wfn.org | WCC news: Faith to play feature role at intl AIDS conference

["WCC Media" <Media@wcc-coe.org>]

World Council of Churches 7 Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - 24/06/2004 - pr-04-12

Faith to play feature role
at international AIDS conference

				   Daily coverage (print, photo,
video, audio)
				   of faith-based involvement
will be available.
								
   See below for details.

Faith-based organizations will have a major voice at the largest
global
meeting ever of HIV and AIDS experts, highlighting the vital,
but often
unrecognized, role they play in fighting the spread of the virus
and caring
for those with it.

A wide range of organizations from Christian, Muslim, Buddhist
and Jewish
traditions will be represented at the 15th International AIDS
Conference in
Bangkok, Thailand, from 11-16 July. They will share how they
meet the
physical, emotional and spiritual needs of those living with HIV
and AIDS
and debate the challenges involved in combating stigma and
preventing the
spread of the virus.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) will support the
participation of
representatives from several grassroots organizations.	It will
also bring
project manager Dr Christoph Mann and Southern Africa regional
coordinator
Dr Sue Parry of the WCC Ecumenical HIV/AIDS Initiative in Africa
(EHAIA).
This initiative, which aims to help churches in Africa become
AIDS-competent, links them with northern churches and agencies,
enabling
access to information, training, networks and funding.

"Faith-based communities are accountable to their people for
credible
information, education and support that will mobilize them as
communities
that are competent to face the challenge of AIDS with all the
resources
that are available to them - including their faith," says Dr
Manoj Kurian,
responsible for the Health and Healing programme at the WCC.

With more than 100 faith-based organizations set to attend, the
faith
community will be the heart and soul of the conference. It will
be an
energetic participant, using art, dance and drama to show how
these
organizations are confronting the pandemic at the grassroots
level.

The voice given by the conference to the faith-based community
recognizes
the massive range of work it is doing and the key role it plays
in
educating communities, shaping values and providing care. Past
conferences
tended to overlook this fact, yet in Africa, for example, church
members
are leading efforts to care for people affected by HIV and AIDS,
especially
children. In Thailand itself, Buddhist monks are active in the
same way.

Ms Linda Hartke, coordinator for the Ecumenical Advocacy
Alliance, says:
"Faith communities and religious leaders all over the world
have been
judgemental and hurtful to people living with or affected by HIV
and AIDS.
At the same time, there are many examples of leaders who have
rejected
stigmatizing behaviour, and communities that have embraced
people who are
affected.

"As churches, we are still struggling to accept the reality
that we are all
living with HIV and AIDS," she states. "We have a huge task
ahead of us to
build communities of faith that welcome all and judge none."

Faith-based pre-conference meetings

Representatives of churches and Christian organizations will
meet 9-10 July
to debate the challenge of HIV/AIDS under the theme "Access
for all: the
faith community responding". The meeting will be held at the
Ambassador
Hotel in central Bangkok.

In a series of workshops, more than 250 global delegates will
address
sensitive issues such as abstinence versus condom use; the
church, HIV/AIDS
and sexuality; faith communities collaborating with networks of
people
living with the virus; and theological training on HIV and
AIDS.
Participants will examine how faith-based organizations can vamp
up efforts
to save lives by educating communities on the use of
life-saving
anti-retrovirals, work with media, and encourage people of
different faiths
to work together.

At the same time, Buddhist and Muslim groups will hold parallel
conferences
to address similar issues. On 10 July, an interfaith gathering
will bring
the three groups together for an orientation to the conference
and to see
how they can all work together.

Faith-based activities during the conference
In addition to a large number of presentations addressing issues
that
include HIV and migration, working with high-risk groups,
developing
home-based care, caring for orphans and vulnerable children, and
converting
HIV knowledge into behaviour change, the following activities
are planned:

Satellite session
Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and ex-UN high
commissioner
for Human Rights, will moderate a session on "Combating stigma
and
discrimination: the role of religious leaders in building
inclusive
communities". (12 July, 20:15-22:15, Room K).

Plenary presentation
Influential Ugandan leader, Canon Gideon Byamugisha, was the
first
HIV-positive priest in Africa to reveal his status and knows
what a
difference the church can make when it responds well. He will
address
Religion and HIV and AIDS in his speech to the main plenary
session on 16
July, 8:30-10am.

Global Village spiritual corner
In the Global Village, a spiritual corner will feature events
including
Jewish ceremonies, Buddhist yoga, Christian worship and Muslim
prayers.

Interfaith chaplaincy programme
Chaplains from various faiths will provide counselling and lead
prayer
during the conference.

Interfaith exhibit
In a shared space, up to 50 faith-based organizations will
display and
distribute materials that are informative, focused on best
practices, and
helpful for the work of others. (Stand Number 148).

Poster competition exhibit
The winning posters from a global poster competition against
HIV- and
AIDS-related stigma and discrimination, created by children,
youth, adults
and professionals, will be exhibited in the Skywalk between the
IMPACT
Exhibition Centre and the Convention Centre. A free CD-ROM of
the posters
and multi-lingual resources for grassroots education and
advocacy against
HIV- and AIDS-related stigma and discrimination have also been
prepared and
are available at http://www.e-alliance.ch/postercd/ or by
emailing
nextsteps@e-alliance.ch.

Media coverage
An ecumenical media team will provide daily feature articles and
press
releases in English, French, German and Spanish, photos, video
and audio
clips as well as a daily conference bulletin. All material can
be viewed
and downloaded free of charge at
http://www.e-alliance.ch/bangkok.jsp.

To subscribe to a daily e-mail digest of news stories and media
products,
fill in the short form at www.e-alliance.ch/iac_digest.jsp  or
write to
media@e-alliance.ch.

The ecumenical media team can also assist in setting up
interviews and
serving as a resource for information on faith-based efforts on
HIV and
AIDS.

Contact the team at:
E-mail:  media@e-alliance.ch 
Tel. (until July 4):  +44 1524 771 885
Tel. (8-16July): +66 2 254 0444, ext. 1701
Mobile (July 7-17): +66 1 420 1454

Website of the 15th International AIDS Conference
www.aids2004.org 

The Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance, Norwegian Church Aid, the
World
Conference of Religions for Peace, and Catholic Relief Services
have played
critical leadership roles in faith-based planning for this
conference, but
many more organizations have contributed and supported the
efforts through
advisory committees and as participants.

The Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance is a broad international
network of over
85 churches and church-related organizations cooperating in
advocacy on
global trade and HIV and AIDS. Among the participants are the
World Council
of Churches, The Lutheran World Federation, the YMCA and YWCA,
Franciscans
International, the All Africa Conference of Churches and the
Presbyterian
Church of Korea. The Alliance is based in Geneva, Switzerland.
For more
information, see www.e-alliance.ch 

For more information contact:
	 Media Relations Office: tel: (+41 22) 791 64 21 /  61
53
	 e-mail:media@wcc-coe.org - http://www.wcc-coe.org 

The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now
342, in more
than 120 countries in all continents from virtually all
Christian
traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church but
works
cooperatively with the WCC. The highest governing body is the
assembly,
which meets approximately every seven years. The WCC was
formally
inaugurated in 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its staff is
headed by
general secretary Samuel Kobia from the Methodist church in
Kenya.