[NEWS] UNAIDS: Seeking Practitioners in HIV and Human Rights

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The XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna, whose theme was “Right Here,
Rights Now,” provided a unique opportunity to bring together many people from
around the world who share an interest in and commitment to a human
rights-based response to HIV/AIDS.

As a follow-up to AIDS 2010 and as part of a larger effort to support greater
collaboration among key people working on HIV, human rights and law, UNAIDS and
the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network have partnered in order to develop an
international roster of practitioners with experience in HIV and human rights.

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[UPDATE] An Exchange Between Shawn Shieh & Meg Davis on Chinese NGOs

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In June 2010, we posted this
blog post on how China’s new nonprofit regulations – including new,
stricter regulations on INGOs in China’s Yunnan Province — were affecting
grassroots groups. The essay was reposted to Chinapol (aka C-Pol), an email
list of professionals working on Chinese policy issues. The following
discussion between Asia Catalyst ED, Sara L.M. Davis (also known by her
nickname, Meg) and Shawn Shieh
of Marist College is reprinted here with consent from both.

Shawn Shieh writes:

Meg,

Thanks for writing this up.  I’m actually in the middle of translating the
Yunnan regs, so if anyone has the translation already and would be willing to
share, I’d be most grateful.

I had one question and a comment.  In your discussion of the Yunnan regs
on foreign NGOs, you note that foreign NGOs will have to apply for approval
with the provincial Civil Affairs and then go on to say that this will make
them [government-organized NGOs, or] GONGOs.  I didn’t understand the
connection.  How does applying for approval translate into becoming a
GONGO?

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[NEWS] South African NGOs Letter on Tian Xi

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Asia Catalyst supported a group of Chinese AIDS activists to participate in the 2009 International Conference on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific in Bali. Tian Xi is in the back row, third from left.

South African AIDS NGOs have spoken out several times to protest the detention of Henan AIDS activist Tian Xi. Tian Xi is still awaiting a decision on his trial for “intentional destruction of property”.

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[REPORT] Using Buddhism in HIV/AIDS Education and Care

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With some translation assistance from Asia Catalyst, Mr. Ai Khamngen from Yunnan’s Sangha Metta Project (佛光之家 foguangzhijia）won a full scholarship from the International AIDS Society to attend the International AIDS Conference in Vienna. Sangha Metta, located in Yunnan’s Sipsongpanna Tai Autonomous Prefecture, brings together Tai minority Buddhist monks, people living with HIV/AIDS, and community leaders to do AIDS prevention, sex education, and community support work. Theirs is one of the few ethnic-minority-led AIDS programs in China, and is modeled on similar projects in Thailand. Here is his slide presentation.

Please follow this link for his presentation: HIVAIDS care with Buddhism.

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[REPORT] The Limits of Legal Rights in Nepal

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by Hayley Curry

The rule of law can be a powerful and effective tool
for building a society that is free of injustice and filled with opportunities
for all, but the operational environment that accompanies human rights advocacy can limit its effectiveness. This summer, while working as a legal intern at an NGO in Kathmandu,
Nepal, I experienced these challenges firsthand.

 

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