Interfaith Letter on Global AIDS

March 5, 2002

Dear Member of the Budget Committee,

As religious leaders, we believe that the HIV/AIDS crisis is calling us to be a true global community-to listen to and care for people living with HIV/AIDS. Together, we must overcome the barriers of fear, stigmatization, discrimination, and inequality. Our churches, synagogues, and mosques are devoting increased attention and resources toward fighting the pandemic, and we are writing to urge the US government to increase its commitment by allocating $2.5 billion for global AIDS in the budget resolution for FY 2003.

AIDS has become the worst infectious disease crisis to confront the world since the bubonic plague of the 14th century halved the population of Europe within five years. Today, 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS and 95% of them do not have access to treatment that could prolong their lives. As a result, the world is facing an escalation of AIDS orphans that is expected to reach 44 million (roughly the same number of children in public schools in the United States east of the Mississippi) by 2010 if the international community does not respond. This massive loss of human life will dramatically alter families, communities and entire countries. We cannot sit idly by.

As you consider language for the FY 2003 budget resolution, we urge you to increase official development assistance across development, health, and humanitarian programs broadly. Because of the unprecedented impact of the AIDS crisis, we believe that the US should provide $2.5 billion in FY 2003 resources to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria and to bilateral AIDS programs.

Governments, the private sector, and civil society-including communities of faith-must mobilize to respond to the AIDS pandemic. I hope you will join with us in responding to this urgent call.

Sincerely,

• Rev. John L. McCullough, Executive Director, Church World Service
• Rev. Bob Edgar, General Secretary, National Council of Churches
• Marce Kitissou, Executive Director, Africa Faith and Justice Network
• Dr. George F. Flowers, Executive Director, African Methodist Episcopal Church Global Witness and Ministry
• Charles Brooks, Washington Representative, American Jewish Congress
• Dr. Nedzib Sacirbey, Secretary of the Board of Directors, American Muslim Council

NCC/CWS, 110 Maryland Ave. NE, Washington, DC 20002
202-544-2350 | Fax: 202-546-6232 | email: heathern@ncccusa.org

Greg Davidson Laszakovits
Washington Office
Church of the Brethren

Rev. Richard Hamm
General Minister and President
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Rev. Ken Brooker Langston
Co-convener
(Disciples Advocacy Washington Network)

The Most Rev. Frank T. Griswold
Presiding Bishop and Primate
Episcopal Church, USA

Thomas H. Hart
Director of Government Relations
The Episcopal Church

Bishop Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Dr. Ronald J. Sider
President
Evangelicals for Social Action

Joe Volk
Executive Secretary
Friends Committee on National Legislation

Dr. Kathryn Wolford
President
Lutheran World Relief

Marie Dennis, Director
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns

Jose Ortiz
Executive Director
Mennonite Central Committee U.S.

Rev. William J. Shaw
President
National Baptist Convention, Inc.

Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick
Stated Clerk
Presbyterian Church (USA)

Rev. Elenora Giddings Ivory
Director, Washington Office
Presbyterian Church (USA)

Rabbi David Saperstein
Director
Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

Phil Reed, M.Afr.
Coordinator, Justice and Peace Office
Society of Missionaries of Africa, North American Province

Rev. William G. Sinkford
President
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations

Rev. Meg A. Riley
Director, Washington Office for Faith in Action
Unitarian Universalist Association

Rev. John H. Thomas
General Minister and President
United Church of Christ

Rev. Ronald Stief
Minister and Team Leader of the
Public Life and Social Policy Team of the Justice and Witness Ministries
United Church of Christ, Washington Office

The Rev. Dr. Leon P. Spencer
Executive Director
Washington Office on Africa

Clive Calver
President
World Relief

URGENT ACTION

Boost US funding for the Global Fund on AIDS, TB, and malaria to $1 billion
in FY 2002.

Action: Urge the Bush administration and Congress to include $700 million for the Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria in the emergency supplemental spending bill expected to be introduced by the Bush administration on March 18th. (This effort helps lay the groundwork for getting $2.5 billion in the budget resolution for next year FY 2003.)

National Call-In-Days: March 13th and 14th

Contact the White House: Phone 202-456-1111; Fax: 202-456-2461; email: president@whitehouse.gov

Contact the Chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees: HOUSE--Rep. Young (202-225-5961)
SENATE-Senator Byrd (202-224-3954)
In addition to the White House, these members have the ultimate say in what is included in the emergency spending bill.

If you have time, please also contact your legislator at the Capitol Hill switchboard: 202-224-3121. Note: See www.house.gov and www.senate.gov for fax, direct phone and email addresses for members.

When you call the members' offices leave a message with the receptionist for the legislative assistant who handles global AIDS issues or leave a voicemail for the legislative assistant. If you actually speak to the legislative assistant, say where you are calling from and explain that you are asking Rep. ________ to support $700 million for global AIDS within the upcoming supplemental spending bill. Be brief. Use the facts below to help make your points.

Not sure who your representative is? Check www.house.gov/writerep/ to find them with your zip code.

Addresses for letters: Email delivery at the Capitol is still delayed due to last year's anthrax incidents. Please send a letter or postcard to the local office of your Representative and of your Senators instead. You will find the address online at the websites above, or call your public library.

Stay Tuned: Members from both the House (Barbara Lee, D-CA) and Senate (in process) are expected to initiate letters to the White House calling for $700 million for global AIDS programs to be included in the emergency spending bill. You can help by urging your House and Senate members to sign on to these letters when they are released. We will notify you as soon as we have more information.

Issue: On or around March 18th, the Bush administration is expected to designate certain programs as emergencies-such as the war on terrorism - and submit a fiscal year 2002 emergency supplemental to Congress. An emergency supplemental provides funding immediately and is separate from the regular budget process.

When Congress passed the FY 2002 budget last November, they failed to include enough money for global AIDS programs. Advocates called for at least $1 billion to be provided to the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria.

Over 95 members of the House and Senate signed onto letters to President Bush asking $1 billion in emergency appropriation but only $300 million was actually allocated.

Now we can close the gap in FY 2002 global AIDS funding. At least $700 million for the Global HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria Fund should be included in the supplemental emergency spending bill. This would bring the US government's contribution to $1 billion for FY 2002.

Background: An estimated $10 billion is needed to respond to the crisis annually but only $2.2 billion has been made available from all government sources for global AIDS this year. The Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB, and malaria (The Global Fund) is an independent funding mechanism to channel resources to programs focused on prevention, care, support, and treatment including on the well-being of orphans and on programs that deliver desparately needed AIDS drugs to people living with HIV/AIDS. For more information, see: www.globalfundatm.org.

The Fund is intended to compliment existing programs, not recreate the wheel. Soon, however, the Fund is expected to be bankrupt unless donor governments are willing to invest their fair share in stopping global AIDS. Although the US enjoys approximately 25-30% of global wealth, its contribution of only $300 million to the Fund makes it the least generous donor of all the worlds' richest governments. Now is a critical time for the US to invest significantly in the Global Fund, because doing so will encourage major contributions by other donor countries, thus increasing the Fund's impact.

To date, over 20 million people have died of AIDS worldwide. Some 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS today-most in the developing world where resources to respond and health infrastructure are limited. Today, like every other day, some 13,000 people will become newly infected and more than 8,000 people will perish due to AIDS. This crisis is unfolding with the full knowledge of the international community. Business as usual will not halt this disease. The global AIDS pandemic requires a massive scaling up of international financial resources so that proven programs can be implemented and expanded. The United States must lead this global partnership by investing at least an additional $700 million (for a total of $1 billion this year) toward the Global Fund in the 2002 emergency spending bill.