www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall AIDS funds refused over prostitution clause

AIDS funds refused over prostitution clause
Wednesday, May 4, 2005 Posted: 8:07 PM EDT (0007 GMT)


RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) -- Brazil won't accept some $40 million (euro30.88 million) in U.S. funding to fight AIDS unless Washington drops a clause condemning prostitution, the Health Ministry said Wednesday.

The head of Brazil's anti-AIDS program, Pedro Chequer, sent a letter to the U.S. government last week saying that his country would not accept the money under the conditions imposed in funding agreement.

"We don't accept this meddling because it interferes with our sovereignty. We have our anti-AIDS program and they have their way of fighting AIDS," said a press officer at the Health Ministry who declined to be identified.

The money is part of a funding package from USAID, which allotted $48 million (euro37.06 million) to Brazil for its AIDS campaign between 2003 and 2008. The Health Ministry estimates that $8 million (euro6.18 million) dollars of that money has already been spent.

Brazil has received funding from USAID since 1996.

The Health Ministry said the clause that condemns prostitution -- which is legal in Brazil -- was not in the original agreement signed by Brazil, but was added later by the Bush administration.

Brazil is one of the first countries to oppose the Bush administration's policy of linking foreign aid to policies favored by the religious right.

Brazilian officials said that condemning prostitution represented a serious problem for their anti-AIDS program, which works with many non-governmental organizations that encourage the use of condoms by sex workers -- one of the groups with the highest risk of getting AIDS.

Brazil has made great progress in curbing AIDS by distributing millions of free condoms every year at street festivals like carnival. It also provides anti-AIDS drugs free to anyone who needs them.

About 600,000 of Brazil's 183 million people are infected with the HIV virus.

no problem, pedro.
i am sure we can use the extra 40 million dollars right here inside the united states, no?

sam

Exactly...although, the no-prostitution clause probably won't make Nevada happy, either...

Gaudior, disgusted

... but if we don't 'tithe' and/or help the weaker brother... what will God think?


Those poor people are infected with the AIDS virus or they are infected with HIV. There is no such thing as the Human Immunodeficiency Virus virus.

Those poor people should talk to Pedro. Apparently he seems to think HE has their problem under control.

God might 'think' Pedro is prideful. God might agree prostitution is wrong. I don't know what God thinks.

There are many areas in which we can and do 'tithe'. We 'tithe' more than any other country on the face of the planet. We are damned if we do and damned if we don't. Thats how it is at the top. ;-)

Sam
USA

Wild goose, I quite agree with your observation that there is no such thing as the HIV Virus. Perhaps, however, you might be better off addressing your corrections to the author of the article, rather than posting them on the forum?

Gaudior, who really thinks that that is beyond petty

Hi gaudior,

As one can clearly see, I didn't address it to you particularly.

Yes you are right, the media often make this mistake. The author of the article didn't make him/herself known to us, nor did they leave a postal address.

You have noted one of my pet pieves! :-) Please don't take it personally, OK. blessing, wg

p.s. it's not petty... it's medically and scientificaly inaccurate

Ah, well, I'll grant you your pet peeve...everyone's got them.

Gaudior, who thinks of quite a few that occur too often for my liking...

Gaudior, you wouldn't be implying that there are those who are peevish, would you?

Only meself, Charles, only meself Now, if anyone were to be foolish enough to, say, speak evil of chocolate, that would be another story...

Gaudior, peaceably

AHHHH! Chocolate is SINFUL!!
Especially Godiva (and those new chocolate cream filled chocolate Hershey chocolate bars)!
Sam

Speaking of women who are famous for shady reasons...

Tamar was an adulteress; Rahab was a prostitute from pagan Jericho; Uriah's wife Bathsheba, was the woman David seduced; Ruth was not even a Jew at all, but a Moabitess-the people from Moab were forbidden to go near the Temple of the Lord for all eternity! And she had sex with Boaz before 'marriage.'

The $$$ that Brasil is refusing to accept should not be tied to a clause that condemns prostitution from some moral high ground. And no Christian who knows Jesus' family tree should have any complaints with what the gov't of Brasil has done.

By that logic, since David was a murderer, we should not condemn murder since Christ's ancestors were murderers.

Gaudior, stating that immorality is immorality, and to condone behaviour that is both unsafe AND immoral while throwing money at it, is sheer hypocrisy. If we are giving money to stop the spread of a disease transmitted, in the majority of cases, by sexual contact, we certainly can say "please don't condone this behaviour if you want our money".

Right on Gaudior!

WG,
I hope this isn't going to turn into another 14 page thread attempting to prove to ourselves deviant sexual behavior isn't sinful.
Have a nice day.

Sam

Did Jesus Christ withold his love for the prostitutes he was hanging out with ?

Withdraw the condemnation clause and give impoverished Brazil the AIDS medical funding it needs.

I.F.