PHA-Exch> Peter Piot to Leave UN AIDS Agency After 13 Years (2)

["Claudio Schuftan" <cschuftan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

   From:    g_upham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
   
 

13 years ago, I remember chating with Peter at the reception of the Governing board - where I sat as Observer from civil society- when he got the job: He said to me "My wife says I will end up like the Christians, eaten up by the lions- but I told her I think I will make it."

Did Peter bow to the lions? Behind the veneer of a friend of the poor, Peter seems to have toed the line put forth by big business and macroeconomic dictates : Safe transfusion policy was said to be not cost effective in Africa? So be it, UNAIDS would not say a word about the problem. All researchers know from the late 80s outbreak in Mexico that blood donors could get HIV from dirty practices (Patricia Volkow), what action by UNAIDS? Silence. Further, the massive contamination of villagers in China ten years later, quickly shoved under the carpet as 'bizzare blood collection behavior"- (sic)
Blood exposure to HIV largely explaining the different rates of HIV spread in rich and poor communities ? Silence.
The Lancet analysis of sexual behavior 56 countries showing less (not more) sexual activity in young adults of rich countries then in Africa and no correlation at all (or an inverse correlation) between sexual behavior and HIV (published last year)? Silence at UNAIDS.

Neglect of a major disease of poverty, Tuberculosis, was in part responsible for enhancing HIV spread (Anthony Fauci, NIAID 1996)- Silence then  and now..

When (former WHO DG) Dr Bruntland sponsored a civil society initiative in Winthertur "Massive efforts against Diseases of Poverty"- Peter and his envoy disgraced UNAIDS by a speech saying HIV IS NOT A DISEASE OF POVERTY, HIV HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH POVERTY!

Transmission of HIV through dirty injections was an important problem that began to be identified in India- this until the 2004 INCLEN study in India led to important actions for safe injections (still not done in most parts of Africa)- and Professor Arora said that the high rates of HIV remaining in Tamil Nadu were most lilely the result of poor people's preference for injections and the lack of safety overall (Beijing, Nov 2007) -not so for Peter's UNAIDS which expressed surprise at the lower than expected HIV in India (without saying a word about the outcome of the INCLEN study) and, in view of the higher HIV rates among women than men said that "Indian women were more promiscuous than previously thought".
The first book for lay person telling them how to protect themselves from HIV through blood exposure, through injections, tatooting etc in India, published by UNAIDS? No, of course not, a publication by two AIDS activists M. Correa and Dr Deodata Gore (with D Gisselquist, sales of the book going to the PWA treatment center of Dr Gore)

The story of UNAIDS will go down in history as the largest most singular example of how ultra liberal economic approaches (let the individual consumer bare the full responsability for disease control) spell a human tragedy of epic proportions.