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US backs down on AIDS aid prostitution clause
By Ustina Markus
May 21, 2005
Washington - The US government has withdrawn a controversial clause requiring
countries and organizations seeking US AIDS assistance to publicly condemn
prostitution.
The clause applied not only to groups hoping to receive direct US AIDS aid, but
also to those receiving funding from multinational organizations to which the
US contributes.
The controversial clause was seen as interference by right-wing conservative
groups on the channeling of aid.
A number of AIDS organizations were also quick to point out that condemning
prostitutes alienated one of the highest risk groups in the fight against AIDS.
If the anti-prostitution pledge had remained intact, it would have meant that
3,000 groups working in 128 countries would have had to condemn prostitution in
order to continue receiving financial support under the Bush initiative.
The prostitution clause was an odd and haphazardly applied stipulation. While
the AIDS initiative required that groups receiving US money have a policy
directly opposing prostitution and sex trafficking, that stipulation initially
only applied to foreign organizations working overseas.
In the US, the Justice Department had denied that forcing organizations to make
such declarations infringed on their freedom of speech. Multilateral
organizations such as the Global Fund, the World Health Organization, and UN
groups were also exempt, since their own charters ban them from enforcing laws
of specific member states.
The Justice department revised its position last September, saying it could
defend the constitutionality of the pledge to US groups working abroad. This
prompted the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which
distributes the US$15 billion health initiative, to demand compliance with the
clause. That, in turn, prompted a number of reputable aid groups, including
CARE, the International Rescue Committee, Save the Children, and others, to
write a letter in protest to the head of PEPFAR, Randall Tobias.
The letter argued that while none of the groups involved explicitly supported
prostitution, it was questionable whether making AIDS groups officially declare
their opposition was helpful.
Although Tobias defended the clause, it appears that lobbying efforts by AIDS
workers have prevailed.
ISN
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