PHA-Exchange> 19 - In preparation of the People's Health Assembly II

[Claudio]

What the People's Health Movement (PHM) has to achieve in Cuenca, Ecuador,
next July, is by no means simple. There are many important competing areas
and topics that require a clear pronouncement/position by our grassroots
organizations' constituency.

Among other, I suggest the following are some of the key defining topics
facing us in 2005. It is good we all begin thinking about these individually
and in groups in preparation of PHA II.  You are very welcome to comment on
these and to submit ideas to this server for corrections and additions.

> -Paulo Freire and the 'conscientization' movement: relevance for our
activists' work.

> -Equity and Human Rights in health.

> -Health and economic development.

> -Health and Globalization.

> -Nutrition, health and Human Rights.

> -The new Human Rights approach of the UN.

> - Health and land reform.

> - Health, rights and demographic trends in developing countries.

> -Foreign aid, debt: How do they affect health?

> -Development ethics and ideologies: the last 40 years and why it has all
worked so poorly for Health for All.

> - Health activism: networking and coalition building.

> -Genuine people's participation in Health for All Now: what will it take?

> -Health, development work and community-centered programs.

> - Health interventions as tools of empowerment.

> -What is really empowering?

> -Women's role in Health for All Now and in development in general:  what
is really empowering for them?

> - Health and small scale income generation programs: are they related?
how?

> - Health  and rural credit for women: related? how?

> -Making sense out of the myriad of "World Reports"  (World Developement
Report, State of the World's Children, The Progress of Nations, State of the
World-Worldwatch Institute, SCN Report on the state of the world's
nutrition, etc.): good diagnoses with pitiful follow-up?

> -Sectoral World Declarations and Health Rights (three  Rome declarations
on food issues since 1984; Rio, Copenhagen, Beijing, Cairo Declarations):
good intentions and pitiful follow-up?

> - Health  and sustainable development.

> - Health and Human Rights in emergencies and armed conflicts.

> - Health and Human Rights in the times of AIDS.

> - Health for All Now: NGOs and civil society; the need for NGOs to
'revision and remission'  their mandates to regain an activist's role as
true allies of the poor.

> -20th century Science, Ethics and Politics and their legacy/effects on
Health and  wellbeing the world over.

> -Corruption, bureaucracy, accountability and transparency and the role of
the actrivist.

> - Health status and income distributio; what is the relation?.

> - Activism work as a life-long career.

> -The political economy of ill-ealth and malnutrition.

> - Health for all Now in 2005: What new needed commitments?

> -The role of donors in worldwide foreign aid in health: blessing or curse?

> -The role of government in the battle against  violations of the right to
health.

> -Technocrats and activists in health and development work: Were do you
stand?

Claudio