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To amplify the voices of the vulnerable, the marginalized and the excluded. |
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By: Barbara Jacobs-Small, CERN correspondent, St. Lucia.
The Soufrière community in St. Lucia is the very symbol of the land known as the Helen of the West Indies. This historic French town on the West coast boasts spectacular scenic beauty and marine and coastal diversity. It is the home of the world-renowned Pitons, as well as the island’s drive-in volcano that accommodates a large chunk of St. Lucia’s rainforest. These attract tourists on a large scale, both from abroad and from home. However tourism has had certain impacts on the age-old and thriving fishing industry in the community.
Yves Renard, Director of the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), mentioned that in Soufrière, with the growth in population, changes in the economy and the growth of tourism, many people started using the same resources for different purposes. They came into quite serious conflict with each other. Renard described some of the conflicts, which have existed in the community for quite some time. “There have been conflicts between fishermen and recreational divers, where the fishermen complained that divers allegedly were cutting their fish pots, and the diving community complained that fishermen would set their fish pots on reefs. Additionally there were conflicts between yachts men and fishermen, because yachts would be anchoring in the middle of fishing areas. Conflicts came up too because of the location of new jetty and board walk in the middle of a given fishing area. The list could go on.” Read more ...
By: Ronald Colbert, Independent Journalist
(Adapted by Jan Voordouw, Panos Institute)
“We must protect public health as well as human rights,” stated lawyer Margaret Dessources Brierre during the national forum on solidarity with people living with HIV/AIDS (PWAs), which took place from 21-23 April 1999 in Petionville, Haiti. Highlighting weaknesses in Haitian legislation in terms of protecting the human rights of infected people, she labeled HIV as a paradox.
“Discrimination, which deprives individuals of certain rights because of their state of health, is not foreseen nor suppressed by the Haitian penal code. During an epidemic, when the spread of disease must be restricted, the non-respect of fundamental personal rights must be checked in order to protect the dignity of infected people,” she remarked. She also referred to a set of international guidelines established with a view to guarantee the protection of the human rights of infected people.
In view of the extent of the epidemic and the existing legal gap concerning the protection of human rights for PWAs, lawyer Margaret Dessources Brierre recommended a huge information campaign to halt the spread of the disease. Read more ...
REPORT
The National Forum on AIDS 1999 took place from 21 – 23 April 1999 in Petionville, Haiti. This event, with a participation of more than 100 persons, was organized by Plan Haiti, the Panos Institute and the Foundation “Promoteurs de l’Objectif ZéroSIDA (POZ)”, under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP) and several other institutions working on AIDS prevention.
The Forum aimed to encourage solidarity with people living with AIDS and once again to ring the alarm on the disease. AIDS has remained an epidemic with a hidden face. The gathering allowed for a rediscovery of the disease, and was a place where infected and affected people could reconnect as human beings in their own right. One of the main points of the forum was to give space during its entire programme to men and women with AIDS. They could, without feeling any fear, declare their seropositive status. There were many moments full of emotion.
An exhibition was held in connection to the Forum. This demonstrated materials of many groups working on the prevention of the disease.
Read more ...