Continucacion -- Salida de Mexico..

Reflections on IAC- continued:

Still in airport- so a few more reflections to share on the week, and what is on my mind...

As I started to say: the issue of MSMs and the failure to date for the big agencies and the global community to really address the stigma of homophobia in Africa broke open at this conference. I haven't see Jorge Saavedra's presentation, but I understand the 'evidence' he provided of how little money has been given to programs for MSMs, compared to the brunt of infection and suffering suffered by MSMs in many countries has helped convince agencies and even govts that maybe they can approach this via a public health strategy, which seems to help them get over their deeply entrenched homophoia. I stopped by the Gay Africa booth in the global village to congraluate their group for leading this charge. I'm going to look at their work and their members and give profile to this in my own journalism in the coming months...

Que otro? On the subject of GBV, I wrote in an early posting about my own challenges: to quickly put together a workshop to replace a colleague from HRW who couldn't make it. I was pleased by the satellite we presented. Personally it reflected the kind of work I wanted to know about and also things I wanted to share with others who are focused on the theme: What is considered 'best practice' guidelines .. medically, legally - to GBV services and what relationship do such 'best practice' guidelines have for women and grassroots groups working in setings of conflict or with extremely limited resources. I emerged from the week with my own personal clarity about this, and look forward to working with diff colleagues in the legal, human rights and humanitarian relief fields -- and most importantly, with positive and grassroots HIV groups who have GBV programs.

What's the clarity, you ask? Well, in a short word, I'm advocating for what I'm calling a 'tiered' approach to an integrated GBV-HIV response, .. ie, minimal COMMUNITY-BASED guidelines for responding to GBV, that represent the first step on a ladder toward the 'gold standard' of the WHO clinical guidelines. The existing WHO guidelines are great, but out of reach for women GBV survivors or groups trying to help them in settings of conflict or just the typical local NGOs who lack things like refrigerators to store blood samples, or access to doctors.. .. guidelines that will respond to the need to help outreach workers and nurses and counselors who are the front line people who are trying to help survivors of rape, and need tools to help them do what they can, while then linking to the public health sector or hospitals who may have more resources to help survivors of rape or GBV.. The point is, and I'm writing quickly without editing or reading back here, in true blogger style.. that we are now well aware that we need to consider, from the get go, the health AND future legal/rights/justice needs of GBV survivors, and need to provide better guidelines that will help community groups respond to the emergencies, document the crimes, monitor the response and follow up,etc. So: in short - the new goal (mine, anyway): work with colleagues to discusss with the big agencies, the need for more practical, community-based tools and guidelines for responding to GBV that integrates the dual medico- trauma/counseling, and the 'rights ,ie justice/possible future claims of justice that are needed by women and girls and children survivors of GBV.. and in all ths, the link to HIV and STD services, follow up, etc.

Wow. what a long thought. I didn't even look up while writing it, and now I may have missed my flight. Let me check.

Nope- still delayed. Phew. We have another ten minutes. So, more thoughts on IAC, then let me submit this, and board my flight.

Still on the subject of GBV, as I promised to blog on this, I caught a very interesteing presentation on training of military to do prevention -- a possible way we might integrated GBV-- done with the Sudanese military in southern Sudan (but not Darfur). It was within Wed 4:30 August 6 presentations on "AIDS Programming Under Fire'' .. some title like that. It was very good, and worth a further look, which I'll do.

Okay, there's much more to say and write, but I do have to go now. Ciao from Mexico.

aC

so that is what I am personally going to work on and share with the people at WHO and UNAIDS and other agencies who are about to work on 'normative' guidelines for GBV that will help guide health workers in the field..