People’s Health Movement will observe 2003 as the “Year of Alma
Ata”
Urgent Press Release: “Health for all Now”
Hyderabad (India), 8th January 2003
The People’s Health Movement (PHM) has launched a global campaign at the Asian Social Forum to observe 2003 as the Year of Alma Ata.
The year long campaign involves a series of activities to remind governments, UN agencies and others of the key principles and strategies of the WHO’s Alma Ata declaration that promised to deliver Health for All.
25 years since the Alma Ata declaration Health for All by 2000 remains elusive and instead the world’s citizens are subjected to all the negative health impacts of wars, unregulated globalisation, extreme poverty and discrimination.
Members of the PHM have participated in large numbers at the Asian Social Forum to extend their solidarity to other organizations fighting for a just and better world. The Year of Alma Ata activities began with the launch of the “The Million Signature Campaign- A march on the Internet demanding Health for All Now ! during the ASF meeting. This web-based campaign is being jointly organized by the People's Health Movement and its constituent organisations, and is being endorsed by ordinary people from various walks of life and organisations, institutions, people’s associations and others working for a just world.
PHM believes that strategies and spirit of Alma Ata should be revived as the experience of Alma Ata shows that Alma Ata and Primary Health care works where there is a political commitment.
PHM was launched in Dec 2000 through the People’s Health Assembly, a historic summit in Bangladesh that had participation of over 1500 representatives from nearly 100 countries. The goal of the People’s Health Movement is to re-establish health and equitable development as top priorities in local, national and international policy-making, with comprehensive primary health care as the strategy to achieve these priorities.
PHM aims to draw on and support people’s movements in their struggles to build long-term and sustainable solutions to health problems. One of the outcomes of the PHA 2000 is the People’s Charter for Health, the largest consensus document on health.
During the ASF the PHM delegates from around Asia discussed a variety of issues related to health and social justice. Among the important suggestions that came up include taking the struggle of Health for All to constituencies like schools, grassroots, decision making structures, governments and international agencies. A decision was also taken to popularize some of the success stories of low cost primary health care. Efforts are being made by PHM members to strengthen the campaign for access to essential drugs. The prices of essential drugs has shot up under the liberalisation and privatization policies pushed by the WB, IMF and WTO taking them beyond the reach of ordinary people.
PHM delegates also came down heavily on the US government for its imperialist ambitions in the Middle East and war mongering against Iraq. Quoting relevant portions from a joint report brought out by International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and MEDACT (a PHM constituent) members stated that a war on Iraq is bad not only for the people of Iraq, its neighbours, Asia also for the whole world.
Dr. Qasem Choudhury, Outgoing facilitator: PHM secretariat
Dr. Ravi Narayan, Facilitator: PHM Secretariat.
For further media queries, please call:
India: Dr. Unnikrishnan PV
Mobile: +91 (0) 98450 91319 / unnikru@yahoo.com
Thailand: Satya Sivaraman
E-mail: satyasagar@yahoo.com
UK: Andrew Chetley
E-mail: chetley.a@healthlink.org.uk
During Asian Social Forum
+91 (0) 98450 91319 / +91 (0) 98491 55692
PHM Secretariat
Gonoshasthaya Kendra, PO Mirzanagar, 1344 Savar, BANGLADESH. Tel: 880-2-770 8316; fax: 880-2-770 8317
E-mail: gksavar@citechco.net
~ www.phmovement.org
IPHC
Apartado # -6152, Managua, Nicaragua
Telfax: (505) 266 2225
E-mail: info@iphcglobal.org ~ www.iphcglobal.org
