In preparation of PHA2 - Call for Action
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THE PEOPLE'S HEALTH MOVEMENT (PHM) IN 2005: STILL AT THE
FOREFRONT OF THE STRUGGLE FOR 'HEALTH FOR ALL NOW'!
1. Five years after the historical People's Health Assembly in
Savar, Bangladesh, December 2000, the PHM with affiliates in
five continents, re-commits itself to its flagship document, the
People's Health Charter (PCH).
2. The analysis made in the PCH applies to today's world every
bit as much as it did five years ago --only that the sense of
urgency has been hightened!
3. Our vision remains one striving for peace, equity, and an
ecologically-sustainable development. We see the health crisis
we described for most countries in the world in the year 2000 to
have, if anything, deepened.
4. Fully aware that our legitimacy is only as strong as the
weakest link in our Movement, we re-commit ourselves to the
"Call for Action" points made in the PCH as they relate to ac-
tively influencing the many direct and indirect determinants of
health.
In a nutshell, we still stand for:
5. Combating the negative impacts of Globalization as a world-
wide economic and political ideology and process.
6. Significantly reforming the IFIs and the WTO to make them
more responsive to poverty alleviation and the Health for All
Now movement.
7. A forgiveness of the foreign debt of least developed coun-
tries and use of its equivalent for poverty reduction, health
and education activities.
8. Greater checks and restraints of the freewheeling powers of
transnational corporations, especially pharmaceutical houses
(and mechanisms to ensure their compliance).
9. Greater and a more equitable household food security.
10. Some type of a Tobin tax that taxes runaway international
financial transfers.
11. Unconditionally supporting the emancipation of women and the
respect of their full rights.
12. Putting health higher in the development agenda of govern-
ments.
13. The health (and other) rights of displaced people.
14. Halting the process of privatization of public health fa-
cilities and for greater controls of the already installed pri-
vate health sector.
15. More equitable, just and empowered people's participation in
health and development matters.
16. A greater focus on poverty alleviation in national and in-
ternational development plans.
17. Greater and unconditional access of the poor to health ser-
vices and treatment regardless of their ability to pay.
18. Strengthening public institutions, political parties and
trade unions involved, as we are, in the struggle of the poor.
19. Opposing restricted and dogmatic fundamentalist views of he
development process.
20. Greater vigilance and activism in matters of water and air
pollution, the dumping of toxics, waste disposal, climate
changes and CO2 emissions, soil erosion and other attacks on the
environment.
21. Militant opposition to the unsustainable exploitation of
natural resources and the destruction of forests.
22. Protecting biodiversity and opposing biopiracy and the in-
discriminate use of genetically modified seeds.
23. Holding violators of environmental crimes accountable.
24. Systematically applying environmental assessments of devel-
opment projects and people-centered environmental audits.
25. Opposing war and the current USA-led, blind 'anti-terrorist'
campaigns.
26. Categorically opposing the Israeli invasion of Palestinian
towns and the construction of the wall (having, among other, a
sizeable negative impact on the health of the Palestinian peo-
ple).
27. The democratization of the UN bodies and especially of the
Security Council, as well as of the IFIs.
28. Getting more actively involved in actions addressing the si-
lent epidemic of violence against women.
29. More prompt responses and preventive/rehabilitative measures
in cases of natural disasters.
30. Making a renewed call for a comprehensive, more democratic
PHC that is given the resources needed --holding governments ac-
countable in this task.
31. Vehemently opposing the commoditization and privatization of
health care (and the sale of public facilities).
32. Fostering independent national drug policies focused around
essential, generic drugs.
33. Lobbying for the transformation of WHO, supporting and ac-
tively working with its new Commission on the Social Determi-
nants of Health making sure it remains accountable to civil so-
ciety.
34. Assuring WHO stays staunchly independent from corporate in-
terests.
35. Sustaining and promoting the defense of effective patients'
rights.
36. Actively working for an expansion and incorporation into PHC
of traditional medicine.
37. Revamping and making changes in the training of health per-
sonnel to assure it covers the great issues of our time as de-
picted in our PCH.
38. Insisting on public health-oriented (and not for-profit)
health research worldwide.
39. Promoting strong people's organizations and a global move-
ment working on health issues.
40. Being more proactive in countering the media that are at the
service of the negative aspects of the globalization process.
41. Putting people's empowerment first so as to lead them to
greater control of the health services they need and get.
42. Creating the bases for a better analysis and better con-
certed actions by our members through greater involvement of
them in the PHM's website and list-server.
43. Fostering a global solidarity network that can support and
reach our fellow members when facing disasters, emergencies or
acute repressive situations.
Specific actions are proposed in the PCH for each of these head-
ings above.
Join our Movement as active participants.
[To start with, you should regularly visit our web site at
http://www.phmovement.org, contact our Secretariat
mailto:secretariat@phmovement.org and join the pha-exchange
list-server by writing to its moderator at
mailto:claudio@hcmc.netnam.vn].
--
Claudio Schuftan
mailto:claudio@hcmc.netnam.vn