In preparation of People's Health Assembly II - part 6
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Finally, the Movement promotes a large number of initiatives
aimed at transforming health in the most comprehensive manner
possible. These include the following:
a. getting more actively involved in actions addressing the si-
lent epidemic of violence against women;
b. more prompt responses and preventive/ rehabilitative measures
in cases of natural disasters;
c. making a renewed call for a comprehensive, and more democ-
ratic People's Health Care that is given the resources needed -
and holding governments accountable in this task;
d. vehemently opposing the commoditization and privatization of
health care (and the sale of public facilities);
e. promoting independent national drug policies centred around
essential, generic drugs;
f. calling for the transformation of WHO, supporting and ac-
tively working with whatever replaced its Civil Society Initia-
tive (CSI) making sure WHO remains accountable to civil society;
g. assuring WHO stays staunchly independent from corporate in-
terests;
h. sustaining and promoting the defense of effective patient's
rights;
i. expanding and incorporating traditional medicine into Peo-
ple's Health Care;
j. working for changes in the training of health personnel to
assure it covers the great issues of our time as depicted in the
People's Charter for Health;
k. public health-oriented (and not for-profit) health research
worldwide;
l. strong people's organizations and a global movement working
on health issues;
m. more proactive countering of the media that are at the ser-
vice of the globalization process;
n. people's empowerment leading to their greater control of the
health services they need and get;
o. creating the bases for a better analysis and better concerted
actions by its members through greater involvement of them in
the PHM's website (www.phmovement.org) and list-server (pha-
exchange@kabissa.org );
p. fostering a global solidarity network that can actively sup-
port fellow members when facing disasters, emergencies or acute
repressive situations.
As we are well into the new millennium, this comprehensive view
of actions for health, is probably the most significant contri-
bution of the People's Health Assembly and the evolving People's
Health Movement. (Schuftan, 2002).