 |
China to Hold National HIV/AIDS Conference
On the verge of large-scale AIDS epidemic, China will hold a national AIDS conference meant to arouse vigilance against the disease in all corners of society.
The conference, scheduled for mid-November in Beijing, will be the biggest event on the HIV/AIDS matter in China since it reported the first AIDS case in 1985, according to the Chinese Association of STD/AIDS Prevention and Control, one of the organizers.
Along with high-ranking Chinese officials and specialists in the field of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases (STD), some volunteers and HIV carriers will also attend forums and activities during the conference, said Dong Yongkun, secretary- general of the association.
"The meeting is open to the whole society because the fight against HIV/AIDS needs efforts from all people of the country," Dong said.
The executive director of the U.N. Program on HIV/AIDS and some noted foreign experts are to be invited as speakers of the conference, she said.
The conference, initiated by the Ministry of Health, will be comprehensive, covering policy making, project management, and participation of governmental departments and non-governmental organizations.
Medical research and disease surveillance, health education and behavioral intervention, and treatment and nursing of AIDS patients are also expected to become hot topics.
"We hope the meeting will boost the implementation of a five- year action plan for prevention and control of HIV/AIDS, which has been issued by the State Council," Dong said.
An evening party highlighting the spirit of non-discrimination against HIV carriers and AIDS patients will also be staged and televised nationwide.
"People should become more tolerant and caring to AIDS patients since we'll have more patients in the coming years," Dong said.
The 2001-2005 action plan aims to keep the annual increase rates of HIV infection and STD cases below ten percent by the year 2005; the figures have exceeded 30 percent in the past few years.
In This Section
|