PHA-Exchange> International campaign: No War! No WTO! Fight for people's health!

Sat Feb 7 17:05:29 PST 2004

Dear  friends,

Please find below a short concept paper for an important campaign in defense
of the people’s health under the slogan “No War! No WTO! Fight for people’s
health!”. This campaign was first conceptualized during an international
conference last November in Manila, Philippines and has already been adopted
by three major international networks:  the People’s Health Movement (PHM),
the International People’s Health Council, and the International League for
People’s Struggle (ILPS) – ad hoc health commission. The campaign was
presented to the public during the World Social Forum in Mumbai, India last
month but the campaign’s worldwide public launch will coincide with the
March 20 global day of protest against US occupation and war.

The succes of the campaign depends on the participation of grassroots
organizations and activists. The loose concept of the campaign enables
individuals and groups like yours to integrate their activities into a
global campaign network. We expect participants to register their approval
of the campaign concept, promote the common campaign activities like the
Health & Occupation Watch and the signature campaign, and post reports about
their activities on the central campaign website. Participating
organizations will have the possibility to use campaign materials like logo’
s, fliers, brochures etc. and can make use of the campaign website to
publish reports and pictures about their campaign related activities.

We hope that you can commit the participation of your organization or
individual support before March 1. Please feel free to contact me for
further information.

In solidarity,

For the coordinating committee,

Wim De Ceukelaire

wim.deceukelaire at intal.be

+63-919-539-5751

International Campaign

NO War! NO WTO!

Fight for People's Health

(Health NOW!)

1.       The title of the campaign is "NO War, NO WTO, Fight for People's
Health!" or "Health NOW!" for short.

2.       It is a joint campaign of the People's Health Movement, the
International People's Health Council and the International League of
People's Struggle-Ad Hoc Health Commission. The campaign may be taken up and
adapted, in a flexible way, by regional, national or local affiliates of
these three networks. The title and slogans of the campaign may be adapted
in other languages.

3.       As of now, the following organisations participate (aside from the
three networks mentioned): intal/Medical Aid for the Third World, Artsen
voor Vrede (Belgium), the Council for Health and Development (the
Philippines), the Hesperian Foundation (USA), the Health Work Committees
(Palestine) and the Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees
(Palestine).

4.       The campaign is coordinated by a Coordinating Committee (CoCo). As
of now, it is composed of Maria (IPHC, Nicaragua), Leni (CHD-IPHC
Philippines), Unni (PHM 'working circle on wars, disasters, conflicts and
humanitarian action), Bert (intal, Belgium), Delen (PHM-Philippines), Wim
(intal, Belgium), Hillel (IAC, US), Kamal (HWC, Palestine), Allam (UPMRC,
Palestine) and others who may volunteer. Among the CoCo members an e-mail
group (yahoo) will be set up. The day-to-day coordination and secretarial
work will be provisionally taken up by intal, Belgium.

5.       The campaign was first presented and promoted in Mumbai, at the
International Forum for the Defense of People's Health, at the World Social
Forum itself (during PHM seminars) and at the Mumbai Resistance 2004, on
January 14-20, 2004.

6.       The basis for this campaign is an abridged version of the November
2003 Manila conference on Challenges in Health Work amidst Imperialist
Globalization and War's unity statement:

As health workers and health advocates, we are witness to the fact that
unhampered economic globalization causes increasing poverty, while US-led
wars of aggression maim and massacre millions of people and destroy social
infrastructure and our planet Earth itself.

We therefore call on the peoples of the world to junk the World Trade
Organization and regional trade agreements with a similar character. Key WTO
agreements such as the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
(TRIPS) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) promote the
commercialization of health care and deprive the people of much needed basic
health services.

We call on the peoples of the world to oppose US-led wars of aggression.
Being launched in the guise of "wars on terrorism", they are actually waged
to strengthen the continued bid by the US for world hegemony.

The roots of poverty and ill health lie in the exploitative nature of the
world capitalist system with its grossly inequitable distribution of wealth
and resources. This global system is dependent on military power for
continuing control, thus making the world more dangerous and filled with
unspeakable suffering and death.

Let us work together towards a just and humane society that guarantees the
people's right to health. Let us add our strength to the broad people's
movement opposing imperialist globalization and US-led wars of aggression.

7.       The campaign will have a logo. The draft projects of logo that have
been presented will be improved in the sense of making them somewhat more
militant. The logo can be adapted and adjusted for local sub-campaigns.

8.       The campaign will have a website: www.health-now.org. The website
will be designed in such a way that participating organizations will be able
to post articles (open publishing). The website will be multi-lingual.

9.       The campaign will be launched on March 20, the first anniversary of
the war on Iraq and an international day of action against war and
occupation. On that day, the participating organizations make their presence
felt in the anti-war mobilizations the world over. The same day, the website
will be launched. Local press conferences may be held.

10.   The campaign sets up a Health & Occupation Watch (Health NOW) on the
health effects of war, occupation, militarization, military intervention,
etc. In a first phase (Jan.-March), the activities will be: inventarizing
existing materials; putting them together on the website; monitoring web
publications and selecting the most relevant items for our Watch. In a
second phase (starting April), a Health NOW Action Alert by e-mail can be
produced and circulated. As a third activity (July-December period), we
propose Health NOW missions to monitor and report on war & health issues in
an area of conflict (Palestine in July, Iraq in December?).

11.   The campaign will disseminate educational and campaign materials on
the WTO impositions and effects on health, e.g. against the privatization of
health services through the GATS and against the limitation of access to
essential drugs and their prohibitive prices through TRIPS.

12.   The campaign launches the following internet petition, with the option
to also use it in printed version:

We commit ourselves to fight for the realization of the following demands
that we address to national and international authorities:

1.      Stop the occupation of Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan. The
immediate withdrawal of all foreign troops. No support, in any way, to
foreign military intervention and occupation.

2.      WTO out of health. Junk TRIPS and GATS. No to all trade agreements
that harm the people's health, including the Agreement on Agriculture and
regional trade agreements.

3.      Health care, not warfare. Reduce budgets for the military and for
weapons development and production. Increase public expenditure on social
services, including health care.

Tentatively, this petition will run for about one year. Its results will be
presented at the Second People's Health Assembly, in July 2005. Intermediate
results may be presented on the occasion of important mobilizations against
war and occupation and against the WTO.

Contact bert.debelder at intal.be or wim.deceukelaire at intal.be

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