NEWS - EU NEWS
Human Rights Council endorse harm reduction and access to essential medicines
CPME publication date: Wednesday, October 28, 2009The UN Human Rights Council, the highest political body in the UN dealing specifically with human rights, has adopted two resolutions of considerable importance to harm reduction – HIV/AIDS and human rights, and access to essential medicines. These resolutions recognise that harm reduction is a part of a rights based response to HIV/AIDS and that access to essential medicines is a component of the right to the highest attainable standard of health. This puts the Council in line with ECOSOC and the General Assembly and highlights again the isolationism of the CND on these critical issues.
The UN Human Rights Council calls upon all States, United Nations programmes and specialized agencies, and
international and non-governmental organizations to continue to take all necessary steps to
ensure the respect, protection and fulfilment of human rights in the context of HIV/AIDS, as well as to assist developing countries, in particular
least developed countries and those in Africa, in their efforts to prevent the spread of the
epidemic of HIV/AIDS in their populations. The UN Council also calls for destigmatisation, prevention and education.
And urgest all Statues to eliminate gender inequalities, gender-based abuse and violence, and to work for the empowerment of women and girls to have
control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality
The UN Human Rights Council Recognizes that access to medicine is fundamental to the right to enjoy the highest
attainable standard of physical and mental health and stresses the responsibility of States to ensure access to all, without discrimination, of
medicines, in particular essential medicines, that are affordable and of good quality. It calls all States to take the necessary steps, including
international agreements to ensure this right.
back to EU News Index