/AIDS
directly, including in uniformed national military forces,
and develop, in consultation with the international community
and UNAIDS, effective civilians and military personnel on the
prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS,
3. Urges all member states to institute voluntary and
confidential counseling and testing for HIV/AIDS for
civilians and members of uniformed national military forces,
especially for troops to be deployed to international
peacekeeping missions, because of the proven effects of
testing to reduce high-risk behaviors,
4. Further urges countries to increase international
cooperation among national military organizations to assist
with the creation and execution of HIV/AIDS prevention,
testing and treatment policies within the militaries,
5. Requests the Secretary General ensure that UNAIDS
cooperate with member states, including those states that
contribute peacekeeping troops, to establish voluntary
consultations and a database to track these countries' HIV/
AIDS prevention education, testing, deployment, counseling
and treatment policies,
6. Calls upon the leadership of all UN organizations to
address the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the context of their
organization's respective mandates and to adjust their
organization's activities accordingly to ensure they are
assisting wherever possible in the global efforts against the
HIV/AIDS pandemic
Decides to remain seized of the matter and to continue to
seek information and guidance on this issue from all
appropriate sources.
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