PHA-Exchange> Communication - E1 - Coordinator PHM Secretariat

[Aviva]

.From: "Community Health Cell" <sochara at vsnl.com>
.> Dear PHM friends,
> 
> Greetings for the New Year from the PHM Secretariat that has moved to
> CHC Bangalore, India, from GK-Savar, Bangladesh, on 1st January 2003.
> As the next coordinator of the PHM Secretariat, I look forward to an
> interesting and meaningful partnership with all of you in the next phase
> of the People's Health Movement evolution, that begins in 2003 with the
> Alma Ata Declaration Anniversary year.
> 
> 1. The opportunity to become the focal point of the new Secretariat in
> 2003 has been a great honour and milestone for CHC especially since this
> is our 20th year.  For those who do not know us - we are a community
> health resource group - a society of health professionals and health
> activists, who, for the last twenty years have been supporting community
> health action orientation of voluntary agencies, civil societies, and
> state governments, networks and people's movements.  Having worked
> closely with and through the medico friend circle, the Voluntary Health
> Association of India, the Christian Medical Association of India, the
> Catholic Health Association of India, the All India Drug Action Network,
> the Asian Community Health Action Network and the All India People's
> Science Network till 1999, it was our privilege to participate actively
> in the pre PHA mobilization process that brought together 18 National
> Networks in India to launch the Health for All Now campaign.  2500
> health professionals and activists came after 6 months of mobilization
> in four people's health trains to the first National People's Health
> Assembly at Kolkata to evolve the Indian People's Health Charter.  Then
> nearly 300 members from PHM India participated in the PHA at GK Savar.
> CHC was actively involved in facilitating all this building on our
> network of contacts since it was a symbolic expression of the goal we
> had set ourselves when CHC was initiated in 1984 - to support a people's
> health movement.
> 
> 2. Since PHA and especially in 2002, CHC has been deeply involved in
> promoting the People's Health Charter by convening the WHO-WHA lobby
> circle and also by taking PHM/PHC to a wide range of public health
> institutions and community health groups through meetings and workshops
> and publications.  The highlight of our involvement in 2002 was the
> travelling workshop through Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands,
> Germany enroute to the PHM Geneva input at WHA 2002 in May; and the
> travelling workshops through Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania enroute to the
> Global Forum for Health Research - Forum 6 meeting at Arusha, Tanzania,
> where Thelma and I joined Zafarullah, David, Mwajuma and Sudarshan in
> ensuring a strong PHM presence at Forum 6.
> 
> 3. The first two weeks have been hectic at the new Secretariat.  Soon
> after the shift, we spent a week in Hyderabad attending the Asia Social
> Forum - a precursor event to the World Social Forum in Porto Allegre,
> later this month.  Over 14000 participants from all over India and many
> parts of Asia gathered for a five day celebration on the theme 'Another
> World is possible!  Another Asia is possible!'.
> 
> Two large plenaries (2nd and 7th January), 8 conferences, 160 seminars,
> 164 workshops, cultural programmes and film festival; market place and
> street events brought together all of us in a great spirit of
> collectivity and celebration - no longer as victims of globalization but
> as protagonists of alternative development and alternative policies.
> The gathering had a large presence of youth, women and India's
> marginalised - both dalits and the adivasis, which was a sign of hope.
> The people's health movement contingent consisted of over a 100 people
> from the Jana Swasthya Abhiyan (PHM India);  19 delegates from PHM
> Bangladesh; and a few from Sri Lanka, Philippines and other countries.
> 
> PHM participants spoke in the conference on social infrastructure
> including health; on the people's panel for the seminar 'Environment and
> Health : A people's campaign', participated in the workshop on 'War,
> Conflict and Disaster' and Disaster Watch;  participated in the 'Right
> to Health Seminar and in a workshop on 'Action towards a tobacco free
> world'
> 
> All the PHM delegates participated actively in two workshop facilitated
> by CHC on behalf of JSA / PHM entitled 'Taking the PHM Forward' and the
> 'Alma Ata Anniversary Workshop - Looking back, looking ahead'.  The
> highlight of the former workshop was feedback from grassroots workers
> from Bangladesh and India who highlighted the constraints and challenges
> of primary health care innovation at community level.  The Alma Ata
> anniversary web signature campaign Health for All was launched on 5th
> January at the Asia Social Forum (separate press release) and on 7th
> January PHM also released a post ASF press release.
> 
> All of us returned home with our batteries charged and full of hope and
> enthusiasm.
> 
> 4. In the following week, the Secretariat had three visitors - Qasem
> (GK, Bangladesh) the outgoing Coordinator and Prem John (ACHAN), members
> of the funding group, who spent a day finalizing the plan of action,
> budget estimates and other nitty gritty required to operationalize all
> our plans which had been discussed at the first full core group meeting
> of PHM at GK Savar from19-22nd November 2003.  The core group now
> rechristened the 'Steering group' will continue to support the
> Secretariat giving us advise and direction.  The next news brief will
> carry the main decisions and developments in PHM relevant to all our
> members and contacts.  Zafarullah (Bangladesh) also visited us to
> discuss various initiatives of mutual interest for CHC, GK-Savar and
> PHM.
> 
> 5. This year is a very special year for PHM since it is the Alma Ata
> Anniversary year and the Steering group has decided to use anniversary
> reflections and events to reiterate our commitment to Health for All
> goal all over the world.  Next week I shall send further details about
> the evolving plans and initiatives - including the signature campaigns
> (already launched); the Alma Ata film - reviving the dream; the country
> and regional reflections, the people's health awards and the position
> paper and report on Alma Ata - at the 25th milestone.
> 
> This communication was primarily
> ? to say hello to all of you
> ? welcome you an  active interactive collaboration with the PHM
> Secretariat.
> 
> Do acknowledge this communication and let us know your ideas and plans
> and initiatives so that we can build PHM together and collectively as we
> enter 2003.
> 
> In solidarity,
> 
> Ravi Narayan,
> Coordinator,
> PHM Secretariat,
> 367 'Srinivasa Nilaya',
> Jakkasandra I Main, I Block, Koramangala,
> Bangalore - 560 034,  India.
> Tel : 091 - 80 - 553 15 18
> Telefax : 091 - 80 - 552 53 72
> Email : sochara at vsnl.com
> Website : www. Sochara.org
> 
>