[Ip-health] About Abbott's GBC Award

Fri Jul 13 13:28:01 2007

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
--
[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
FYI
Wim
EATG

-------- Mensagem Original --------
Data: =09Thu, 12 Jul 2007 13:54:01 +0400
De: =09Sergey Smirnov <s.smirnov@positivenet.ru>
Organiza=E7=E3o: =09Community of PLHIV
Para: =09<info@businessfightsaids.org>, <jtedstrom@tpaa.net>, "Alek
Khachatrian" <akhachatrian@tpaa.net>, <info@tpaa.net>
CC: =09Mikhail Viktorovich Rukavishnikov <m_rukavishnikov@positivenet.ru>,
Nataliya Leonchuk <nata@network.org.ua>, <wim-vandevelde@usa.net>,
'Smiljka Malesevic' <smiljka@eatg.org>, <vergus1@rambler.ru>,
<raminta@ceehrn.org>, Vitaly Djuma <vitaly@harmreduction.ru>

Please find attached the joint letter signed by International Treatment
Preparedness Coalition in Eastern Europe & Central Asia, Community of
People Living with HIV -- Secretariat of the Russian Union of PLHIV,
Central & Eastern European Harm Reduction Network, East Europe & Central
Asia Union of PLWH Organisations, and European AIDS Treatment Group on
the issue of the GBC's Sixth Annual Award for Business Excellence.

Sincerely yours,

Sergey Smirnov
Director, Community of PLHIV, PhD
Tel./fax: +7 495 246-4279 / 7675
1st Neopalimovsky pereulok, 11/22
119121 Moscow, Russian Federation
_www.positivenet.ru <http://www.positivenet.ru>
_

_
_

12 July 2007

Ref. 2-091

*Board of Directors, Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria*

*Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, President and CEO*

*John Tedstrom, Executive Director***

Copy: Transatlantic Partners Against AIDS, Avet Khachatrian,
Regional Director of Programs in the Russian Federation and Ukraine

Dear Mr Holbrooke, dear Mr Tedstrom,

On June 13, 2007 the GBC's Board of Directors hosted the Sixth Annual
Awards for Business Excellence Gala at the American Museum of Natural
History in New York, where eight companies were honored for their
actions and commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

On behalf of the communities of people living with HIV in Europe and
Central Asia we would like to express our serious concerns about the
fact that your independent panel of international experts has decided to
award Abbott Laboratories and Abbott Foundation with GBC's Annual Award
for Business Excellence.

We would like to draw your attention to the intimidations exercised by
Abbott towards the Thai government in response to its decision to
increase access to life-saving medicines through licensing their
non-commercial use in accordance with the rules of the World Trade
Organisation. The joint community position towards these events was
publicly announced at the Strategic meeting for achieving Universal
Access in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (St.-Petersburg, April 2007):
"We strongly condemn the corporate blackmail exercised by Abbott Labs on
the Thai government and urge the company to immediately revert this
highly irresponsible decision".

Furthermore, on April 26^th , during an international action day to
persuade Abbott Laboratories to reverse its decisions to withhold
life-saving medication from the Thai market, the French patients'
organization, Act-UP Paris, issued a call to send action letters to the
Abbott website. Thousands of patients and their representatives acted
upon this call which resulted in the temporary disturbance of access to
the company's website. In retaliation, Abbott has filed a criminal law
suit in a French court to demand damages up to 100.000 USD which could
result in the demise of the organization. Never in the 25 years of
fighting this disease has a pharmaceutical company turned against a
patient organization in such an aggressive way and tried to stifle the
freedom of speech of the people living with the disease.

Whilst we very much welcome initiatives that support investments in
public health infrastructure, especially in developing countries, we
believe that demonstrations of social responsibility cannot be limited
to financial investments in worthy projects only. Corporate social
responsibility must take into account and respect universal moral and
ethical values which pharmaceuticals and other private businesses have
to share and observe. Public recognition of contributions to solve
social problems also requires respecting the opinion of the affected
communities, especially when public health and freedom of speech are
concerned.

In the combat against HIV/AIDS, the involvement of PLH and the
observance of the GIPA principles (greater involvement of people with
HIV/AIDS) adopted by international organizations, UN agencies and
governments of different countries, are indispensable in the efforts to
fight the epidemic at all levels. Expressing our respect to the members
of the independent expert panel, their experience and contribution to
social development, we however express our strong conviction that,
without the participation of PLH in the decision-making process
regarding this award, the recognition of contributions to fighting the
epidemic is questionable and does not respect the GIPA principle.

On behalf of the communities of people living with HIV in our countries,
we express our hope that the voices of people who are directly suffering
from the epidemic and their opinions will be respected when
internationally new progresses in the fight against AIDS are
commemorated. Given the disturbing facts involving the company we
outlined above, we urge the GBC to reconsider and withdraw the Annual
Award for Business Excellence unfortunately attributed to Abbott
Laboratories.

International Treatment Preparedness Coalition in Eastern Europe &
Central Asia

Gregory Vergus

Regional Coordinator

Community of People Living with HIV -- Secretariat of the Russian Union
of PLHIV

Mikhail Rukavishnikov President, Coordination Council

Central & Eastern European Harm Reduction Network

Raminta Stuikyte

Director, Secretariat

East Europe & Central Asia Union of PLWH Organisations

Nataliya Leonchuk,

Executive Director, Secretariat

European AIDS Treatment Group

Wim Vandevelde

Chairman, Board of Directors

_
_

__

--