NOTES FOR REMARKS BY PRIME MINISTER JEAN CHRÉTIEN AT A HIGH LEVEL INTERACTIVE PANEL ON HIV/AIDS

September 22, 2003
New York

I am honoured to be with you today, to share my views and those of my government on stigma and discrimination. At the same time, I am deeply saddened that even today, in the 21st century, we gather to discuss these twin scourges which, regrettably, live side by side with HIV/AIDS and which continue to drive the pandemic and hinder efforts to contain it.

Let's talk honestly about who gets infected with HIV. The statistics tell us that infection rates are highest among the urban and rural poor and other marginalised groups, including commercial sex workers and intravenous drug users. But who are the people in the statistics?

They are ordinary people. They are our mothers, our fathers, our sons and daughters, our friends. Their numbers include one of Canada's delegation members here today. There are few of us here today that can say that HIV has not touched us personally. We must be governed by a moral and legal imperative to promote and protect the human rights of all those affected.

Most people living with HIV and AIDS around the world - including most of those living in Canada - remain silent and hesitate to seek care and support due to fear of stigma and discrimination. This fear still prevents millions of people from seeking to know their HIV status, and is one of the most significant barriers to effectively scaling up prevention efforts.

As leaders, we have a responsibility to break the silence surrounding HIV, in our public and private discourse, in our schools, our workplaces, our communities, and in the press. We must push for better education, and broader awareness. We must highlight and mitigate the impact of the epidemic on women and girls, as well as on other vulnerable populations such as those living in poverty, refugees, and internally displaced people. We must renew our commitment to their empowerment in order that we can break the cycle of infection. We owe it to those we serve. And it is in all of our best interest.

Of course, awareness-raising alone will never be enough to combat this scourge of stigma and discrimination. We can and must work nationally and globally to implement the legal and institutional frameworks required to guarantee human rights protection and promote social change. In Canada, our Charter of Rights and Freedoms fulfils this function, and we support UN instruments that call for global standards in this area.

We must also work together to ensure that affordable and effective treatment is available to all those who need it. Treatment helps those living with HIV to lead productive lives, with dignity, as full members of our communities. Canada will continue to make contributions to alleviate AIDs suffering.

Those in this room living with HIV could tell us that stigma and discrimination are alive and well, in Canada and in every one of our countries. We all committed just over two years ago to demonstrate leadership in fighting this issue. The fight is not yet over. Let's get to work.

Thank you.

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