The Director of the National Program on Sexual Transmissible Diseases and Aids of the Ministry of Health, Mariângela Simão, said that Brazilian government expects from the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/Aids (Unaids) a more emphatic actuation against restrictions to the breach of patents of anti-retroviral drugs. She mentioned the example of Brazil, which produced the compulsory license of Efavirenz, used by 75,000 Aids patients at the Brazilian public health and which started to be produced in Brazil last February.

According to her, another expectation of the Brazilian government regarding Unaids, is the assistance to criminalize homophobes, decriminalize prostitution (in other countries, since in Brazil that practice is not a crime) and the actuation to revert the conservative trend in the treatment of drug users.

Deputy Paulo Texeira (PT-SP), coordinator of the Parliamentary Front in the Fight against HIV and Aids, asked for the re-discussion of the international legislation on patents, with the participation of Unaids. He argued that billions of people in the whole world do not have access to medicines because of high prices. The interest of the pharmaceutical industry is merely commercial, he affirmed.

Directors of Unaids met with deputies and non-governmental bodies on Thursday (26), to discuss the priorities of the partnership program. The meeting was organized by the Committee on Human Rights of the Chamber and by the parliamentary fronts on the fight against HIV and Aids, and by the Citizenship of Lesbians, Gays, Bi-sexuals and Transsexuals.

Goals
The executive director of Unaids, Michel Sidibé, said that they have the goal to avoid 2,600,000 new infections by the end of 2010, and 1,300,000 deaths. He said that the accomplishment of those goals depends on the investments and public debates which elevate the awareness level on the disease.

Last year, according to Unaids, US$ 10 billion were spent in the fight against Aids in developing countries. From that total, US$4 billion were spent in prevention. According to Sidibé, that amount should double to reach the universal access to HIV prevention.

Sidibé affirmed that the great challenge of Unaids today is to reach the “unreachable groups” – inmates, drug addicts, sex professionals and other minorities. “We want to attract all those people to our program” he said.

The director thinks that Brazil can be a leader in that debate. He made an appeal that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, when participating of G-20, does not only worry about the global financial crisis, but collaborate in that debate.

Sidibé praised the fact that Brazil previews universal access to health services in its Constitution. He said that this country is an example for everybody. For him, universal access is not only a slogan, but social justice.

The coordinator of Unaids in Brazil, Pedro Chequer, suggested that Brazilian Congress contributes to the fight against Aids, by encouraging the establishment of a Parliamentary Front of Latin America. He also affirmed that, in other countries of that continent, such policy is less advanced then in Brazil.

Report - Geórgia Morais/Rádio Câmara
Editing - Wilson Silveira
Translation - Positive Idiomas Ltda